Whoever separates from the Jama’at and leaves obedience (to the leader of the Muslims) and dies then he dies the death of one of jahiliyya, and whoever sets out against my Ummah with his sword, and strikes the good of them and the evil of them, not keeping away from a believer due to his iman, and does not fulfil the covenant with the one who took it, then he is not from my Ummah and whoever is killed while under a flag of ignorance, getting angry for the sake of tribalism or fighting for the sake of tribalism or calling to tribalism then his death is that of jahiliyya

Prohibition of factionalism, nationalism and wanton killing

مَنْ فَارَقَ الْجَمَاعَةَ وَخَرَجَ مِنْ الطَّاعَةِ فَمَاتَ فَمِيتَتُهُ جَاهِلِيَّةٌ وَمَنْ خَرَجَ عَلَى أُمَّتِي بِسَيْفِهِ يَضْرِبُ بَرَّهَا وَفَاجِرَهَا لَا يُحَاشِي مُؤْمِنًا لِإِيمَانِهِ وَلَا يَفِي لِذِي عَهْدٍ بِعَهْدِهِ فَلَيْسَ مِنْ أُمَّتِي وَمَنْ قُتِلَ تَحْتَ رَايَةٍ عِمِّيَّةٍ يَغْضَبُ لِلْعَصَبِيَّةِ أَوْ يُقَاتِلُ لِلْعَصَبِيَّةِ أَوْ يَدْعُو إِلَى الْعَصَبِيَّةِ فَقِتْلَةٌ جَاهِلِيَّةٌ

Whoever separates from the Jama’at and leaves obedience (to the leader of the Muslims) and dies then he dies the death of one of jahiliyya, and whoever sets out against my Ummah with his sword, and strikes the good of them and the evil of them, not keeping away from a believer due to his iman, and does not fulfil the covenant with the one who took it, then he is not from my Ummah and whoever is killed while under a flag of ignorance, getting angry for the sake of tribalism or fighting for the sake of tribalism or calling to tribalism then his death is that of jahiliyya

(Ahmed)

Commentary

a. Sheikh Ibn Taymiyya said regarding this narration “(The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم) mentioned the rebels who revolted against obediance to the authority and the group of Muslims, and mentioned that if anyone of them dies then he has died the death of jahiliyya, since the people of jahiliyya did not use to appoint leaders over themselves rather each group struggled with the other. Then he mentioned the people who fought for factionalism like those who fought for tribal relations such as Qays and Yumanni, and he mentioned that whoever its killed under these flags then they are not from his Ummah”

b. There is also prohibition and condemnation of indiscriminate killing, and whosoever does that is not considered to be from the Ummah of Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم.

c. The nation state is essentially a larger version of a tribal structure, and the pride over the nation, its flags and its heritage is parallel to the tribalism of jahiliyya. To get angry, fight and die for the sake of these flags and nations is therefore as reprehensible as those mentioned in the narration.