ولا عيب فيهم غير أن سيوفهم
They have no fault, except that their swords…
This opening appears to introduce an exception identifying a fault, but the continuation supplies a matter that is in fact praise. The seeming reversal strengthens the compliment. Conversely, reinforcement of blame by something resembling praise temporarily suggests a commendation before establishing a stronger criticism.
The diagnostic issue is whether the apparent exception actually praises or condemns. The mere presence of an exception particle cannot settle the classification.