Khalifa Uthman bin Affan - The treaty of Hudaibiyah

The Quraish sent Suhail b Amr as their emissary. After considerable discussion an agreement was arrived at, and this came to be known as the Hudaibiyah pact. According to the pact there was to be truce between the Quraish and the Muslims for a period of ten years. Each party was free to make its own alliances, but they were not to resort to war. Any person who deserted the Muslims and sought refuge with the Quraish was not to be returned, but any person who escaped from the Quraish to the Muslims was to be returned to the Quraish. It was stipulated that the Muslims were to return to Madina that year without performing the pilgrimage, but they could come to Makkah the following year for performing the pilgrimage when the Quraish would vacate the city for them for three days.

After the pact had been signed, the Muslims sacrificed the animals they had brought with them; broke the camp and started on the return journey to Madina.

Reaction to the Hudaibiyah pact:
On the fact of it the Hudaibiyah pact appeared to be loaded in favor of the Quraish. Some of the Muslims, particularly Umar felt dissatisfied with the terms of the pact and gave expression to their dissatisfaction. Uthman, however, felt satisfied with the terms of the agreement. He was confident that the pact though apparently in favor of the Quraish would ultimately turn out to be against them. He said that the Quraish were fast losing their will to resist Islam, and when in pursuance of the pact the Muslims and the Quraish would come in contact, most of the Quraish were likely to accept Islam. While on the way to Madina, Allah revealed to the Holy Prophet that the Hudaibiyah pact was indeed a victory for the Muslims, as it would work to their advantage and the disadvantage of the Quraish. When the Holy Prophet told of these tidings to Umar and his other followers, all of them felt happy.

The assessment of Uthman also proved correct, for, in the period following the Hudaibiyah pact, many Quraish including such stalwarts as Khalid b Walid and Amr b Al Aas accepted Islam.