File 5257/1919 'Persia: the Military Commission' [‎36r] (76/534)

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The greatest source of anxiety in this area are the Lurs of Luristan. They are
numerous, from 60,000 to 90,000 armed men, who are brave and turbulent. They
are, however, divided into numerous sections, many at feud with each other, and
unlikely to unite, unless and until the Persian Government decides to open up this
part of the country, either for purposes of better communication with Mesopotamia
#• or for other reasons. The Lurs have no settled habitations and move in the autumn
from the highlands south of Kermanshah to the warmer regions in and near
Arabistan, returning in the spring. Of the two main divisions of the Lur tribes,
the Pish-i-Kuh (the easterly) and the Pusht-i-Kuh (the westerly), the latter are under
some control, the Vali of the Pusht-i-Kuh controlling their brigandage and remitting
to the central government a certain amount of taxes. Members of both, however,
engage in brigandage at a distance from their own region.
The Bakhtiaris, adjoining on one side Luristan and Arabistan and on the other
Pars and Isfahan, form one of the most important tribal groups in Persia. Though
divided into numerous sections, they are a fairly homogeneous body. With the excep
tion of a few small sections, who are addicted to robbery on the roads in the
neighbourhood of Isfahan and Burujird, they are well under the control of their
Khans. The Bakhtiaris are capable, if they wished to, of being a serious menace
to the Government, but their chiefs have no quarrel with the Government and are
capable of keeping their followers in order. They are said to possess a total of
some 30,000 armed men. The Kuhgalus, to the south of and now controlled by the
Bakhtiaris, are believed to be capable of producing 15,000 armed men, and are a
possible source of insecurity.
The portion of this area lying to the east of the tribal regions is inhabited by a
peaceful and settled population.
The main trade routes in the area are the following :—
(a.) Ispahan-Kashan, leading to Tehran.
(&.) Ispahan-Yezd.
(c.) Ispahan-Shiraz.
Pontes of lesser importance are:—
(d .) Mohamerah-Shuster-Khurammabad.
(e.) Ispahan-Ahwaz (the Lynch road).
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The last named lies through the heart of the Bakhtiari country and is dominated
by that tribe.
14. Southern Area .—This is an area, the internal security of which will be for
some time a serious military problem. It is, moreover, a problem which must be
solved as the security of the trade routes from the ports on the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. to the
interior of the Empire are vital to the prosperity and progress of Persia. The area
is mainly a tribal one, but interspersed among the nomadic tribes are some sedentary
ones, while in places there are also non-tribal agricultural inhabitants.
The tribal population comes under three main heads :—
(i.) The Qashgais.
(ii.) The Khamseh tribes.
(iii.) Smaller tribal groups such as the Tangistanis.
The Qashgais are the most important and are said to be capable of producing
30,000 armed, though the greatest number they have been known to collect in one
place has been 5 , 000 . It is during their annual migration from their summer to
their winter locations that they cause most unrest and damage to the country. The
fact, however, that they acknowledge a single chief helps to set limits to their
pillaging tendencies.
The Khamseh tribes, numbering some 15,000 armed men, are also dominated by
a single chief, the Qawam ul Mulk. Their summer and winter locations are, however,
at considerable distances from each other, and they therefore traverse considerable
areas during their annual migrations, and not only pillage these areas but prevent
any settled agriculture being undertaken there.
The smaller tribes of Pars indulge in pillage mostly in regions outside the area
of the province. The Tangistanis, occupying themselves a difficult country, make a
speciality of pillaging the Bushire—Shiraz road, sometimes completely preventing
traffic on this route.
The important trade routes in this area are (1) the Bushire—Isfahan road,
running through Borasjun, Kazerun, Shiraz, Dehbid and Abadeh, and (2) the Shiraz—
Bunder Abbas road running through Niriz and Gakum.