'Sherif of Mecca.' [‎2v] (4/8)

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From Laitli tbey came by land to Jedda.
It should he noticed that the Harb tribes are in deadly earnest against
the Turco-German alliance, and have warned the Turks that should any
Germans dare come into llarb land they will be killed at once.
On hearing of the above-mentioned partv of German officers, the Harb
Arabs watched them on their return journey and fell upon them near .ledda
and killed eight of them. The rest having escaped by night in a sanbnk to
Jedda, took sanbuks thence and returned north to Kl Wagh.
In Shaaban 1333 (.lune 1915) arrived at Medina 16 Turkish battalions
with a new Wali. The Harb Arabs met the Wali and told him that they
could not suffer the llejaz to be involved in the Great War for the sake of
the Germans; that there was no need for troops in El llejaz, and that
therefore they should return northward. The Wali having attempted
to proceed southwards, the llarb Arabs lired at the troops and killed four
soldiers.
Ali, the son of the Slier if of Mecca, was then at Medina. lie was asked
by the W ali to intervene and settle the matter.
The Wali had to swear on the Koran that he had no Germans among his
officers, that lie would take no hostile steps against El Hejaz, and that the
troops were intended for Yemen and Xejd. The Wali then proceeded with
the troops to Mecca and thence to El Taif. The road between Jedda and
Mecca had been cut by the llarb Arabs, days before messenger left Jedda.
On his way here from Port Sudan, messenger was told that the Turks
had sent two battalions from El Taif to Jedda.
If this is true it shows that the revolt of the llarb tribes has taken a
serious turn, and that the troops were sent down to quell it.
A WaJihahl revolt against the Turks.—Laie in Shaaban 1333 (early in
July 191')), the Sherif llosayn received a letter from a Wahhabi chief of
Nejd, six days east of El Taif, telling him that he should drive away the
Turks from llejaz, and that should he fail to do so, he himself will proceed
with a large army to the Hejaz and drive them out himself.
Pour spies from the Wahhabi chief are now m prison in Mecca. It is
said that this chief paid allegiance to El Idrisi, and that he is supported by
great tribes of Kahtan and Yam.
The Turks of El Yemen and El /Jr/s/.—Before leaving El Taif early in
Ramadan, a messenger arrived from the W'ali of Yemen to the Wali of
Hejaz asking for reinforcements and money.
No reinforcements of troops could be sent to Yemen after the appearance
of the Wahhabi chief in Nejd, but the W'ali despatched five boxes of money
containing 100,000/.
This money was to leave Jedda in a sanbuk to Lohaiya on 14 Ramadan.
On his way here messenger gave this information to El Idrisi's people at El
Wasb and tlie British Consul at Kainran, and to the captain of the British
ship that transported him to Suakin.
When at Kamran he heard that El Idrisi had a great victory over the
Turks on 10th Ramadan in which his losses were only four men killed while
the Turks losses were :—hundreds of men killed and wounded, one big gun
costing them 22,000?., one fort, seven villages, four officers and 40 men
taken prisoner.
On ^8th Ramadan while at Kamran he heard the guns firing from
morning till evening. This was a great battle fought by El Idrisi against
tin 4 1 urks ami their Arab allies the Haig, and he has great reason to believe
that El Idrisi has won that battle.
Besides his stationary army, El Idrisi has four armies of 10,000 men each,
under the following great chiefs ;—
Mohammed Taher of Sabia.
Ibrahim Sirhan of Sabia
Yehia Um Thawab, Sheikh of Abs tribe.
Sayed Arar, Sheikh of Arar tribe.
1 he Turhish Forces in I'JI Hejaz and 1 emen. —Messenger does not know
the exact number of troops in El Hejaz and Yemen, nor the names of