'Administration Report of the Persian Gulf Political Residency for the Years 1915-1919' [‎41r] (88/396)

\
fairly strong night raid on December 9tli. After the beginning of 1916 they
gradually dropped active hostilities: a few shots were fired at the outposts at
night occasionally at the beginning of the year, but even that ceased after April.
During the early part of the year, however, while the hostile Khans were
still active, the Military authorities contemplated punitive raids against them,
and possibly some attempt to release the prisoners at Ahram. During March
atwl the greater part of April the " Mashilba " or low lying ground between
anji Bushire Island and the mainland was too wet to admit of guns and wheeled
ino^ trausport going across, By the 27th April, however, the ground had hardened
and a reconnaissance in force was carried out by the General Officer Commanding
to see whether guns and motor lorries, etc., could operate on the other side. In
the course of this the force was fired on by the enemy who were in some
trenches near Ohaghadak village which was destroyed and the towers domolished.
This move caused a good deal of excitement and alarm among the hostile
Khans, as was evidenced by the fact that Ghazanfar-us-Sultaueh, Khan of
Borasjun, got Eath-ul-Mulk (who had recently seized the Government of Shiraz
on behalf of the Qawam) to send a telegram saying how loyal and friendly
Ghazanfar was and also got Soulet himself to write to the Darya Begi in the
same strain. Ghazanfar himself wrote declaring that he had disarmed the
30 Gendarmes at Borasjun. It was, however, decided that any punitive raids
would do more harm than good, and might endanger the Shiraz prisoners at
Ahram. Consequently the garrison at Bushire remained passive for the rest
of the year and no steps whatever were taken against the hostile Khans who
have so far remained unpunished. Events in the .Hinterland from this date
till the 20th August were entirely connected with the fate of the Shiraz pri
soners at Ahram (see below).
After the exchange of the prisoners, on the 10th August, the road was
opened and Tangistanis and other tribesmen (except well-known dangerous
characters) were allowed to enter Bushire freely. The Shiraz road was opened
and traffic soon began to pass up and down freely.
On the 17th December, however, this was upset by the Nasir-i-Diwan
(hereditary Kalantarof Kazerun) suddenly seizing the Gendarmerie barracks and
occupying them. His men captured a gun and some arms and ammunition
and supplies belonging to the South Persia Bifles, which had recently taken
over the Gendarmerie. This incident, of course, upset everything and, at the
end of the year, the road to Shiraz was closed and trade suspended. It was
found that Nasir-i-Diwan was in close collusion with the hostile Khans, and
directly after this coup he demanded reinforcements from them. Thus the
end of the year found the Bushire Hinterland as disturbed as ever, but with
the focus of disturbance shifted from Borasjun to Kazerun.
The end of last year found Major O'Connor, and the male members of
c ,. . the British Colony at Shiraz captives in
_ sw pr ' 80,w ' s ; _ the hands of Zair Khidhar at Ahram.
The British authorities had also some 15 to 20 prisoners, captured at
Zangena, on the 9th September 1915, including Khalu Hussain, a Dashti Khan,
and Zair Hussain, a nephew of Zair Khidhar.
It was decided, however, that no negotiations should be entered into with
the Khans for the exchange of prisoners. On two occasions the Khans made
overtures for the exchange of Khalu Hussain and Zair Hussain, but these
proved abortive as orders were received on each occasion that the individuals
named would only be exchanged for Major O'Connor, and the Khans did not
wish to waste their trump card.
About the middle of April the Khans sent letters offering to exchange
the prisoners on certain terms. These were, however, not acceptable as the
principal condition was that the Khans should receive pardon for their former
crimes.
Mr. Pettigrew of the Indo-European Telegraph Department, one of the
prisoners, died on the afternoon of the 27th April. According to Dr. Azzopardy,
one of the other prisoners who was released by the Khans on account of illness
and who arrived at Bushire on the night of 30th June, death was due to angina
pectoris.
B 2
POR THE YEAR 1916. 3