Kharijite Rebellions against Ali

Kharijite Rebellions Against Ali
	Part of First Fitna
	; Political situation of the First Fitna illustrating the split that led to the Kharijite secession.
Date	657 – 661 (4 years)
Location	Arabia; Iraq; Iran; Oman; Bahrain;
Result	Victory for Ali (see Aftermath)
Belligerents
Rashidun Caliphate	Kharijites
Commanders and leaders
Ali ibn Abi Talib X; Hasan ibn Ali; Qays ibn Sa'd; Hujr ibn Adi; Ziyad ibn Khasafah (WIA); Ma'qil bin Qays; Al-Hilu ibn Auf Al-Azdi †; Yazid bin Mughafil; al-Abrash ibn Hasān; Jariyah bin Qudamah	Abd Allah ibn Wahb †; Hurqus ibn Zuhayr †; Abd al-Rahman ibn Muljam ; Al-Khirrit bin Rashid al-Naji † ; Hilal ibn Ulafa al-Taymi †; Ashras bin Awf †; Al-Ashhab bin Bashir †; Sa`id ibn Qafil †; Abu Maryam al-Sa'di †
Strength
Unknown	12,000 +
Casualties and losses
Unknown	~ 4,000 killed; 500+ captured
	3+ Muslim civilians killed by the Kharijites and 1 Christian of Banu Taghlib killed

The Kharijite Rebellions were a series of uprisings and insurgencies launched by the Kharijites against the authority of the fourth Caliph, Ali ibn Abi Talib. The movement emerged during the First Fitna when a faction of Ali's army seceded after the Battle of Siffin, rejecting the decision to seek arbitration with Mu'awiya I under the slogan "Judgment belongs to God alone."

The conflict began at Harura and reached its peak at the Battle of Nahrawan in 658. Although the Rashidun army destroyed the main Kharijite force, the movement persisted as a decentralized insurgency across Iraq, Iran, and Bahrain. Regional revolts led by figures such as Al-Khirrit bin Rashid and Abu Maryam al-Sa'di depleted the Caliphate's military resources and demoralized its tribal levies.

The period of active rebellion culminated in the Assassination of Ali in 661 by the dissident Ibn Muljam. While the Rashidun Caliphate continued briefly under Hasan ibn Ali, the internal instability caused by the Kharijite movement contributed to the eventual transition to Umayyad rule. This era solidified the Khawarij as a distinct sectarian branch within early Islam.