The Battle of Yarmuk

This battle took place in 636, lasted 6 days, and ended with the Muslims committing mass murder. It is not well known but is considered one of the most important battles in the history of the world because it was a major defeat for the Byzintine Empire and resulted in many more Islamic military conquests.

An entire book was written as part of a military book series; below are quotations from this book.

Osprey Military Campaign Series # 31
Yarmuk 636AD
by David Nicolle, DAG Publications Ltd. for Osprey Publishing Ltd. London
Copyright 1994 Reed International Books Limited. ISBN 1-85532-414-8

The battle of Yarmuk in 636 was a turning point in history. ... (page 7)

Despite a thousand years of alien Greek and Roman rule, Syria still retained its own distinctive Semitic culture. This was particularly apparent in religion. In addition to non-Christian minorities, the bulk of the population in some provinces belonged to churches regarded as heretical elsewhere in the Empire. Palestine was largely Orthodox Christian, but central and northern Syria were Monophysite - a theological difference that meant a very great deal in those days! . . . But the most alienated community was that of the Samaritans (page 9)

who, persecuted by Christians and Jews alike, had risen in support of the Sassanian Persian invaders and would soon help the Muslim Arabs.... (page 10)

Meanwhile the Ghassanids were by no means the only Christian Arab tribe. For many years Byzantium had insisted that tribes become Christian in return for Byzantine support. In Arabia itself wandering monks spread the Gospel by preaching at annual tribal fairs. Muhammad himself was a native of the Hijaz, and there were Christian monasteries in the north of this area serving as centres of Byzantine influence. More monks also sought refuge among the Christian Arab tribes during the Sassanian invasion of Palestine. Christianity was similarly spreading in Yemen to the south. Even in Oman, in eastern Arabia, Christianity had been recorded since the 4th century. Most of the people of present-day Iraq may also have been Christian by the early 7th century.

Despite the spread of Christianity among the Arabs, the Byzantines still looked upon their desert neighbours as barbarians, set apart by their nomadic way of life, and the Greeks had little real knowledge of the Arabian peninsula. Their image of the Arabs was stuck in an outdated mould, describing them as 'wild untamed beasts', 'beastly and barbarous enemies', the Old Testament 'hosts of Midian' or as agents of Divine Wrath.... (page 12)

After the Prophet Muhammad died in 632 he was succeeded politically, though not in a religious sense, by a Caliph (Khalifah) or 'viceregent', the first of whom was Abu Bakr. Very soon Abu Bakr realized that if the Muslims did not control the tribes then the Byzantines would, and raids were launched to impose Muslim authority on all Arabic-speaking peoples. ... (page 14)

In 634 the Muslims defeated a Byzantine force, killing its commander who as a Candidatos ranked as a member of the Emperor's own bodyguard. The following year's earthquake and the appearance of a sword-shaped comet apparently coming from the south would later be interpreted as omens of the forthcoming Muslim conquest.... (page 16)

The sixth and final day of the battle began with skirmishing between the formations of Gargis and Abu 'Ubaida, during which Gargis was killed. The entire Muslim army then surged forward. ... Nevertheless the Byzantines were siezed by panic: their escape was cut off. Some laid down their weapons and attempted to surrender, but the Muslims, having (page 77) suffered appalling losses, did not take many prisoners. (page 78)

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Did you notice the last sentence? Many thousands (which I got from other sources) of Byzantine troops surrendered, expecting to be ransomed or released without their weapons, but they were instead MURDERED!

This battle of Muslims against Christians lasted 6 days, in 636 AD --666!!! This is another example of the number 666 pointing us to the identity of the beast with ten horns.