Khaybar (, ) is an oasis situated some north of the city of Medina in the Medina Province of Saudi Arabia. Prior to the rise of Islam in the 7th century, the area had been inhabited by Arabian Jewish tribes until it fell to Muslim armies under Muhammad during the Battle of Khaybar in 628 CE. Climate History Pre-Islamic Before the advent of Islam in the 7th century CE, indigenous Arabs, as well as Jews, once made up the population of Khaybar, although when Jewish settlement in northern Arabia began is unknown. In 567, Khaybar was invaded and purged of its Jewish inhabitants by the Ghassanid Arab Christian king Al-Harith ibn Jabalah. He later freed the captives upon his return to the Levant. A brief account of the campaign is given by Ibn Qutaybah, and confirmed by the Harran Inscription. See Irfan Shahid's Byzantium and the Arabs in the Sixth Century for full details. 7th century As late as the 7th century, Khaybar was still inhabited by Jews, who pioneered the cultivation of the oasis and made their living growing date palm trees, as well as through commerce and craftsmanship, accumulating considerable wealth. The oasis was divided into three regions: al-Natat, al-Shikk, and al-Katiba, probably separated by natural divisions, such as the desert, Harrat Khaybar lava drifts, and swamps. Each of these regions contained several fortresses or redoubts containing homes, storehouses and stables. Each fortress was occupied by a separate family and surrounded by cultivated fields and palm-groves. In order to improve their defensive capabilities, the settlers raised the fortresses up on hills or basalt rocks. Military campaigns of Muhammad Expedition of Fadak In the year 627 Muhammad ordered the Expedition of Fadak to attack the Bani Sa‘d bin Bakr tribe, because Muhammad received intelligence they were planning to help the Jews of Khaybar. In this expedition one person was captured by Muslims, the rest of the tribe fled. Battle of Khaybar The Battle of Khaybar took place in May/June 628. The Jewish Banū *Naḍīr of *Medina, who claimed to be descendants of Aaron the priest, owned lands in Khaybar and had castles, fortresses, and their own weapons there. After Muhammad expelled them from Medina in 625, their leaders moved to their estates in Khaybar in order to prepare for war against Muhammad and to recruit the aid of Arab tribes. Muhammad first sent disguised guests to the homes of