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Are foreign ambassadors considered dhimmis, and what is the ruling on killing them, and can this be analogized to the ambassadors of the Jews, in light of their lack of covenant or assurance, and their breaking covenants, terrifying Muslims, and killing them?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The fundamental principle is that envoys are bound by treaties and are granted protection; it is not permissible to kill them. There is a distinction between a protected person (musta'man) and a dhimmi. A musta'man enters Islamic lands under temporary protection, while a dhimmi is someone to whom Muslims grant a covenant of defense in exchange for jizya (tribute). The term "People of the Covenant" (ahl al-'ahd) may refer to dhimmis or to musta'maneen. If Muslims fear treachery from a people, they must inform them of the termination of the covenant, and it is not permissible for them to act treacherously towards them.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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