Battle of Khazir, took place in August 686 near the Khazir River in Mosul's eastern environs, in modern-day Iraq
The Umayyad defeat at Khazir halted their reconquest of Iraq for five years and briefly expanded Mukhtar al-Thaqafi's Alid rule into the Mosul region.
Key Facts
- Date
- August 686 CE
- River
- Khazir River, eastern environs of Mosul
- Umayyad commander killed
- Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad
- Conflict context
- Second Muslim Civil War (Second Fitna)
- Next Umayyad Iraq invasion
- 691 CE (five years later)
- Mukhtar's fate
- Killed ~687 CE when Zubayrids took Kufa
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
During the Second Fitna, Umayyad Caliph Marwan I sought to reclaim Iraq from rivals. He dispatched an army under Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad, who advanced into Mosul. Mukhtar al-Thaqafi, leading the Kufan Partisans of Ali, deployed Ibrahim ibn al-Ashtar with a mawali-dominated force to intercept the predominantly Syrian Arab Umayyad army before it could consolidate control of the region.
The battle opened with part of Ibn al-Ashtar's forces being routed, but they regrouped and charged the Umayyad center. Heavy casualties were inflicted on both sides. Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad and several of his lieutenants were killed. The Umayyad commander Umayr ibn al-Hubab and his Sulami tribesmen deserted mid-battle, and scores of retreating Umayyad soldiers drowned in the Khazir River.
The Umayyad defeat was a major setback, delaying another invasion of Iraq until 691. Mukhtar extended his authority into the Mosul region, though he was killed within a year when the Zubayrids captured Kufa. Umayr ibn al-Hubab's mid-battle desertion intensified the blood feud between Qaysi and Yamani tribal factions within the Umayyad Caliphate, fueling further inter-tribal violence.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Ibrahim ibn al-Ashtar.
Side B
1 belligerent
Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad, Umayr ibn al-Hubab, Humayd ibn Hurayth al-Kalbi.