Coll 28/97(1) ‘Persia. Diaries. Tehran Intelligence Summaries.’ [‎124v] (248/807)

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At a special meeting of the Majlis held on the afternoon of the 17th November
the President of the Assembly, in moving the adjournment of the house in honour
of the deceased, delivered a moving oration describing the death of Ataturk as a
great calamity not only for the Turkish people but also for Iran and the Iranians.
The Assembly, all standing, observed a two-minute silence and then adjourned.
The diplomatic and public galleries were crowded. I
Following the news of the late President’s death, His Imperial Majesty the
Shah has ordered Court and official mourning for a period of one month, and has
also despatched a delegation to attend the funeral ceremonies at Angora. The
Iranian delegation is as follows : —
His Excellency Khalil Fahimi (Foreign Office Personalities, No. 76),
Iranian Ambassador to Turkey nominated as Envoy Extraordinary to the
funeral.
His Excellency Sar Lashgar (Major-General) Ahmed Nakhchevan
(Military Attache’s Personalities, No. 193, Foreign Office Personalities,
No. 139), Acting Minister of War.
Sartip (Brigadier) Kupal (Military Attache’s Personalities, No. 155,
Foreign Office Personalities, No. 114).
Sarhang (Colonel) Arfa (Military Attache’s Personalities, No. 37,
Foreign Office Personalities, No. 30).
A detachment of three officers and fifty-two other ranks of the Pahlavi Guard
Regiment, with colour party.
It may be recalled that Kemal Ataturk was the host of His Imperial Majesty
the Shah when the latter paid a State visit to Turkey in the summer of 1934.
The only foreign visit that the Shah has as yet undertaken. From that date
the friendship between the two rulers ripened. It is without doubt largely due
to Ataturk s fearless example that the Shah has been emboldened to carry out
the reforms now in vogue in Iran, especially that of the emancipation of women.
4. Internal Security.
(i) Reference Intelligence Summary No. 23 (current), paragraph 11 . The
trial of the fifty-three persons for alleged participation in a Communist
conspiracy has at last been concluded. All the accused have been found guilty.
Nine of the principal accused have been sentenced to ten years’ solitary confinement
and the remainder to sentences varying from four to seven years’ solitary confine
ment. It is generally considered that the sentences are extremely harsh, as the
organisation was little more than a students’ debating society formed by students
and professional men who had studied abroad.
For the first two days of the trial the Central Criminal Courts were open to
the public, but after an unexpected outburst and protest from two of the accused
the later sittings were held in camera. Carefully edited reports were handed to
the press for publication. These contained only detailed evidence for the prosecu
tion and nothing of the defence.
(ii) At Isfahan in September and early October a large number of Armenians
and others were arrested for interrogation by the secret police. Twelve Julfa
Armenians were subsequently detained in custody for further investigation.
It is now reported that most of these have now been released, as nothing could
be proved against them.
5. British Interests.
Lieutenant-Colonel H. J. Underwood, British Military Attache, visited
Habbaniya and Bagdad from the 8 th to 15th November.
6 . German Interests.
Reference Intelligence Summary No. 23 (current), paragraph 7, lines 2
and 3. For (“ £25 million ”) read (“ £2^ million ”).
7. European Crisis.
It is learned from a reliable source that the German Legation in Tehran,
together with the local Nazi organisation, summoned a number of their countrymen
and issued instructions on how they were to act in Tehran in the event of war