Saqifah, also known as "Saqifa Bani Saeda" is where the companions of the Islamic founder Muhammad gathered on the day of his death to appoint Abu Bakr as the Caliph of the Prophet. The Shi'ites believe that Muhammad had designated Ali ibn Abi Talib as his successor; this conflict led to deep schisms in Islam and is widely believed to be the core reason for most of the setbacks Islam has faced since then, including the tragic death of Husain ibn Ali, the Prophet Muhammad's grandson.

At the Prophets death many people were distraught. Omar Al-Khattab was threatening to kill anyone who claimed that the Prophet was dead. Abu Bakr stated, "Let all those who worship Muhammad know that he is dead. Let all those who worship Allah know that he is alive and can never die."

The companions gathered to choose a caliph. The Muslim Ummah consisted of 2 main groups of people. Those from Mecca (the Muhajjar) and those from Medina (the Ansar). The people wanted to get 2 different caliph's, one for each city. Upon hearing of this Abu Bakr knew that this was wrong and went to discuss this with everyone. The Ansar wanted a caliph because it was they who did most of the battles in the recent history. He convinced the Ansar to accept a caliph from Mecca. The Ansar did all of their good works and deeds for the pleasure of Allah, not for their own glory. By arguing over this issue they were attempting to examplify their own glory. Abu Bakr nominated, Omar or Abu Obaidah to be caliph. They both denied it, knowing that with Abu Bakr present they would be inadequate to lead. Thus a consensus was reached to have Abu Bakr become the 1st caliph.

The companions insisted that it had to be Abu Bakr. He was one of the first people to accept Islam. He was the Prophet's companion when he went on Hijrah. When the prophet was unable to lead prayer, it was Abu-Bakr who lead the prayer. It was for these, along with many other reasons that everyone thought that he should be the first caliph.