File 4722/1918 Pt 8 'Mesopotamia: Situation' [‎119r] (248/995)

4
13
Telegram.
From—Civil Commissioner, Baglidad.
To—Dobbs, Foreign, Simla.
No. nil.
Dated 18th September, 1920.
Your telegram 17th September.
I am very greatly honoured by your most kind telegram. Please accept
my grateful thanks and convey them to those associated with you in sending it.
WILSON.
Office of the Civil Commissioner,
Baghdad,
Dated September 21*/, 1920.
To
Chief General Stall, G.H.Q.
As directed in your 0/2150, September 10th.
I have the honour to submit the following brief report on the salient
features of the period 1st July to 30th September. N
2. The tribal revolt opened in the Diwaniyah Division with a compara
tively trivial incident but it had been preceded by months of direct incite
ments to rebellion carried on in the first instance by the Mesopotamian League
from Syria and subsequently by an intensive agitation, the headquarters of
which were Baghdad and Karbala. The general scheme of the rising was
probably drawn up at the festival at the close of Bamadhan (lune, 1. • ,
when a number of tribal chief s and other leading men visited Karbala on pil
grimage, but it was delayed by the arrest on June 24th of Mirza Muhammad
Ridha the son of the principal Mujtahid who was the most active figure m
the local organisation and in touch with Bolshevist Russia and yth Mintata
Kamal A distinct subsidence of unrest was noticeable m the Hd ah Division,
but in Shamiyah the Shaikhs and Saiyids were not turned from their purpose
No one was however willing to take the first step and ttie> addiessed then
energies to fostering an outbreak in the neighbouring division of Diwani^ah
where for months past the tribes of the Samawah and Rumaithah d^tiicts
had exhibited a steadily increasing lawlessness which available military
resources had been powerless to check.
3 H a d Mukhif, the most influential man on the Dagharah canal took
■c-liard of the organisation of rebellion in that district. He was arrested on
June 29th and subsequently deported.
4 On June 30th, the A.P.O. of Rumaithah called m one of the para-
mount Shaikhs-of the Dhawalim tribe, Sha'lam albn insub-
renay an agricultural loan of the preceding year. Sha lan proied insut
niissfve and Captain Hyatt confined him in the Sarai, intending to despatch
him to Diwaniyah by the evening train. His tribesmen, acting on an e.x jmp e
seTa few days earlier in Samawah, broke, open the Sara, and released him
O n the following day Captain Hyatt was informed by the friendly Shaikh ot
tl e Bani “ur-aii that the Dhawalim had received orders from Shamiyah and
Dadiarah to rise and on .Tilly 2nd the railway was cut in three places, above
W blot Riunaithah and below Samawah and a relief "j” 1 “.“
Diwaniyah was intercepted and wrecked A bi,
vfonslv succeeded in getting through to Rumaithah Dom bamayah anci a
I he A P 0 and wfth the Railway staff they held out until their relief on
July 20tii. by a strong column sent down from Hill ah -No personal ammosrty
was" shown to Captain Hyatt who was given safe conduct to visit the otncei
-commanding the column. . , T ,
b The tribes of the Dagharah district was watching events and on July
4 th' one of the Radin” Shaikhs. Sa‘dun al Rasan. hoisted his war flag and
thouoh the P 0 Maior Daly, was able to take immediate action against him,
the^necesslty of relieving Ru.naithal, made further WebL
T l a <Afai Shaikhs were reluctant to rise and the A.P.U., Laptam weou,
remained at his post, in ^^TlSu the "wThichlsfcto
retire toYkiXX: the XfTf Ridaithah. The Shabanah tribe, of
SX” ‘^rHaii sEanXi’S |ulah. EXX3asTand on the
retreat of column accompanied it to TliUah. , ,,
6 . Samawah was relieved by armoured train on
provisioned by river, but it was found impossible to keep ei he, raifvay
river open and the garrison m the camp, outside the toTO, vJth ....
Captain Shelswell and his staff, were re-invested by the tribes.
T. Meanwhile the tribes, of Shamiyah. encouraged by - “ - * he
Rumaithah insurgents went into open revolt on July 13th under