The Role of his Children in the Migration
In the narrations, it is stated that according to the agreed arrangements, Hazrat Abu Bakr’s (ra) astute son, Hazrat Abdullah bin Abi Bakr (ra) would come to Cave Thaur in the evenings and inform them about the daily activities of Mecca. He would receive instructions and then at dawn he would return to Mecca discreetly as if he spent the entire night in Mecca. Furthermore, the wisdom of Aamir bin Fuhairah was such that after he gave them goats’ milk, he would bring back the flock of goats in a way that it would conceal the footprints of Hazrat Abdullah bin Abi Bakr (ra).
(Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab Manaqib al-Ansar, Bab Hijrat al-Nabi (sa), Hadith 3905) (Ibn Hisham, Al-Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, Vol. 1-2, p. 289, Dhikr Hijrat al-Rasul, Dar al-Kitab al-Arabi, Beirut, 2008)
Some biographers have written that Hazrat Asma (ra) would bring food each night.
(Ali bin Burhan al-Din al-Halabi, Al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 2, Bab Ard al-Rasul (sa) Nafsih [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2002], p. 54)
However, this seems highly unlikely. Given the dangerous circumstances at the time, some biographers state that for a woman to visit there [Cave Thaur] each night would be akin to exposing the entire plan, and this indeed is a correct viewpoint. Furthermore, since Hazrat Abdullah bin Abi Bakr (ra) was visiting each day, there was no need for Hazrat Asma (ra) to bring food. Nonetheless, Allah knows best.
Three days passed by in this manner. When the people of Mecca searched all the surrounding places and returned unsuccessful, they consulted with one another and announced a large reward; they sent town criers to each nearby settlement to make the announcement that whosoever brought back Muhammad (sa), dead or alive, would receive a reward of 100 camels. The greed of such a large reward reinvigorated many people to set out in search of the Holy Prophet (sa).
(Ali bin Burhan al-Din al-Halabi, Al-Sirah al-Halabiyyah, Vol. 2, Bab Ard al-Rasul (sa) Nafsih [Beirut, Lebanon: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, 2002], p. 54)