the Moslems opened the Jâbiyah gate by force and made their entrance through it. Abu-ʿUbaidah and Khâlid ibn-al-Walîd met at al-Maḳsalâṭ which was the quarter of the coppersmiths in Damascus. The same spot is mentioned in a poem by Ḥassân ibn-Thâbit under the name of al-Bariṣ:
"He who calls at al-Bariṣ for a drink,
[is given the water of Barada mixed with dainty wine]."[1]
According to other reports, one night the Greeks carried out through the Jâbiyah gate a corpse. A number of their brave and armed men accompanied the funeral. The rest of them stood at the gate to prevent the Moslems from opening it and entering until their Greek comrades should have returned from the burial of the dead man, thus taking advantage of the Moslems' state of unmindfulness. But the Moslems knew of them and fought with them at the gate a most fierce and bloody conflict which ended in the opening of the gate by the Moslems at sunrise. Seeing that abu-ʿUbaidah was on the point of entering the city, the bishop hurried to Khâlid and capitulated. He then opened the Sharḳi gate and entered with Khâlid, with the statement which Khâlid had written him unfolded in his hand. Regarding that, certain Moslems remarked, "By Allah, Khâlid is not the commander. How could his terms then be binding?" To this, abu-ʿUbaidah replied, "Even the lowest of the Moslems can make binding terms on their behalf." And sanctioning the capitulation made by Khâlid, he signed it, not taking into account the fact that a part of the city was taken by force.[2] Thus all Damascus was considered as having capitulated. Abu-ʿUbaidah wrote to ʿUmar regarding that and forwarded the message. Then
