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And when a party of them, namely, the hypocrites, said, 'O people of Yathrib!, namely, the region of Medina (it [Yathriba] is a diptote because of its being a proper noun and because of the [morphological similarity it bears to a] verbal form) there is not a stand [possible] (read muqām or maqām) for you [here], in other words, no place to stay and no [strategic] position, so turn back, to your dwellings in Medina - they had set out with the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" towards the foot of a mountain outside Medina for battle. And a group of them [even] sought the permission of the Prophet, to turn back, saying, 'Our homes are exposed, unprotected and we fear for them'. Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He, says: although they were not exposed. They only sought to flee, from battle.