What is the legal status of a Muslim's property seized by non-Muslims and subsequently recovered by Muslims before division of spoils?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Jihad
Primary text
If the property of a Muslim is seized by non-Muslims, and then the Muslims gain victory and take possession of it, the original owner has the primary right to reclaim it without payment, provided the property has not yet been distributed among the army. This is the opinion held by the majority of scholars, including Umar, 'Ata, Al-Nakha'i, Salman bin Rabi'ah, Al-Layth, Malik, Al-Thawri, Al-Awza'i, Al-Shafi'i, and the School of Opinion (Ahl al-Ra'y). The evidence for this is the report concerning Ibn 'Umar, whose runaway slave, taken by the enemy, was returned to him by the Messenger of Allah without it being included in the spoils, and similarly for his horse.
Supporting text
Al-Zuhri holds that the property should not be returned to the original owner but rather belongs to the army, arguing that the enemy gained ownership through conquest, making it spoils like any other property they possessed. A second view regarding property discovered after division states that the owner has the right to reclaim it by paying the price it was valued at in the distribution, a view attributed to Abu Hanifa, Al-Thawri, Al-Awza'i, and Malik.