Anas reported God's Messenger as saying, “Go in God’s name, trusting in God, and adhering to the religion of God’s Messenger. Do not kill a decrepit old man, or a young infant, or a woman; do not be dishonest about booty, but collect your spoils, do right and act well, for God loves those who do well.”*
When we were with God’s Messenger on an expedition he saw some people collected together over something and sent a man whom he told to see what these people were collected around. When he came and told him they were round a woman who had been killed he said, “This is not one with whom fighting should have taken place.” Khalid b. al-Walid was in charge of the van, so he sent a man to tell him not to kill a woman or a hired servant.
At the battle of Badr 'Utba b. Rabi'a came forward followed by his son and his brother and cried out, “Who will engage in single combat?” Some young men of the Helpers responded to his call, but when he asked them who they were and they told him he said, “I have no use for you; I want only my cousins on my father’s side.” God’s Messenger then said, “Get up, Hamza; get up, ‘Ali; get up, ‘Ubaida b. al-Harith.” Hamza went forward to ‘Utba, I went forward to Shaiba, and after two blows had been exchanged between ‘Ubaida and al-Walid they wounded one another severely; so we turned against al-Walid, and when we had killed him we carried ‘Ubaida away.
Abu Usaid reported God’s Messenger as saying at the battle of Badr, “When they come near you shoot at them, but do not draw your swords till they are close upon you.”
