Abu Muhammad al-Sufyani

The last Umayyad caliph, Marwan II (r. 744–750), imprisoned Abu Muhammad until releasing him at the end of his reign, when the Abbasids routed his army at the Battle of the Zab in 750.

[1] He adopted the epithet 'al-Sufyani' as both a reference to his descent from Caliph Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan (r. 661–680) and a claim to being the early Islamic messianic figure, al-Sufyani.

Abu Muhammad's claim was embraced by many in Islamic Syria, particularly the people of Homs, who believed him to be a messiah-like figure who would destroy the rising Abbasid Caliphate.

[2] Despite an initial victory against the Abbasids led by Abd al-Samad ibn Ali at Qinnasrin, Abu Muhammad's forces were defeated near Homs.

The Abbasid commander Bassam ibn Ibrahim attempted and failed to capture Palmyra, but Abu Muhammad fled again, this time heading for the Hejaz (western Arabia).

Abu Muhammad's revolt, though short-lived, was the most significant threat the Abbasids faced in the period immediately following their successful revolution against the Umayyads.