Ikhwan revolt
1927 uprising in Arabia
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The Ikhwan revolt was an uprising in the Arabian Peninsula from 1929 to 1930 led by the Ikhwan. In late 1927, the tribesmen of the Otaibah, Mutayr and Ajman launched cross-border raids into parts of Mandatory Iraq, challenging the authority of Ibn Saud.[2] The relations between the House of Saud and the Ikhwan mutineers gradually worsened, and deteriorated into an open bloody feud by January 1929.[1] The main instigators of the rebellion were defeated in the Battle of Sabilla, on 29 March 1929.[3] Ikhwan tribal rebels and troops loyal to Ibn Saud clashed again in the Jabal Shammar region in August 1929,[1] and Ikhwan tribesmen attacked the Awazim tribe on 5 October 1929.
| Ikhwan revolt | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Unification of Saudi Arabia | |||||||
Flag of Ikhwan | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Faisal bin Sultan  Sultan bin Bajad † Meqaid al-Duhainah † |
 Ibn Saud Fawzi al-Qawuqji Eqab bin Mohaya Faisal bin Abdulaziz Mubarak Al Azmi † | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 47,000[1] | 30,000[1] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
500 in Battle of Sabilla[1] 450 in Jabal Shammar |
200 in Battle of Sabilla[1] 500 in Jabal Shammar | ||||||
|
About 100 killed in the raids 700 killed in Sabilla 1,000 killed in Jabal Shammar 250 killed in raid on Awazim tribe 2,000 killed in total[1] | |||||||
Faisal al-Duwaish, the main leader of the rebellion and the Mutair tribe, fled to Kuwait in October 1929 before being detained by the British and handed over to Ibn Saud.[4] Al-Duwaish would die in Riyadh on 3 October 1931 from an apparent heart condition.[4] Government troops had finally suppressed the rebellion on 10 January 1930, when other Ikhwan rebel leaders surrendered to the British.[1] In the aftermath, the Ikhwan leadership was slain,[5] and the remains were eventually incorporated into regular Saudi units. Sultan bin Bajad, one of the three main Ikhwan leaders, was killed in 1931.[1]
Background
At the beginning of the 20th century, Arabia was an arena of tribal wars, which had eventually led to unification under the leadership of Al Saud. The main tool for achieving these conquests was the Ikhwan, the Wahhabist-Bedouin tribal army led by Sultan bin Bajad and Faisal Al Dawish.[6][7] From the Arabia core in Nejd, and aided by the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after the First World War, the Ikhwan had completed the conquest of the territory that was to become Saudi Arabia by the end of 1925. On 10 January 1926 Abdulaziz declared himself King of the Hejaz and, then, on 27 January 1927 he took the title of King of Nejd (his previous title had been 'Sultan').
Prelude
A main reason behind the eruption the revolt was the establishment of an Iraqi police fort in Busaiya, a place that was part of the Mutayri tribe's grazing grounds. After Ibn Saud's failure to prevent its construction through diplomatic means, Ikhwan fighters from the Mutayr tribe raided Busayya in late 1927, exposing their discontent with the Saudi government in public.[8] Ikhwan perceived that the Iraqi government was attempting to seize control of the scarce water resources in the desert and feared that the Iraqi government may construct a railway from Baghdad to Busaiyya.[9] Mutayri tribesmen of the Ikhwan factions had also raided Kuwait. On both occasions, they looted camels and sheep. Though they raided brutally, they suffered heavy retaliation from the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and Kuwaitis. In January 1928, British RAF began launching attacks into Saudi-controlled territories, indiscriminately attacking all the najdi tribes in the region. In late February 1928, Britain paused the bombing campaign.[10][11]
In order to settle the issue, a meeting, Al Jam'iyah Al 'Umumiyah (the General Assembly or the Al Riyadh Conference), was held by Ibn Saud in Riyadh in November 1928.[12] The participants were 800 individuals including several tribe and clan leaders who were part of the Ikhwan and significant members of religious body or ulema.[12]
In January 1929, an Ikhwan raid on the Sheikhdom of Kuwait resulted in the killing of an American missionary, Dr. Bilkert, who was traveling by car with another American, the philanthropist Charles Crane.[13] With no signs of Ibn Saud mobilizing his forces to rein in the Ikhwan and stop the raids, RAF resources were extended to Kuwait.[13]
Open revolt
Battle of Sabilla
The largest confrontation of the parties occurred in 1929, known as Battle of Sabilla, where the Ikhwan leadership were killed.[5] The battle started in the early hours on 31 March 1929.[12] It lasted only for one hour due to evident superiority of forces of Ibn Saud.[12]
The Battle of Sabilla was the last major battle of camel raiders, thus having historic importance. It had become a scene of carnage for the technologically mediocre Ikhwan against the cavalry and machine-guns of Ibn Saud's army. In the aftermath of the battle some 500 Ikhwan tribesmen died, whereas Ibn Saud's losses were about 200.[1]
Battle of Jabal Shammar
Ikhwan-affiliated tribesmen and loyal Saudi troops clashed again in the Jabal Shammar region in August 1929, resulting in the deaths of some 1,000 men.[1]
Attack on Awazim tribe
Despite their losses, the remnant of the Ikhwan tribesmen went on with their rebellion by attacking the Awazim tribe in Arabia on 5 October 1929, resulting in the deaths of some 250 individuals. eventually ending the Ikhwan regime
Final accords
Faisal Al Dawish fled to Kuwait in October 1929, and government troops finally suppressed the rebellion on 10 January 1930, when Ikhwan rebel leaders surrendered to the British.[1]
Aftermath
In the aftermath, the Ikhwan leadership was slain,[5] and the remains were eventually incorporated into regular Saudi units. Sultan bin Bajad, one of the main Ikhwan leaders, was killed in 1931,[citation needed] whereas Faisal Al Dawish died in prison in Riyadh on 3 October 1931.[1]
In September 1932, the two kingdoms of Hejaz and Nejd were united as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.[1]