Qays–Yaman war (793–796)

War of the Watermelon
DateFirst outbreak: 793 CE
Second outbreak: 796 CE
Location
Result
Belligerents
Mudhari (Qaysi) tribal federation Yamani tribal federation
Abbasid Caliphate
Commanders and leaders
'Amir ibn 'Umara al-Murri Ja'far ibn Yahya al-Barmaki
Casualties and losses
600 dead 800 dead (excluding Abbasid army casualties)

Between 792–793 and 796 a Qays–Yaman war (also referred to as the War of the Watermelon) took place in Palestine and Transjordan between the northern Arab tribal federation of Mudhar, also called Nizar or Qays, and the southern tribal confederation of Yaman and their Abbasid allies. The conflict may have begun as early as 787/88, though specific outbreaks of the war are largely dated to 793 and 796. Some violence by Bedouin raiders in the Judean Desert also erupted in 797, though it is not clear if this was directly related to the Qaysi-Yamani conflict.