Assassination of Uthman

Assassination of Uthman
Assassination of Uthman
Location	Medina, Arabia, Rashidun Caliphate, present-day Saudi Arabia
Coordinates	24°28′12″N 39°36′36″E / 24.47000°N 39.61000°E
Date	17 June 656
Target	Uthman
Attack type	Assassination
Weapon	Sword
Deaths	1 killed, ; 1 injured
Victim	Uthman

Uthman, the third caliph from 644 to 656, was assassinated at the end of a siege upon his house in 656. Initially a protest, the siege escalated following the death of a protester. The protesters-turned-rebels had demanded a new caliph, but Uthman refused and on 17 June 656 (35 AH), as his house was set alight, some protestors were able to jump to the back of his house, where they found him reading the Qur'an. They gave him a blow over the head and pierced him through his stomach.

The assassination of Uthman had a polarizing effect in the Muslim world at the time. Questions were raised not only regarding his character and policies but also the relationship between Muslims and the state, religious beliefs regarding rebellion and governance, and the qualifications of rulership in Islam.^[1]

^ Valerie Jon Hoffman, The Essentials of Ibadi Islam, pg. 8. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2012. ISBN 9780815650843

[1] Valerie Jon Hoffman, The Essentials of Ibadi Islam, pg. 8. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2012. ISBN 9780815650843

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