Coll 28/97 ‘Persia. Diaries. Tehran Intelligence Summaries’ [‎76r] (151/749)

THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY’S GOVERNMENT
' .— nv\
March 25, 1943.
PERSIA.
With the Compliments
Section
y of State '
Affairs
Copy No. 11 5
TE 1734/110/34 E
Sir R. Bullard to Mr. Eden.—(Received March 25.)
(No. 76.)
HIS Majesty’s representative presents his compliments to His Majesty’s
Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and has the honour to transmit
herewith a copy of Intelligence Summary No. 8 for the period of 17th to
23rd February/i943, compiled by the military attache to this legation.
Tehran, February 23, 1943.
Enclosure.
Military Attache's Intelligence Summary No. 8 for the Period
February 17-23, 1943.
/Secret).
Political.
Persian A ff airs.
1. The new Cabinet is composed as follows : —
Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior—Ali Soheilv (F.O. 203.
M.A. 283).
War—Sipahbod Amir Ahmadi.
Commerce and Industry—Mahmud Bader (F.O. 41, M.A. 51).
Communications—Abdul Hussein Hajhir (F.O. 80, M.A. 104).
Justice—Ali Asghar Hikmat (F.O. 85).
Foreign Affairs—Muhammad Said (F.O. 182. M.A. 252).
Education—Ali Akbar Siassi.
Posts and Telegraphs—Nasrullah Intizam (F.O. 92, M.A. 121).
Health—Amanullah Ardalan (F.O. 27, M.A. 33).
Food—Not yet appointed. 4—^
Agriculture—Not yet appointed.
Without Portfolio—Seyid Muhammad Tadayyun (F.O. 207. M.A. 288);
Hussein Sami’i (F.O. 185, M.A. 254).
With the exception of the Prime Minister, the Ministers are probably as good
a selection as can be made in present circumstances.
2. The programme of the Cabinet has been announced as the supply of food,
the stabilisation of prices, the improvement of the welfare of peasants, workers
and Government employees, and co-operation with Great Britain, America and
the U.S.S.R. The Government received a vote of confidence on the 21st February
by 89 votes to nil, but previous to this there had been a stormy session in which
some Deputies were in rebellious mood. Attacks were made on Mr. Sheridan, the
American Adviser to the Ministry of Food, and on Mr. Birkle, the British
Adviser to the Road Transport Department. The right of American troops to be
in Persia was challenged, since America was not a party to the Tripartite Treaty
of Alliance. The Prime Minister stated that the American Government had
agreed to make an agreement to regularise the position of their troops.
Economic.
3. Tehran is on the verge of starvation. The daily death rate has trebled.
A complete breakdown of bread supplies has been averted more by luck than
management, and the bread issued is almost undatable. In Sultanabad, wheat
supplies are at the point of exhaustion. In Meshed there has been an influx to
the town of hungry villagers, causing a shortage of Government bread supplies
and demonstrations against the authorities for having failed to issue tea. sugar
and cloth rations for the past month. In Maragheh (in Azerbaijan) there have