of the major cities; they do not permit one rak'ah. Those among them who said one rak'ah only permitted it at the time of intense fighting, and those from whom we have narrated the prayer of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), most of them did not diminish it below two rak'ahs. Ibn 'Abbas was not among those who accompanied the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in his expeditions, and he did not know that except by reporting from others; thus, taking the report of those who attended the prayer and performed it with the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) is more appropriate.

Section: And whenever he performs the Fear Prayer with them without fear, his prayer and their prayer are invalid, because it does not exclude separating from one's imam without an excuse, leaving the following of one's imam in three pillars, or shortening the prayer while his imam completes it; all of these invalidate the prayer, except for separating from the imam without an excuse, concerning which there is disagreement. If their prayer is invalid, the prayer of the imam is invalid, because he prayed as an imam for those whose prayer is invalid, unless he prays two complete prayers with them; in that case, his prayer is valid, as is the prayer of the first group, and the prayer of the second group is based on the following of the one performing an obligatory prayer by one performing a supererogatory prayer, which we have supported as being permissible.

317 - Issue: He said: (And when the fear is intense, and they are in a state of close-quarters combat, they pray on foot or mounted, facing the Qibla or otherwise, performing gestures. They begin the takbirat al-ihram facing the Qibla if they are able, or otherwise).

If the fear becomes intense and the fighting escalates, they may pray however they are able: on foot or mounted, facing the Qibla if they are able, or otherwise if they are not. They perform the bowing and prostration according to their ability, making the prostration lower than the bowing. They move forward and backward, strike and thrust, charge and retreat, and they do not delay the prayer from its time. This is the opinion of most scholars. Abu Hanifah and Ibn Abi Layla said: He does not pray during close-quarters combat, nor while walking, because the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not pray on the day of the Trench and delayed the prayer.