Utba ibn Abi Sufyan

ʿUtba ibn Abī Sufyān ibn Ḥarb was a member of the Umayyad ruling family and served as the Umayyad governor of Egypt in 664–665, during the reign of his brother, Caliph Mu'awiya I.

Life

Utba was a son of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb of the Banu Umayya and Hind bint Utba ibn Rabi'a ibn Abd Shams. Under Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab (r. 634–644), he was charged with collecting the sadaqat (tribute) from the Kinanah tribe based around Mecca. He sought to use the money collected from them towards trade. He fought alongside most of the Quraysh led by the Islamic prophet Muhammad's wife A'isha against Muhammad's cousin, Caliph Ali (r. 656–661), in the Battle of the Camel near Basra in 656. In the immediate aftermath of Ali's victory, Utba took refuge with A'isha and avoided giving allegiance to Ali. He soon after managed to escape to Damascus, where his brother, Mu'awiya ruled as governor of Syria. In the alliance negotiations between Mu'awiya and Amr ibn al-As, Utba pressed his brother to accept Amr's offer of recieving the lifetime governorship of Egypt in return for his support against Ali. Utba was later part of Mu'awiya's retinue during the Battle of Siffin against Ali in 657. Mu'awiya became caliph in 661 and appointed Utba to lead the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in March 662. He led the Hajj again in February 667 and January 668.