Enmity of the Persians & Christians towards him
Similarly, Dr Muhammad Hussain Haikal, who is another historian, writes in his book:
“Ever since the Muslims were able to overcome the Iranians and Christians, and took the reins of governing their nations, and forced the Persian emperor to flee after defeating him, the Iranians, Jews and Christians were harbouring sentiments of malice and rancour in their hearts for the Arabs in general, but especially for Hazrat Umar (ra). Even at that time, people had mentioned this malice and rancour and when they found out that the Abu Lu‘lu‘, who had attacked Hazrat Umar (ra), was Iranian, they recounted the time when Hazrat Umar (ra) said, ‘I had stopped you from dragging any faithless person into our home, yet you did not heed my words.’
“The population of these non-Arabs and faithless people in Medina was very small, yet there remained a small following of people whose hearts were brimming with anger and vengeance and whose bosoms were raging with the fire of malice and rancour. Who knows; perhaps these people conspired together and Abu Lu‘lu‘ acted in accordance with the plan hatched by these enemies of Islam to satiate their thirst for expressing their malice and enmity. They thought that by doing so, they could shatter the unity of the Arabs into pieces, thereby weakening the strength of the Muslims. The sons of Hazrat Umar (ra) were very restless to uncover the truth. They could have got to the bottom of the matter and uncovered this secret if Abu Lu‘lu‘ Feroz hadn’t committed suicide. However, by committing suicide, he took this secret to his grave; but did this end the matter once and for all, leaving no other way of uncovering it?”
This historian, who believed that this was all a scheme, further writes:
“On the contrary, destiny so decreed that an Arab leader would learn of this scheme and bring it to light. When Hazrat Abdur Rahman bin Auf (ra) saw the blade with which Hazrat Umar (ra) was martyred, he said that he had seen that very blade the day before in the possession of Hormuzan and Jufainah. He asked them what they would use the blade for. They replied that they would use it to cut meat because they did not touch meat with their hands. Then, Hazrat Abdur Rahman bin Abi Bakr (ra)said that when he passed by the killer of Hazrat Umar (ra), Abu Lu‘lu‘, he saw that Jufainah and Hormuzan were secretly conversing with him.
“When he suddenly approached them, they fled, at which time a dagger fell between them. It had two blades with a handle in the middle. Upon this, he stated that they should examine the dagger used to martyr Hazrat Umar (ra). When people saw the dagger, they realised that it was the very same dagger described by Hazrat Abdur Rahman bin Abi Bakr (ra).”
The historian further writes:
“As a result, there remained no doubt that both testimonies proved to be true, and were in fact the most reliable from among the Muslims. They testified that the knife used to martyr Hazrat Umar (ra) was in the possession of Hormuzan and Jufainah. One of the witnesses stated that before Abu Lu‘lu‘ committed the murder, he saw him plotting with the other two and according to both witnesses, this all happened on the night before Hazrat Umar (ra) was attacked in the morning. In light of this, is there any doubt that the Leader of the Faithful was the victim of a conspiracy that was spearheaded by these three people? It is also possible that there were other Iranians or people from other nations that were conquered by Muslims, who were also part of this conspiracy.
“When Hazrat Ubaidullah bin Umar (ra) heard the testimonies of Hazrat Abdur Rahman bin Auf (ra) and Abdur Rahman bin Abi Bakr (ra), he perceived the entire world to be covered in blood. In his heart, he was convinced that every resident of Medina who had come from a foreign land was a part of this conspiracy and that they all had blood on their hands. He immediately took his sword and first killed Hormuzan and Jufainah. It is narrated that he called out to Hormuzan and when he came outside, he asked him to take a look at his horse, and then moved aside. As Hormuzan passed by him, he struck him with his sword.
“When the Iranian realised that there was an attack, he proclaimed, ‘There is no god but Allah’ and fell to the ground. It is narrated that Hazrat Ubaidullah bin Umar (ra), who was the son of Hazrat Umar (ra), said, ‘Then I called upon Jufainah who was a Christian from Hira and the foster brother of Saad (ra) bin Abi Waqas [they had been suckled by the same wet-nurse]. It was due to this relation that Saad (ra) brought him to Medina, where he would teach others how to read and write. When I struck him with my sword, he made a mark of the cross in front of his eyes.’
“Hazrat Abdullah’s (ra) other brother was no less enraged by the martyrdom of his father, and no one was more furious than the Mother of the Believers, Hazrat Hafsah (ra).
“In any case, what he did was not permitted by the law; no person has the authority to personally seek retribution and to take back their rights; rather, the ultimate decision was left to the Holy Prophet (sa) and his successors after him. They would arbitrate justly among people and would order for the criminals to be punished. Thus, when Hazrat Ubaidullah (ra) learned about this plot which ultimately resulted in the loss of his father’s life, he should have sought a decision from the Leader of the Faithful. If this plot was proven to be true, then he would have ordered for them to be punished, and if this plot did not prove to be true, or if the Leader of the Faithful, (i.e. the new Khalifah), had any doubt about it, then he would have issued a lighter punishment or he would have decided that Abu Lu’lu’ alone was to be held responsible.”
(Muhammad Husain Haikal, Al-Faruq Umar – translated by Habib Ash‘ar [Lahore, Pakistan: Islami Kutub Khana], pp. 869-872)
In any case, what he did was not his lawful right. In short, it was not outside the realm of possibility for this to have been a premeditated plot, but owing to circumstances of that time, it may not have been possible for Hazrat Uthman (ra) to conduct an investigation immediately. But regardless of the circumstances, the early historians are silent about this matter. There is a debate amongst the historians of today regarding this, based on the circumstances of that time, and there seems to be some validity to their arguments, because the plot did not just end here; rather, Hazrat Uthman (ra) was also martyred as the result of a similar plot. This in fact further solidifies the point that in an attempt to halt the growing strength and victories of Islam, and in order to fulfil their burning desire for retribution, there were external forces who hatched a plot and martyred Hazrat Umar (ra). Allah knows best.