Abdullah ibn Sa'd ibn Abi Sarh

Apostate Scribe, Forgiven

Abdullah was once a scribe of revelation, then apostatized. At the conquest of Makkah, his foster brother Uthman brought him to the Prophet ﷺ and interceded silently; after a long pause, the Prophet ﷺ accepted his repentance. 1 Seerat-e-Mustafa · Vol 3 · pp. 61–62 — Idris Kandhlawi — Abdullah ibn Sa'd ibn Abi Sarh forgiven on Uthman's intercession at the conquest of Makkah.

Conqueror of Egypt and North Africa

Under Umar he served in the army, and under Uthman he was made governor of Egypt. He led the conquest of Egypt-Alexandria a third time after it had fallen to the Romans, and conquered most of North Africa in 27/28 AH — each soldier of that victorious army received three thousand dinars of the booty. He also led the first naval expedition in Islam. 2 History of Islam · Vol 1 · pp. 386–387, 411 — Najeebabadi — Abdullah ibn Sa'd ibn Abi Sarh's conquests of Egypt and Africa; first naval expedition.

The Siege and After

He set out from Egypt to relieve Uthman during the siege, but heard the news of his martyrdom in Palestine. Afterwards he refused bay’a to either Ali or Mu’awiya, and spent his last days in Asqalan, where he died praying. 3 Seerat-e-Mustafa · Vol 3 · pp. 61–62 — Idris Kandhlawi — refuses bay'a to Ali or Mu'awiya; dies praying in Asqalan.