﴿ مَا قَطَعْتُم مِّن لِّينَةٍ أَوْ تَرَكْتُمُوهَا قَآئِمَةً عَلَىٰٓ أُصُولِهَا فَبِإِذْنِ ٱللَّهِ وَلِيُخْزِىَ ٱلْفَٰسِقِينَ ﴾

“Whatever [of their] palm trees you may have cut down, [O believers,] or left standing on their roots, was [done] by God’s leave, and in order that He might confound the iniquitous.”

Those who opposed the Prophet were destined to suffer such punishment. During the siege of the Banu al-Nadir, some trees in their gardens were cut down as a matter of military strategy. This was done on the direct orders of the government. However, this was not the general rule. This was an exceptional case concerning the immediate addressees of the Prophet.