[2][5] After succeeding his father as king of the Lakhmids, in his capacity as the client and proxy of the Sasanian Empire he was engaged in several wars against the other powerful tribal groups of northeastern Arabia, such as the Bakr, Taghlib, and Tamim.

As a result, Amr broke the peace by launching raids against his pro-Byzantine counterpart, the Ghassanid king al-Harith ibn Jabalah (r. 528–569).

According to Shahîd, it appears that at that time, the Byzantine government tacitly consented to give the Lakhmids the desired subsidies to maintain the peace between Byzantium and Persia.

[1][8][9] Some time after that he received the Yemeni magnate Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan, whose family dominated the Hadramawt, and who had come to ask for Sasanian aid in overthrowing Aksumite rule over Yemen.

according to the narratives included in the history of al-Tabari, Amr took him with him to an audience with the Sasanian ruler, Khosrau I, who was indeed persuaded to send an expedition to Yemen which quickly conquered the country.

[13][14] The Arabic sources highlight Amr's energy and warlike nature, but also his cruelty, which was legendary: according to a well-known story, he sent the poets al-Mutalammis and Tarafa to the governor of Bahrayn bearing sealed letters with orders for their execution.

Rothstein points out that Muharriq was a common name among the Lakhmids, and the name of a local pre-Islamic deity, so that it may simply reflect a dedication of Amr in his childhood to this cult.