"ملف 61/14 VI (D 50) العلاقات بين نجد والعراق" [و‎‎٨‎٤] (٨٣٠/١٨٨)

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[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
EASTERN (Arabia).
CONFIDENTIAL.
March 19, 1928.
Section 2.
[E 1458/1/91] No. 1.
Consul Stonehewer-Bird to Sir Austen Chamberlain.—{Received March 19.)
(No. 29.)
Jeddah, February 27, 1928.
I HAVE the honour to transmit herewith a translation of a letter from Ibn Saud
dated the 7th February.The letter, a summary of which was communicated to you
in my telegram No. 7 of the 26th instant, is most disappointing in that Ibn Sand,
while expressing appreciation of His Majesty's Government's sympathy and desire to
promote an understanding, states his inability to meet Colonel Haworth. ^ )
2. Apart from this refusal, the main interests in the letter lies in Ibn Sauds
protest against the use of aeroplanes in his territory. He regards such action as a
breach of his sovereign independence. . . ,
3. While reasserting his friendship for Great Britain, he protests against British
policy in Iraq and Transjordan, a policy in his opinion unduly favourable to the
Shereefs. He instances (i) the Treaty of Mohammerah, and (2) the lack of zeal
displayed by British officials in insisting on the punishment of raiders instigated by
Feisal and Abdullah.
4. He maintains his attitude with regard to the establishment oi a post at
Busaiyah. He was unwilling to sign the Uqair Protocol and would not have done so,
had he not been convinced that thereunder free access was guaranteed to wells
normally frequented by his tribesmen. In spite of his feeling ot icsentment at this
breach of treaty obligations ho has restrained bis tribesmen and discountenanced
Feisal-ed-Doweish's action. If he has delayed in sending a punitive expedition against
the latter, it is because he has no assurance from Iraq that refugees will not be
harboured
5. He maintains that the further outbreak of raiding was due to the threat to
use aeroplanes against his tribesmen and to the Iraq Premier's expressed desire to send
an expedition into Nejd. i--, j ■ n a
6. The dropping in his territory of bombs and proclamations had remilamed tne
passions of the tribesmen and placed him as a friend of Great Britain in an impossible
position. He could not hope to silence his subjects in the face of this insult to them. ^
7. The fears of the Nejdis are further increased by information that a post is
being built at Mudawara. Mudawara is in territory exclusively inhabited by Nejdis
and in which the frontiers have not yet been fixed.
8. Ibn Saud sums up by a formal protest against:
(1.) The breach of the Uqair Protocol by the building of posts on the frontier. _
(2.) The endeavour by Iraq officials to incite Nejd tribesmen to rebel against him.
(3.) The crossing of the Nejd frontier by aeroplanes and the dropping of
crossing
warnings,
(4.) The breach of
inhabitants.
(5.) The building of a post at Mudawara
international law involved in the bombing ot peaceful
9. The King ends his letter with an expression^ of his confidence that His
Majesty's Government will carefully study the points of his protest and will endeavour
to extricate him from the impossible position into which he has been thrust by the
policy pursued in Iraq.
I have &c.
F. 11 W. STONEHEWER-BIRD.
[399 t—2]
* Not printed.