This plan being adopted, they made a vigorous assault, in which they had as hard fighting as any in all the wars of Syria.  The besieged made a noble defence, and threw stones from the walls in such plenty that a great many of the Saracens were killed and a great many more maimed.  Youkinna, encouraged with his success, determined to act on the offensive and turn everything to advantage.  The Saracens looked upon all the country as their own, and knowing that there was no army of the enemy near them, and fearing nothing less than an attack from the besieged, kept guard negligently.  In the dead of night, therefore, Youkinna sent out a party who, as soon as the fires were out in the camp, fell upon the Saracens, and having killed about sixty, carried off fifty prisoners.  Kaled pursued and cut off about a hundred of them, but the rest escaped to the castle with the prisoners, who by the command of Youkinna were the next day beheaded in the sight of the Saracen army.  Upon this Youkinna ventured once more to send out another party, having received information from one of his spies (most of which were Christian Arabs) that some of the Mussulmans were gone out to forage.  They fell upon the Mussulmans, killed a hundred and thirty of them, and seized all their camels, mules, and horses, which they either killed or hamstrung, and then they retired into the mountains, in hopes of lying hid during the day and returning to the castle in the silence of the night.  In the mean time some that had escaped brought the news to Abu Obeidah, who sent Kaled and Derar to pursue the Christians.  Coming to the place of the fight, they found their men and camels dead, and the country people making great lamentation, for they were afraid lest the Saracens should suspect them of treachery, and revenge upon them their loss.  Falling down before Kaled, they told him they were altogether innocent, and had not in any way, either directly or indirectly, been instrumental in the attack; but that it was made solely by a party of horse that sallied from the castle.  Kaled, having made them swear that they knew nothing more, and taking some of them for guides, closely watched the only passage by which the sallying party could return to the castle.  When about a fourth part of the night was passed, they perceived Youkinna’s men approaching, and, falling upon them, took three hundred prisoners and killed the rest.  The prisoners begged to be allowed to ransom themselves, but they were all beheaded the next morning in front of the castle.

The Saracens pressed the siege for a while very closely, but perceiving that they made no way, Abu Obeidah removed the camp about a mile’s distance from the castle, hoping by this means to tempt the besieged to security and negligence in their watch, which might eventually afford him an opportunity of taking the castle by surprise.  But all would not do, for Youkinna kept a very strict watch and suffered not a man to stir out.