Wednesday, 29 April 2026 (12 Dhuʻl-Qiʻdah 1447 AH)
Question: A group of people travelled and, near the end of the night, they encountered on their way a group of highway robbers who blocked the road against them and pointed their machine guns at the driver’s head. Then some companions of the driver came upon the robbers from behind them and surrounded the highway robbers. Is it permissible in this situation to kill the highway robbers, bearing in mind that in such a situation the robbers are trying to attack the travellers by any means if they can?
The answer – and Allah is the One who grants success – is that Allah, exalted is He, has permitted the killing of those who are in such a state, and that is:
1. For the sake of self-defence.
2. Because of the corruption they cause among the Muslims by cutting off the road and looting wealth.
In such a situation, they should not be left alone nor allowed to go free when there is the ability to deal with them, because of the general corruption that there is in that for the Muslims. This situation does not require authority or the permission of the ruler of the Muslims, for Allah, exalted is He, has granted a general permission to defend oneself and to repel corruption and evil and remove it. He, exalted is He, said: “The recompense of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is that they be killed or crucified…” [al-Māʾidah:33].
Yes, getting rid of the highway robbers in such a situation is either from the door of self-defence or from the door of ḥisbah (enjoining right and forbidding wrong).
In such a situation, the door of ḥisbah is open. The people of knowledge have said that it is obligatory to repel evil deeds by whatever means is possible, when one has the ability to do so – especially in what relates to defending the Muslims, their interests, and the security of their routes.
If it is said: It has been narrated from the Prophet (May Allah bless him and his family and grant them peace) that he said, with a meaning close to this: “Do not initiate fighting them until they initiate fighting you.” And it has been narrated from the Commander of the Faithful (Peace be upon him) that he would not initiate fighting in his battles against his opponents; rather, he would restrain his companions’ hands from fighting until he saw killing among them, saw blood flowing from their wounds, and heard their clamour and cries because of the abundance of wounds.
We say: Highway robbers have a ruling different from the ruling of disbelievers and rebels. From this angle Allah, exalted is He, said: “The recompense of those who wage war against Allah…” (the verse), and He introduced it with a particle of restriction and limitation, indicating that, regarding them, attention is not to be paid to anything other than killing, crucifixion, and so on – except if they come repentant from highway robbery, on condition that their repentance is before having power over them. As for their repentance when there is control over them and power over them, it does not benefit them and, in Allah’s ruling, it is not a repentance; such a repentance does not ward off from them killing, crucifixion, and so on.
This is unlike the case of rebels and disbelievers: if they repent when they are under control, their repentance is accepted and it becomes obligatory to lift the sword from them.
Moreover, in the case of highway robbers, by their cutting off the road, aggression, transgression, and initiating hostilities have already been realized on their part, so there is no contradiction between what we have said and what has come in the ḥadīth.
Source: Min Thimār al-ʿIlm wa al-Ḥikmah vol.2