File 3300/1916 Pt 2 'Aden News Letters:- (Jan. 1917-Dec. 1917)' [‎283r] (565/620)

it a wav with - ^ oo
50th Weekly Letter.
1 9
r
Dated Aden Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. , the 16th December 1916.
From—The Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. at Aden,
T °~ J ' E ' Departm;nt S<1 '’ ^ t0 GOTe “ °f Bombay, Political
1, P i e ^ e See P a [ a g ra Pj 1 4 of Weekly Letter dated 18th November 1916 The
Fadh Sultan complains of hostile measures against himself at the ha nrl« +h V ^
Yafa people. (This state of things is chronic ) Hem
to him to mterrupt traffic on thefoads, but thit he giZttem vasl”mpt ^He
reiterates his demand for his stipend, but I hear on a fairly good authoritv that
he deputes men monthly to Lahej to draw his emoluments from the Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. there
Further he says that a ong while ago he asked us to send troops to defend hffii
gainst the Turks, but that we did not comply and that therefore we should not
blame him for defending him self against Turkish rapacity. This he effected
ca^rLTst^ J he quotes the Arabic Saw “ Avo.cf fighting thoL you
2. With regard to last week’s news, there has come down to Aden from Sabia
the capital of the Idns.’s domains one Kadi,-Shaikh Abdallah al Amudi He
says that the reports are current o the Imam Yahya and his son being at variance
and J;he reason assigned is that the son is partial to the tribesmen of Hashid on
whom the Imam mainly relies and is averse to his father’s Turkish proclivities
his son Muhammad insisted on a release of the hostages of the Hashid his father
had taken in accordance with the Arab custom\ latner
In this connection a Zaidi tribesman who has travelled to Aden declares that
e Imam s son proceeded against San a with 30,000 men (one must allow for
Semitic exaggeration) and laid siege to the town for some days and that the Turks
and inhabitants came out with sacrifices (Arabic Trwa) to propitiate the young
Imam who accepted the same. It is said hearing this the Imam Yahya ordered
his son to withdraw from San a which he did, and returned home It is difficult
at present to discover what hand, if any, Imam Yahya had in this contretemps.
To revert to the story of the Kadi of Sabia above. This gentleman believes
a r/approctynent between the Idrisi and the Imam is feasible ; that the Idrisi is
inclined to mike advances but lacks a mediator. The mutawwif Yahya left on
the 13th instant for Jizan (Idrisi) as an emissary of Amir Huseinof Mecca and he
will sound the Idrisi and try to elicit his feelings towards this desired reconciliation
I have further urged on the Idrisi that the time has now come for him to lav aside
his personal differences. * J
The House of the Abdali has an old established friendship with the Imamate
of San a and the present incumbent who has no little influence in the Yemen —
despite the unfortunate day of 4th July 1915—and has corresponded largely with
Imam Yahya will, I believe, be of some assistance to us at this juncture. J
The Sabia Kadi reports some difficulty over the Hajur tribesmen who are
partly under the Idrisi and partly under the Imam.
The Idrisi gunners have arrived and will be trained at once. On their return
to Jizan, the Idrisi has asked for the training of a second batch.
Dated Aden Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. , the 16th (received the 26th) December 1916.
Endorsed by the Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. , Aden.
Copy forwarded, with compliments, to the Deputy Secretary to the Government
of India in the Foreign and Political Department, Delhi.
G. M. Press, Simla.—No. C655 F.D.—3-1-17 - 16 B.A.
ENCLOSURE IJ
INDIA FOREIGN SLOJiLTAiii.’. 1