English translation
2948. Narrated Ka'ib bin Mālik رضي الله عنه: Whenever Allāh's Messenger ﷺ intended to carry out a Ghazwa, he would use an equivocation to conceal his real destination, till it was the Ghazwa of Tabūk which Allāh's Messenger ﷺ carried out in very hot weather, as he was going to face a very long journey through a wasteland, and was to meet and attack a large number of enemies. So, he made the situation clear to the Muslims so that they might prepare themselves accordingly and get ready to conquer their enemy. The Prophet ﷺ informed them of the destination he was heading for.
