The Battle of Bosra was fought from June to July 634 AD between the armies of the Arab Rashidun Caliphate and the Byzantine Empire in southern Syria amid the Muslim conquest of the Levant.
Khalid ibn al-Walid's Arab reinforcement army trekked through the Iraqi and Syrian deserts to reinforce the Rashidun armies invading the Levant, taking town after town before coming across the major city of Bosra. Bosra was the capital of the Ghassanids, and it was home to a large garrison of Byzantines and Christian Arabs led by Roman officers. Khalid and Shurahbil ibn Hasana laid siege to the city, and, when Khalid demanded that the Byzantines either choose Islam, jizya, or the sword, the defenders vainly chose the sword. The ensuing battle saw the defenders nearly destroy Shurahbil's force, only for Khalid and his cavalry to come to the rescue and destroy the Roman force. Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah soon arrived with reinforcements, and the Muslims then besieged the Byzantine fortress, which surrendered after a few days of inactivity. The capture of Bosra cleared the way for the Arabs to conquer the rest of Syria, but it also led to the Byzantines preparing a counterattack which would be decisively defeated at the Battle of Ajnadayn.