The Wahhabis wanted to seize the lands ruled by the Khaleefah in order to rule these lands according to their Mathíhab (school
of thought), and suppress all the other Islamic Mathahib that differed from theirs by force. Hence, they raided Kuwait and occupied it in 1788,
then marched northwards until they besieged Baghdad. They wanted to seize Karbala and the tomb of Al-Hussein (may Allah be pleased with
him) to destroy it and ban the visiting of it. Then in 1803, they launched an attack on Makkah and occupied it. In the spring of 1804, Madinah fell
under their control. They destroyed the huge domes which used to shade the grave of the Messenger of Allah (saw) and stripped them of all the
gems and precious ornaments. Having completed their seizure of the whole of Al-Hijaz, they marched on towards Al-Sham. Nearing Homs in
1810 they attacked Damascus for a second time and they also attacked Al-Najaf. Damascus defended itself bravely and gloriously. However
while besieging Damascus, the Wahhabis moved at the same time to the north and spread their authority over most of the Syrian lands as far as
Aleppo. It was a well known fact that this Wahhabi campaign was instigated by the British, for Al Saud were British agents. They exploited the Wahhabi Mathíhab, which was Islamic and whose founder was a Mujtahid, in political activities with the aim of fighting the Islamic State and clashing with the other Mathahib, in order to incite sectarian wars within the Ottoman state.
The followers of this Mathíhab were unaware of this, but the Saudi Amir and the Saudis were fully aware. This is because the relationship was not
between the British and Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab, but between the British and Abdul-Aziz ibn Muhammad ibn Saud and then with his
son Saud.
Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab, whose Mathíhab had been Hanbali, made Ijtihad in a host of matters and deemed that the Muslims who followed
other Mathahib differed with his opinion in such matters. Hence, he set about calling for his opinions, working towards implementing them and
attacking the other Islamic opinions fiercely. He faced a barrage of opposition and rejection from the various scholars, Amirs and prominent figures, who considered that his opinions differed from what they had understood from the Book of Allah and His Messenger. For instance, he used to say that visiting the grave of the Messenger Muhammad (saw) is Haram and a sinful act. He even went as far as to say that whoever set off in a journey to visit the grave of the Messenger of Allah (saw), would not be allowed to shorten his prayer while travelling, since the purpose of the journey would be to commit a sinful act. He made reference to the Hadith in which the Messenger of Allah (saw) is reported to have said: “Journeys should only be made to three mosques: This Mosque of mine, the Sacred Mosque and Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
Likewise, the followers of other Mathahib deemed his opinions as being wrong and contradictory to what they had understood from the Book and the Sunnah. Soon, the difference between him and them intensified and he was banished from the country.
In 1740, he sought refuge with Muhammad ibn Saud, the Sheikh of the tribe of Anzah, who was at odds with the Sheikh of Uyaynah and who
lived in Al-Diríiyyah, which was only six hours away from Uyaynah. Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab was made welcome and was met with
hospitality. He started spreading his opinions and thoughts amongst people in Al-Diríiyyah and the surrounding areas. After a period of time his
thoughts and opinions gained some helpers and supporters. Amir Muhammad ibn Saud inclined towards these thoughts and opinions and started approaching the Sheikh (Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab).
