Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan

Muawiya ibn Abi Sufyan (RA) was the son of Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, the Qurayshi leader who opposed Islam for many years before embracing it. Muawiya himself accepted Islam at the Conquest of Mecca in 8 AH and served as a scribe recording the Quranic revelations — a position of great trust near the end of the Prophet's life. He narrated approximately 163 hadiths. He became the governor of Syria under Caliph Umar (RA) and later under Uthman (RA). After the civil war following Uthman's assassination, he became the founder of the Umayyad Caliphate and ruled for nearly twenty years (41–60 AH). Ahl us-Sunnah regards him as a companion whose political role is accepted as part of the turbulent realities of early Islamic history, without engaging in cursing or condemnation. He passed away in Damascus in 60 AH.