Yusuf As'aar Yath'aar Dhu-Nuwas, was the one-hundred-and-fifth Himyarite ruler of Yemen. He was the son of Tubba' Asad, who is not to be confused with the Muslim ruler Tubba' Abu Karib Asad. This Tubba' brought several Jews with him from Madinah who influenced the local population greatly. Hence, Yusuf Dhu-Nuwas was not a Muslim, but much rather, he was a convert Jew. Dhu-Nuwas came to power after he stabbed the previous Himyarite ruler, Dhu-Shanatir, a known serial killer and sexual predator, to death.
Dhu-Nuwas' advisor, a magician, told him that he should be given an intelligent boy, so that he could train him in the skill of foretelling and sihr. So, a boy named Abdullah ibn Ta'meer was brought to the private class of the advisor. Whenever Abdullah went to his teacher, he had to pass by an old Christian monk. This monk was a true believer in Allah and the uncorrupted teachings of Prophet Isa, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon Him. Abdullah sat with the monk and was very much impressed by his teachings. As a result, he would often go to the monk's house to learn from him for very long hours, before he proceeded to his teacher, the advisor's, house. The advisor was always angry because of Abdullah being late, so he would hit him with a stick. However, Allah had blessed Abdullah with such a strong faith, that he was prepared to bear any pain and persecution for the sake of Allah!
Allah had blessed Abdullah with many more miracles. He could do Karamat (miraculous things) with Allah's permission. Once a large beast blocked a road and prevented people from passing. They were perturbed. The boy, who saw this, picked a stone and prayed, “Oh Allah! If the religion of the monk is true, then kill this beast with this stone so that the people may pass. And if the soothsayer or magician is true, then the beast must not die with my stone.” So praying, he aimed the stone at the lion, threw it, and the lion bled and died instantly. News spread among the people that Abdullah possessed wonderful knowledge. A blind man heard about it, and came up to him. He asked him to restore his sight. Abdullah conceded on the condition that the blind man embraced Islam. He agreed, and so the young boy prayed and Allah restored his sight. The blind man then became a Muslim.
King Yusuf Dhu-Nuwas came to know about these incidents, and he ordered for Abdullah, the monk, and the blind man to be arrested. They were brought before the king. He ordered that the blind man and the monk be executed. He also ordered that Abdullah be taken to the summit of a mountain and be thrown from there. But those who had taken him up there stumbled, fell, and died. Then the king told his servants to have him drowned in the sea. Abdullah escaped safely, while the people who took him to the sea were drowned.
Abdullah then himself told the king how to kill him. He told him to take an arrow from his quiver and place it in his bow, and recite “La ilaha illa Allah” before shooting him. The king did so, and Abdullah died from the shot. Even though Abdullah had died, all of the King's people had seen what had happened, and news of it spread like wildfire. Everyone in his nation then declared, “We are believers in Allah!” Dhu-Nuwas was greatly enraged and, after consultation with his advisor and ministers, ordered for deep trenches to be dug and filled with fire. An announcement was then made that the people must renounce their faith in Allah. If they refuse, they would be thrown into the ditches. Eventually, a woman carrying her baby was brought to a trench, but she hesitated. Allah granted speech to her child who said: “Oh mother, be steadfast, because you are certainly on the truth.” So she threw herself in the ditch of the fire along with her baby, to be with the martyrs in paradise.
Many people were burned to death afterwards. Allah's divine wrath then descended upon the Ashab al-Ukhdud. The people in the trenches had their souls taken even before the fire could touch them. After that, the fire flared up so high that it spread out wildly through the city and burned all those who were watching the fun of burning the Muslims. The Himyarite ministers and the King's advisor were destroyed.
A man named Daws Dhu-Tha'laban, who was one of the believers, survived. Dhu-Tha'laban escaped on horse, and he went to the court of the Byzantine Roman emperor, Justinian, and begged him for help against the persecutions. Justinian pondered the matter for a moment, and then wrote a letter to the Aksumite king of Abyssinia, requesting a massive force of Christian soldiers to invade Yemen. The Aksumite king agreed to his request, and two generals, Abraha and Aryaat, were sent along with a large Christian force to Yemen.
When the Aksumites arrived at Yemen, they found out that Najran was almost entirely depopulated. They began searching every house for the king, Yusuf Dhu-Nuwas, hoping to arrest and kill him. The king, whose ministers and soldiers had perished, was in a state of extreme fear. He snuck out of the city on his horse. He then fell into the sea after his horse became tired, and he drowned. Some say it was suicide but Allah knows best.
Source:
Sahih Muslim, 3005
Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Surah al-Buruj (the entire story)
Al-Sirah An-Nabawiyyah by Ibn Ishaq (about the events after the burnings)
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