He appointed a freedman of his named Hunay over the protected pasture and said to him, "Hunay, lower your wing to the people and beware of the prayer of one who has been wronged, for the prayer of the wronged is answered. Admit the owner of the small flock and the owner of the modest herd, but keep away from me the livestock of Ibn Awf and Ibn Affan, for if their livestock perish, they will fall back on their palm groves and crops, whereas if the small flock and modest herd of these poor men perish, their owner will come to me with his sons and say, 'Commander of the Faithful! Commander of the Faithful!' Am I then to abandon them? May you have no father! Providing water and pasture is easier for me than providing gold and silver. By Allah, they think I have wronged them. These are indeed their lands and their waters. They fought over them in the days of ignorance and embraced Islam upon them. By the One in whose hand my soul rests, were it not for the livestock I send out in the cause of Allah, I would not have set aside a single span of their land as protected pasture."
أنه استعمل مولى له يدعى هنياعلى الحمى، فقال: يا هني، اضهم جناحك عن الناس، واتق دعوة المظلوم، فإن دعوة المظلوم مستجابة، وأدخل رب الصريمة ورب الغنيمة، وإياي ونعم ابن عوف ونعم ابن عفان، فأنهما إن تهلك ماشيتهما يرجعا إلى نخل وزرع، وإن رب الصريمة ورب الغنيمة إن تهلك ماشيتهما يأتني ببنيه، فيقول: يا أمير المؤمنين! يا أمير المؤمنين! أفتاركهم أنا؟ لا أبا لك، فالماء والكلة أيسر علي من الذهب والورق، وايم الله أنهم ليرون أني قد ظلمتهم، إنها لبلادهم ومياههم، قاتلوا عليها في الجاهلية، وأسلموا عليها في الإسلام، والذي نفسي بيده لولا المال الذي أحمل عليه في سبيل الله ما حميت عليهم من بلادهم شبرا.
Imam Malik narrated it in the chapter on the invocation of the wronged (1) from Zayd bin Aslam, from his father, from Umar bin Khattab, and he related it as mentioned. Bukhari narrated it in the chapter on jihad (3059) through the route of Malik, in similar fashion.His saying, "Let the owner of the small flock and the small herd enter" means the people of the small portion, permitting them to graze in the protected pasture. His saying, "Should I leave them, then?" is a rhetorical question of denial, meaning he would not leave them in need. His saying, "Water and pasture are easier" means that if their livestock perished and they came to need compensation, it would be easier to make up for it with cash to meet their needs.His saying, "They fought over it in the pre-Islamic era and submitted to Islam over it" contains evidence for those who say that when the lands of the disbelievers are conquered by force, the land belongs to the Muslims, but when conquered by treaty, the original inhabitants have greater right to it.His saying, "Were it not for the wealth which I use to provide mounts in the path of Allah" refers to the camels on which he used to mount those who had no means to ride. It has been reported from Imam Malik that the number of animals in the protected pasture during the time of Umar bin Khattab reached forty thousand, including camels, horses, and others.See Fath al-Bari (6/176–177).