A man from the Ansar named Sahl bin Abu Hathma reported that a group from his people set out to Khaybar and dispersed throughout it. They found one of their men killed, so they said to those among whom he was found, "You have killed our companion."They replied, "We did not kill him, nor do we know who killed him."So they went to the Prophet ﷺ and said, "Messenger of Allah, we set out to Khaybar and found one of our men killed."He said, "Let the eldest speak, the eldest." Then he said to them, "Can you bring evidence as to who killed him?"They said, "We have no evidence."He said, "Then they will swear an oath."They said, "We will not be satisfied with the oaths of the Jews."The Messenger of Allah ﷺ disliked that his blood should go unrequited, so he paid his blood-money himself with a hundred camels from the zakat.
أن رجلا من الأنصار يقال له سهل بن أبي حثمة أخبره أن نفرا من قومه انطلقوا إلى خيبر، فتفرقوا فيها، ووجدوا أحدهم قتيلا، وقالوا للذي وجد فيهم: قد قتلتم صاحبنا، قالوا: ما قتلنا وما علمنا قاتلا، فانطلقوا إلى النبي ﷺ فقالوا: يا رسول الله، انطلقنا إلى خيبر، فوجدنا أحدنا قتيلا، فقال: الكبر الكبر فقال لهم: تأتون بالبينة على من قتله؟ قالوا: ما لنا بينة، قال: فيحلفون قالوا: لا نرض بأيمان اليهود، فكره رسول الله ﷺ أن يطل دمه، فوداه مائة من إبل الصدقة.
Bukhari related it in the Book of Blood Money (6898), and Muslim in the Book of Qasamah (5:1669), through the route of Saeed bin Ubayd, who said, "Bashir bin Yasar Ansari narrated to us," and he mentioned it. The wording given is that of Bukhari, while Muslim abridged it. This hadith contains an abridgment by the narrators. Its fuller account is that the Prophet ﷺ first asked the Ansar for evidence. They said, "We have no evidence." He said to them, "Then you will swear oaths and thereby establish your right to the blood of your companion." They said, "How can we swear?" He said, "Then they swear." With this, the meaning of the hadith becomes clear and consistent, with no part of it contradicting another.Malik related it in the Book of Qasamah (2) from Yahya bin Saeed, from Bashir bin Yasar, that he was informed that Abdullah bin Sahl Ansari and Muhayyisah bin Masud set out for Khaybar. In this version it states that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to them, "Will you swear fifty oaths and thereby establish your right to the blood of your companion, or against the one who killed him?" This chain is connected as mentioned before, for Yahya bin Saeed related from Bashir bin Yasar just as the rest of the group did, while Saeed bin Ubayd also related from him but abridged it.