Early life Safwan ibn al-Mu'attal belonged to the Dhakwan clan of the large
Banu Sulaym tribe. His year of birth is not recorded in the sources. Most of the Sulaym inhabited the
al-Harrah region and many members of the Dhakwan lived in the city of
Mecca where they maintained close ties with the
Quraysh; Safwan was an exception among the Dhakwan and lived in
Medina. Safwan became the subject of a controversy following the expedition when he and Muhammad's wife
Aisha became separated from the caravan returning to Medina. Rumors circulated that they had an illicit affair, but the allegations turned out to be false. When Iyad reached
Harran, he dispatched Safwan and
Habib ibn Maslama al-Fihri to subdue
Samosata; after Safwan and Maslama captured several villages and forts in Samosata's vicinity, the townspeople negotiated terms of surrender with the Muslims guaranteeing their personal safety and no harm to their properties in exchange for a head tax and recognition of Muslim rule. When
Uthman became caliph in 644 he made
Mu'awiyah governor of all
Syria, Jazira and the frontier areas of these provinces. Uthman directed Mu'awiyah to continue the conquest of
Shimshat in
Armenia, a task which he delegated to Safwan and Habib ibn Maslama. However, in 678/79, Safwan's forces finally subdued Kamacha; a fellow member of the Sulaymi Dhakwan clan,
Umayr ibn al-Hubab, played an integral role in Kamacha's capitulation. Reports vary widely regarding Safwan's year of death, with one mentioning that he died fighting in Armenia in 638, and other sources, including al-Waqidi, claiming that he died as governor of Armenia in 678/79. ==See also==