I adjure you by Allah to tell me as to how many people from Aqaba were. The people said to him (Hudhaifa) to inform him as he had asked. We have been informed that they were fourteen and If you are to be counted amongst them, then they would be fifteen and I state by Allah that twelve amongst them were the enemies of Allah and of His Messenger ( ﷺ) in this world. The rest of the three put forward this excuse: We did not hear the announcement of Messenger of Allah ( ﷺ) and we were not aware of the intention of the people as he (the Holy Prophet) had been in the hot atmosphere. He (the Holy Prophet) then said: The water is small in quantity (at the next station). So nobody should go ahead of me, but he found people who had gone ahead of him and he cursed them on that day.

كَانَ بَيْنَ رَجُلٍ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْعَقَبَةِ وَبَيْنَ حُذَيْفَةَ بَعْضُ مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ فَقَالَ أَنْشُدُكَ بِاللَّهِ كَمْ كَانَ أَصْحَابُ الْعَقَبَةِ قَالَ فَقَالَ لَهُ الْقَوْمُ أَخْبِرْهُ إِذْ سَأَلَكَ قَالَ كُنَّا نُخْبَرُ أَنَّهُمْ أَرْبَعَةَ عَشَرَ فَإِنْ كُنْتَ مِنْهُمْ فَقَدْ كَانَ الْقَوْمُ خَمْسَةَ عَشَرَ وَأَشْهَدُ بِاللَّهِ أَنَّ اثْنَىْ عَشَرَ مِنْهُمْ حَرْبٌ لِلَّهِ وَلِرَسُولِهِ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَيَوْمَ يَقُومُ الأَشْهَادُ وَعَذَرَ ثَلاَثَةً قَالُوا مَا سَمِعْنَا مُنَادِيَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ وَلاَ عَلِمْنَا بِمَا أَرَادَ الْقَوْمُ وَقَدْ كَانَ فِي حَرَّةٍ فَمَشَى فَقَالَ إِنَّ الْمَاءَ قَلِيلٌ فَلاَ يَسْبِقُنِي إِلَيْهِ أَحَدٌ فَوَجَدَ قَوْمًا قَدْ سَبَقُوهُ فَلَعَنَهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ