"ملف ٢/ ٢ I التهريب بين الكويت والعراق" [و‎‎١‎٥‎١] (٤٤٤/٣٠٦)

reported to him that they had seen the Fao Customs launch
eft tlife pi evious evening, and on several occasions during
the latter part of September, moving about in most sus
picious manner between the entrance to Khor Subiyeh and
Maschan Island, and examining water boats and other
sailing craft, who make a practice of using this channel
when proceeding to and from Fao. £3ome of the islanders
further testified that they had, on one occasion, seen
the launch take shelter from a south east wind and anchor
west of the Qasr Subiyeh promontory, that is to say, actual
-ly inside the bay of Kuwait.
5* According to the Shaikh also, one or two of the
islanders whose fishing boats had been held up, volunteered
the further information that the launch crew had told them
that their role was to hold up all craft carrying merchan
dise from Kuwait to Fao (except water and fishing boats)
and convey them to Fao, and charge their owners with
smuggling and that no manifests in their possession would
y
help them, as the*e would be destroyed. This latter evi
dence however, though important and though it bears out
many other stories I have heard about the methods of Fao
preventive officers, must be taken with reserve, I think.
6. In response to the Shaikh f s enquiry as to why
they, the islanders, had not reported the presence of the
launch to Kuwait earlier, they replied that as poor
fishermen they had not dared to do so, lest their in
formation eventually come to the ears of the Fao authori
ties and they be punished by having their boats seized
and nets destroyed (Not a difficult operation on a dark
night) •
7* On the 1st and End October the Shaikh at my
request proceeded to make immediate enquiries from some
nakhudas of water boats, which had just come in from Fao.
Their evidence he incorporated in his letter of 3rd
October tome (under reference).