Besides...

Besides, Abyssinia was a well-known land to Muslims because Meccans used to make trade journeys to that land.[^78] Furthermore, people of Abyssinia were Christians; they had a lot in common with Muslims, such as belief in God. It is said that the Abyssinian people were Ya`qubian Christians who considered God as one entity and not part of a Trinity.

For this reason, they were close to the Islamic monotheism.[^79] On the Prophet's recommendation, a group of fifteen[^80] defenseless Muslims in the fifth year after the Divine Mission secretly headed for Abyssinia and arrived there through Shu`aybah port or the Red Sea. This group stayed there for two or three months.

Upon the spread of the rumor that people of Quraysh embraced Islam and ceased torturing Muslims, they returned to Mecca.[^81] However, since the torture of Muslims continued, a group of them headed for Abyssinia. This time, there were one hundred and one Muslims (both men and women).[^82] They were sponsored by Ja`far ibn Abi-talib.

With the passage of time, Muslims' migration brought about worry to the people of Quraysh who, then, dispatched an envoy to the royal court of al-Najashi, asking for the Muslims' deportation. Realizing the conspiracy, Abu-talib wrote a letter to al-Najashi asking him to protect the Muslims.[^83] After Quraysh had set forth their claim for the return of the Muslims to Mecca, Ja`far ibn Abu-talib vehemently defended the Muslims.

The king of Abyssinia was greatly moved; he consequently refused to let the Muslims go and decided to protect them.[^84] Of course, the emigrants included both the tortured ones and others from the strongest tribes whom nobody dared to punish. However, Mecca remained an area of pressure, torture and suppression of beliefs. By sending them to Abyssinia, the Holy Prophet had in mind to build up a center for struggle against idolatry. At the same time, he planned to keep Muslims out of danger.

As we know, the Muslims’ stay in Abyssinia was accompanied by Islamic propagation, because al-Najashi accepted Islam and established some relations with the Holy Prophet.[^85] Quraysh, most probably, were worried of this issue; they therefore dispatched their representatives to that area to stop such relationships.

In accordance with some documents, the Holy Prophet followed the news of the emigrants; he received the news of the apostasy and later death of `Ubaydullah ibn Jahsh.[^86] This time, the Muslim emigrants stayed there even longer.