This sura is a reference to events that happened in 570 CE, the year of the Prophet’s birth, when the army of Abraha (a Christian ruler of Yemen), which included war elephants, marched to attack Mecca, destroy the Ka’ba, and divert pilgrims to the new cathedral in San’a. The destruction of this army is cited here to encourage the believers and warn the disbelievers.
In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy
1Do you [Prophet] not see how your Lord dealt with the army of the elephant? 2Did He not utterly confound their plans? 3He sent ranks of birds against them, 4pelting them with pellets of hard-baked clay: 5He made them [like] cropped stubble.