'File 14/115 VII Annex (B 9) Abu Musa oxide: collected background material on the case' [‎86v] (183/1904)

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the Island of Abu Musa, in which he always took a particular interest, and where he
had built himself a dwelling-house and had established date plantations, he was deposed
by his nephew, the present reigning Sheikh Sakar-ibn-Khalid (called below for short,
Sheikh Sakar or Sakar). Sheikh Sakar at that time intended to drive Sheikh SaLm
out of Abu Musa by force, but was prevented from doing so by the British resident
in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. . Nevertheless Salim left Abu Musa and went to Lingah, until, in
July 1883 an agreement was made between the two sheikhs, according to which
! f Sheikh Sakar was to pay to Sheikh Salim an annual pension of 600 dollars. There-
' upon Salim returned to Abu Musa. |n 1884, however, differences again arose between
. •/ , , < the two in consequence of political intrigues of Salim against Sakar, and Sakar several
' times complained to the British resident in letters. As Salim was in financial straits
he was obliged to give in, and a second agreement was arrived at. Under this agreement
Sakar, for whose means the pension of 600 dollars previously settled was too high, granted
his uncle a pension of 400 dollars annually, half to be paid in money and half in
kind. The revenue from the Island of Sir Abu Nuair, said to amount to 200 dollars,
was also assigned to Salim. After this the relations of the two sheikhs remained
peaceful until the spring of 1889, when, as is alleged, Saiim was making prepara
tions for an attack on Shargeh. The British agent at Shargeh, however, succeeded
in reconciling the two sheikhs, and persuaded them to conclude a new agreement
(6th April, 1889). By this Sakar undertook to continue the payment of the
t/KA tM-t \ pension of 400 dollars, allowed Salim to live at Shargeh within certain bounds, and
- ; promised to treat him in other respects also in accordance with his rank. The Island
of Sir, which produced no revenue, was not mentioned in this agreement. Salim
undertook to keep the peace and to obey his nephew. The two sheikhs afterwards
lived on good terms, so that Sheikh Salar, when absent from his capital, entrusted the
government to his uncle. (Annexes Nos. 2 to 6 of the British Memorandum.)
By a document dated the 10th April, 1898 (18 Dulkade, 1815), Sheikh Salim
leased the red oxide mines on the Island of Abu Musa for an annual rent of 250 French
reals, to the British subjects, Alhaj Hassan-ibn-Ali Samaih (called below Hassan
Samaih, for short), his son Abdallah-ibn-Hassan (Abdallah, for short), and Isa-ibn-
Abdallatif (Isa, for short), son of the British consular agent at Shargeh, Abdallatif-ibn-
Abdarrahman, who represented his son in all business of the company of lessees. At
that time Sheikh Salim was Regent of Shargeh, as Sheika Sakar was absent on a
pilgrimage to Mecca. The rent was paid regularly, and received by Sheikh Salirn.' :!: "
On the 19th August, 1898 (l Eebi-el-Tani, 1316), Sheikh Sakar was received into
the company of lessees as a shareholder on an equal footing with the others. He,
however, on the 29th January, 1899, (17 Ramadan, 1316), made his share over to one
Yussuf-bin-Abdallah, who transferred it to Hassan Samaih. This share was, on
the 10th October, 1907, sold by Hassan Samaih to Thomas Brown, a British subject,
from whom it was purchased by the firm of Robert Wonckhaus and Co., of Lingah, on
the 16th October, 1907. (Annexes 3 to 4 e of the first German Memorandum.)
Previously to this, on the 1st June, 1906, a contract (Annex 5 of the first German
Memorandum and Annex 10 of the British Memorandum) had been concluded between
Hassan Samaih and the German merchant Robert W onckhaus, a partner in the firm of
Wonckhaus and Co., under which from 2,000 to 5,000 tons of red oxide were to be
delivered to Wonckhaus annually for four years from the mines on Abu Musa. The
company had also contracted with another party to deliver 400 tons a-year for five years
to India. (Annex 19 of the first German Memorandum.)
On the 21st February, 1907 (9th Moharrem, 1325), Sheikh Sakar addressed a letter
(Annex 12 of the first German Memorandum) to Hassan Samaih, in which he demanded
that the working of the red oxide mines on Abu Musa should cease. The ostensible
ground for this step is a complaint made by Isa to the sheikh that the contract for
idelivery of red oxide had been made with Wonckhaus without his sanction. There
upon a somewhat lengthy correspondence ensued between Hassan Samaih on the one
St side and Sheikh Sakar, Sheikh Salim, and the British consular authorities on the
other (Annexes 13 to 16, 18 to 20 of the first German Memorandum) until Sheikh
Sakar, in two letters of the 3rd October, 1907 (25 Shaban, 1325), one of which was
to be handed to Hassan Samaih, and his receipt obtained, in the presence of the British
consular agent at Lingah, again ordered that the work should cease. (Annexes 21 and
22 of the first German Memorandum.)
Thereupon, about the 20th October, 1907, Sheikh Sakar sent armed men to the
island, who compelled the miners to leave and forcibly prevented further work at the
mines,
* Annexes 1 to 5.