"ملخص لعلاقات الحكومة البريطانية مع قبائل وشيوخ عربستان. بقلم الملازم أ. ت. ويلسون، القائم بأعمال القنصل في عربستان" [و‎‎٢‎٩] (١٤٣/٦٢)

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Shaikh Mubarak invariably charged Yusuf bin Ibrahim with respon
sibility for the piracies, but with the exception of the “ Lapwing ” incident
nr) definite proof against the man was adduced.
Two piracies were reported to have occurred in the third week of
August on the bar of the- Shatt-al-’Arab. One of the pirated boats belonged
to Kuwait and representations were made on behalf of Shaikh Mubarak to
the local authorities.
In February 1904, a sailing vessel belonging to Karachi was attacked
and scuttled 20 miles beyond the outer buoy of the Shatt-al-’Arab, two of the
crew being killed and 400 baskets of dates and the ship’s gear being taken.
It is believed the pirates had followed the ship down the river, and attacked
her when she had got outside and out of sight of land. The Government of
India offered a reward of R1,000 for information which might lead to the
discovery and conviction of the offenders but without result.
Four minor Cases of piracy occurred on the Shatt-al-’Arab or near its
mouth—two on Bahrain and two on Kuwait boats.
During 1906, no piracies were recorded, but in the murder of
Mr. Glanville, an employe of Messrs. Lynch Brothers at M’agll near Basrah,
caused considerable stir and a gunboat was kept in the Shatt-al-’Arab during
the autumn.
In November 1906, a family of Arabs known as the “ sons of Humaidi,”
himself a noted outlaw, residing on the Dashti coast in the neighbourhood
of the port of Daiyir, pirated a Persian boat at sea between Kais Island at
the mainland at Taona. They killed all the occupants except one boy whom
they threw overboard thinking he was dead, seized the cargo valued at
R6,000 and scuttled the dhow. The wounded boy managed to reach the
shore in a half-dead condition and was eventually succoured by some residents
of Taona, who found him lying on the strand when passing from hamlet to
another. As soon as he had sufficiently recovered to make a statement he
gave an account of the occurrence. It appeared that the dhow of these “ sons
of Humaidi ” had been lying beside the pirated dhow in the dry dock at
Lingah for some days, the pirates no doubt watching what was put into her.
When the Shivuh vessel put to sea the pirate dhow followed soon afterwards
and committed the piracy the same night.
In January 1907, a Kuwait £ bum ’ en route from Basrah to Kuwait, with
a number of well-to-do passengers, male and female, failed to reach its
destination. A short time afterwards the boom appears to have stranded
on the Island of Amair on the Arab Coast, where she was salved by the
inhabitants. While reported to have borne no trace whatever of having
encountered bad weather and although her gear was intact a Corpse of
skeleton was found tied to her anchor cable and the decks of the craft were
covered with stains indicating that a bloody struggle had taken place. On
being taken to Bahrain by the salvers for sale she was recognised by some
Kuwait visitors. Circumstantial evidence regarding the movements of the
pirates about this time pointed to their having committed this outrage also
and Shaikh Mubarak was much excited when the news reached him. The
Resident made representations on the subject to the Darya Begi and as they
produced no result communicated with His Majesty’s Minister and informed
him of what had happened.
About the same time the Senior Naval Officer was asked to take H. M. S.
Cf Sphinx ” to Daiyir to make enquiries as to the precise habitat of the gang,
but neither course bore fruit. Meanwhile the Shaikh of Kuwait addressed
the Residency urging that, if the British authorities were not prepared to
arrange for the extermination of this notorious family themselves they
should permit him to send out an armed dhow for the purpose, and generally
for the protection of Kuwait craft at sea at the head of the Gulf. Fo^
several reasons Government considered that this proposal must be negatived :
at the same time they held that it was incumbent upon them to see that
other steps were taken to deal with the gang, and decided that the Persian
Government should be wi formed that, failing compliance with our reasonable
demands, His Majesty’s Government would instruct their own ships to do
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