'Kurdistan and the Kurds' [‎13v] (26/122)

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main causes of this enmity is the endeavour of Mahmud, paramount chief
of the Milli, to exercise authority over the Karakechili, who resent bitterly
his attitude. They are both herdsmen and cultivators of the land and
live on the south-west slopes of the Qarajah Dagh, between the mountain-
range and the village of Dibhassar; to the north they do not extend
beyond Severek; on one side of them are the Milli Kurds, while to the
south-west, towards the town of Uriah, are the two tribes of the Badelli
and Dnkurlu Kurds; and to the south the Jaish Arabs occupy the Jebel
Tektek. They are, in the opinion of Sir Mark Sykes, a low tribe of semi
nomads, brutal, savage, and indescribably filthy. They have a bad name
in every respect and, living along the high road, they earn an evil reputation
for Kurds from many travellers. Curiously enough, many of the Kara
kechili speak Zaza, hut between Diarbekr and the Tur-el-‘Abdin there is
also a large number of nameless, non-tribal Kurds, who apparently are
outcasts from their own clans; most of these Kurds seem to attach
themselves to the Karakechili.
The five principal tribes are shown in the following table, together
with a few further details.
Tribe.
Sheikh.
Families.
Mounted men. Rifles
1.
Balikan
Eyo Hajji Velo Agha
... 300
150
200
2.
Jerabanle ..
Husein Dervish Agha'
... 500
250
400
3.
Rezan
‘Ali Hadid Agha
... 150
50
. 100
4.
Sheikhan ..
Seyde Meo
... 500
250
400
5.
Sheikhkan ..
Al-Sheikho ibn Sheikh Bub 200
150
200
The paramount chief of the Karakechili is Abd-ul-Qadir ihn Derae;
at the end of 1918 he was imprisoned by the Turkish authorities for
attacking a neighbouring tribe and for coming to blows with the gendarmes,
hut was released in the following March. His two cousins, Mustafa Bey
and Obeidullah, though men of considerable influence, are not invested
with authority over any special tribes. ‘Abd-ul-Qadir is surrounded by a
bodyguard of troops, called the Amnan, represent ing all the tribes. During
the Balkan War this tribe contributed 250 mounted men to the Turkish
Army.
The Karakechili show a tendency to take the side of the Badelli, in
their quarrel with the Dukurlu, with whom the Jaish Arabs are allied.
Abd-ul-Qadir on the contrary is credited with a desire to join the Milli
confederacy; but the leading men are opposed to this course, some of
whom are reputed to be conspiring to replace him by his cousin Mustafa
Bey.
Derae, the father of ‘Abd-ul-Qadir, was an unyielding opponent of
Ibrahim Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. , the late paramount chief of the Milli ; when the former
died in 1910, there arose a dispute about the succession, the chieftaincy
being claimed both by his son ‘Abd-ul-Qadir, and by Mustafa Bey, the son
of his brother Khalil Bey. Though ‘Abd-ul-Qadir obtained for himself the
supreme authority, his friendship with the Milli undermined his position;