Nu'man ibn Bashir

Nu'man ibn Bashir ibn Sa'd al-Ansari (Arabic: نُّعْمَانُ بْنُ بَشِيرٍ بْنُ سَعْدٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ, romanized: Nuʿmān ibn Bashīr ibn Saʿd al-Anṣārī; c. 623–684) was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad who served as a commander and statesman. Born in Medina to the Banu Khazraj tribe of the Ansar, he was a supporter of Mu'awiya I, future founder of the Umayyad Caliphate, during the First Fitna. Nu'man fought at the Battle of Siffin in 657 in support of Mu'awiya’s cause against Caliph Ali, and in 659, he led an expedition to Ayn al-Tamr against Ali's forces. Under Mu'awiya's caliphate, he served as governor of Homs and later as governor of Kufa from 679 to 680. Following the death of caliph Yazid I, Nu'man recognized the Mecca-based caliph Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, serving again as the governor of Homs. In 684, following the defeat of his pro-Zubayrid allies at the Battle of Marj Rahit, he was pursued and slain while fleeing the city.