'Lord Curzon's Notes on Persia' [‎662r] (1325/1386)

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In effect, a short time afterwards, Sheikh Obeidullah himself crossed
preceding ones.
the frontier at the head of several thousands of men, and ravaged the district of
Oroomiah.
Troops were then sent against these barbarians; their defeat was both prompt and
complete. They crossed the frontier in the greatest disorder, after having lost a
considerable number of combatants. The Persian Ambassador then asked that the
passage of the fugitives on Ottoman territory should be prevented. This time again
the Sublime Porte promised, and left its promise unfulfilled. Sheikh Obeidullah and
his two sons were able to cross the frontier at the head of their hordes. When back
on Ottoman territory, the Kurds returned home, after having divided the booty, without
being in any way disturbed.
No commentary is required on the preceding facts.
To-day heavy responsibilities rest both on those who, while able to prevent the
misfortune, have allowed it to take place, and on those who, voluntarily or by negli
gence, have suffered criminals for whom the hardest punishment would be insufficient
to go unpunished. ,
The Government of His Majesty the Shah asks that justice shall be done, that
the Sheikh Obeidullah and his two sons shall be expelled from those countries, and
put on their trial; that the Kurds of these districts shall be disarmed, that communi
cations between the Ottoman and Persian Kurds shall be prevented ; that the Persian
Kurds who have taken refuge on Ottoman territory shall be delivered up to the
Persian Government, in conformity with Article V of the last Treaty of Erzeroum. .
The Persian A mbassador considers it useful to add that, from private information
which has reached him, the Ottoman authorities, far from taking preventive measures
to put a stop to these occurrences, have even encouraged their authors, and that now
they will do nothing to prevent their recurrence. Moreover, in spite of the repeated
complaints of the Persian Ambassador, the tone of the Turkish press on this question,
which represents not public opinion, but that of Government circles, confirms suffi-
ciently this information.
No notice was taken of this step of the Persian Ambassador; for not only, inten
tionally or by negligence, was no step taken to ward off the danger, but the danger was
even increased by Hamza A gha, another Persian Kurdish Chief, being set at liberty: he
had taken ic ugein turkey, and had been arrested for crimes committed on Ottoman
territory and sent to Constantinople, where he had been under police supervision for
nearly five years. Hardly was Hamza Agha set at liberty when he returned to Persia
and placed himself in communication with the Sheikh Obeidullah. Encouraged by
the latter, he incites the Menghour tribe, of which he was the Chief, and the other
neighbouring tribes, to revolt. As these relations of the Kurds, Persians, and
Ottomans made daily progress, and became more and more threatening, the Persian
Ambassador, nearly five months ago, made a further representation to the Sublime
Porte, and drew attention to a gathering of nearly 5,000 Kurds, ready to make inroads
on Persian territory.
The Persian Ambassador received the most formal assurances from the Sublime
Porte that the Kurds assembled on the frontiers of the two States would be dispersed,
but, as before, these assurances were not carried into effect.
Under these circumstances, Hamza Agha, on a very futile pretext, gave the signal
of revolt, crossed the frontier, and proceeded to Sheikh Obeidullah, who was awaiting
him at the head of several thousands of men armed with Martini-Henry rifles. Hamza
Agha and the two sons of the Sheikh Obeidullah took the command of these barbarian
hordes, and penetrated into the Province of Azerbaijan, which they ravaged in an
indescribable manner. Nearly 6,000 persons were massacred, after having suffered
the most frightful tortures and outrages: women were violated, their breasts cut off,
the other portions of their bodies mutilated ; old men and children were burned; the
crops carried off or destroyed. In a word, the whole Mussulman and Christian popu
lation underwent, without grace or mercy, the most horrible sufferings. One’s mind
is terrified before so many horrors.
On instructions which he had received from his Government, the Persian Ambas
sador asked the Sublime Porte to stop all communications between the Ottoman and
Persian Kurds. This fresh step of the Persian Ambassador had the same fate as the