Coll 30/9(2) 'Persian Gulf Annual Administration Reports' [‎33r] (67/88)

by a coBiBiittee of local merchants to collect money
and wearing apparel for the Palestinean refugees who
had been settled near Basrah. Local Cinemas are
still collecting a "Palestine" charge of one anna
from the buyer of every ticket.
His Highness contributed Rs.10,000/- in
March towards the Palestine Aid Fund.
29. m . nMU *
(i) Some stir was created in the beginning
of the year by the publicity given by the Haifa and
Tehran broadcasting stations to the arrival in Tehran
and the subsequent activities of Abdullah Az Zalrahy a
young Bahraini adventurery who claimed to have been
entrusted with a message from the "Bahrain National
Party" to the effect that the people of Bahrain were
anxious to be reunited to Persia. His Highness promptly
denied Abdullah Az Zalrah's claim to represent the
people of Bahrain and asked that Haifa and the British
Broadcasting Corporation should i?sue counter statements
/is that Bahrain was and still/an independent Arab State
in treaty relation with h£s Majesty’s Government. In
this His Highness was supported by the "Onion of Youth"
of Bahrain who sent a telegram to Reuters expressing
their resentment at Abdullah Az Zairah’s impertinence.
The latter was subsequently credited with writing a
series of articles for the Tehran Newspaper "Iran-i-Ma"
and, still later, with the making of preparations to
visit America/ and present the Persian claim to Bahrain
to the United Nations Assembly. »hen last heard of f
however, he was eking out a living in a minor post in
the Saudi Embassy at Tehran and had been dropped by
Abbas Iskandari and other Persian deputees concerned In
pressing the Persian claim to Bahrain.
(ii) The Tehran Radio continued to carry
references to Persia’s claim to Bahrain which often
disturbed His Highness and led him to ask why no denials
and counter statements were issued by the and
in September he was further agitated by an Arab broadcast
from Paris that the Shah had taken advantage of his visit
to the United Kingdom to arrange with His Majesty's
Government for the Bahrain Islands to be handed over to
Iran. At the end of the year these various rumours had ri
so worked upon the Shaikh that he asked that he be given
an assurance by His Majesty's Government that it would
protect Bahrain against external aggression.
(ill) In March the Persian Government Instructed
the Bushire Post Office not to receive or re-transmit any
telegram of Bahrain origin. Of more concern was a scarcity
of meat in February caused by the restrictions imposed by
the Pe:sian Government on the export of livestock and other
commodities. With the payment by exporters of larger
bribes to Persian Officials, the restrictions were set
aside and the supply of livestock to Bahrein was resumed.
30. IIS. S OF IN IF REST .
(i) Visit of local merchants to^£^ isil .
industries fair.
In April three local merchants, Messrs. Khal?d
Aujan, the British and American Tobacco Company Agert,