Expedition of Hamzah to the Coastal Route

The Prophet dispatched Hamzah ibn Abd al-Muttalib with thirty Muhajirun riders to intercept a Quraysh caravan led by Abu Jahl near the coast of the Red Sea at al-Is. This was the first military expedition (sariyyah) sent by the Prophet after the Hijrah, and Hamzah carried the first banner of Islam, a white flag tied by the Prophet himself. When the two groups met, Majdi ibn Amr al-Juhani, an ally of both parties, mediated and prevented a confrontation. The caravan consisted of approximately three hundred Quraysh riders. Although no fighting took place, this expedition served notice to the Quraysh that the Muslims in Medina were capable of threatening their vital trade route to Syria, which passed through territory now controlled by the Prophet's alliances.