THE HEJAZ: Religious War

In a vast uncharted Arabian desert are sixteen different states.* Some of these countries move whenever their inhabitants decide to strike tents. Some, again, are half settled—that is to say, the inhabitants roam about and return to a fixed settlement. Others are more or less fixtures. In a country of this nature, where whole states are moved on the backs of camels, lies the cradle of Islam, and that cradle was rocked last week by the terrible hand of Emir Faisal Ibn Abdul-Aziz Ibn Saud.

Last Week’s Events. Emir Ibn Saud, Sheik of Dariyah, Sovereign Lord of Nejd and Hasa, descendant of Mohammed Ibn Saud (founder of the Wahabite Empire), had declared war on Husein Ibn Ali, King of Hejaz. Verily, the fierce troops of Ibn Saud were at the gates of Mecca, Mohammaden Holy City.

Husein Ibn Ali, made King of Hejaz by the British for fighting the Turks in the War, made Calif of Islam by no other than himself, opposed the heretical warriors of the Emir of Nejd; but he was not so successful as his sons, Faisal, King of Iraq, and Abdullah, Emir of Kerak (Trans-Jordan). These two monarchs had been able to employ war birds of Britain and strike terror and confusion into Ibn Saud’s ferocious men by dropping fire from the skies. Husein, himself had asked the loan of a flock of war birds. But Britain refused. She could not become implicated in a religious war. She had definite obligations to the rulers of Iraq and Kerak under man—dates given her by the League of Nations. Husein was independent—so independent in fact that he had hesitated overlong to sign a treaty with his ally, Britain. He must defendhimself as best he could.

Unable to maintain himself in Mecca, King Husein last week abdicated the Throne of Hejaz and the Califate—Islam was again without a Calif for the second time within a year. King Husein, tears in his eyes, declared that his abdication was a temporary measure designed to protect Mecca from possible destruction. A despatch from Cairo stated that the royal signature to the document of abdication was affixed only after “he had spent many hours in prayer and wireless communication with his sons,” Faisal and Abdullah.

Immediately following the abdication of Husein, a Provisional Governmentwas formed. The first act of this Government was to send a delegation to Emir Ibn Saud for the purpose of arranging terms of peace before the occupation of Mecca by the Wahabis.

New King. The Government, or Hejaz National Committee, then elected Ali (oldest son of Husein, Emir of Medina) King of Hejaz, in accordance with the terms of the abdication. It was expressly stated, however, that the offer of the throne was made on condition that Ali conform to the wishes of the people of Hejaz. His father’s throne was acceptedby Ali on this condition; but the throne of the Califate was left vacant until the election of a Calif by the Pan-Islamic Committee. at Cairo, unless Ibn Saud should capture Mecca and elect himself Calif.

Meantime, it was announced from Alexandria, Cairo and London that ex-King-Calif Husein had sent the youngest of his four sons to London “on a private mission.” It was alleged that the mission was to sound the British Government on the new situation in the Hejaz.

Islam. Islam signifies Peace, and as such it has long been an anachronism. It designates the whole Moslem world which, taking the holy city of Mecca as its central point, stretches to the west as far as Morocco; to the north, beyond the forlorn steppes of Russia; to the east, as far as the gates of Tibet and the East Indian Archipelago; to the south, into northern India.

A little more than 100 years ago, the Wahabis captured Mecca, capital of Islam, where is situated the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed. After bloody scenes and wild desecration, the Wahabis were crushed and chased back to their country of Nejd. On the eve of the War, Hasa was taken from the distracted Turk; and before it could be recovered the flaming tongues of the war dogs had licked the world.

In the crash of Empires and the falling of crowns, which seemed a logical result of the War, Turkey was a main link in the concatenations of stupendous events. For better or for worse, Turkey became a republic, a midget of a state compared to its former self; all the old panoplies of government were thrown overboard. The Sultan-Calif fled for his life. A new Calif arose; but the Sultanate was ground to dust by the puissant heel of Democracy. It was to be only a matter of time before the sole of the same foot was to crush the Califate, the holy office of the Successor to the Prophet. No wonder there was turmoil in Islam.

Califate. After the collapse of the Califate on the Bosphorus, Islam became torn by the question of the succession. Who was to be Calif of Islam? Ex-Sultan of Turkey, Mohammed VI, who was temporal and spiritual head of Mohammedanism, said he was Calif; but that did not settle it. The Agar Khan of Bombay, the Emir of Afghanistan, Sultan Mulai Yusef of Morocco, King Fuad of Egypt all wanted to be Calif. The President of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Pasha, said that the Turkish Parliamentwould in the future impersonate the Calif. Abdul-Medjid Effendi, last Turkish Calif, declared with his predecessor, Mohammed VI, that his deposition as Calif was illegal and sacrilegious. Then from the heart of Islam, Husein Ibn Ali, a descendent of the Prophet, declared himself Calif and without more ado he assumed the Califate (TIME, March 24). A torrent of rage swept over Islam and died down. Husein became stronger and stronger each day. He was indeed the “Arab of Arabs,” the Supreme Prince of the Moslem faith. But, under the surface, Islam was being moved by mighty forces. Who could say whence they would come, whither they would go? A Pan-Islamic Conference was planned to discuss and settle the question of the succession. It was clear that Husein’s title was meaningless to the mass of Moslems.

Wahabis. With an increasingly jealous eye, the Emir of Nejd and Hasa viewed the opportunist power of his enemy, Husein, grow like an orchid upon the air. The brow of the beturbaned giant with the coal-black beard became furrowed with anger at the irreligion of the Shia and Sunni Moslems. He would crush them, and off to Mecca he went with 72,000 fanatics before him. He would depose their upstart Husein, he would purge Islam of Moslem impurities. He, Faisal Ibn Abdul-Aziz Ibn Saud, Calif of the Saud Sect, would rule all Islam with the sword of purity as ordained by the Prophet. Was this to be the beginning of a holy war? No man could answer.

Koran. The Koran (Qur’an) is the cosmic reproduction of an uncreated original preserved by Allah (God). The Book of Allah, as the original is known, was sent, according to Mohammed’s teachings, by God from the seventh Heaven down to Gabriel in the first Heaven; and parts of it were on various occasions revealed to the Prophet who, in many cases, wrote down the revelations. After the death of Mohammed, the writings were collected and were called the Koran.

The Koran is then the supreme authority of Islam. Under it are many others. Mohammed said there would be 73 Moslem sects, but that only one would survive. This is authority enough for the existence of 73 sects, although the nuances which differentiate some of them are delicate in the extreme. For the purpose of clarifying the background to events which are even now taking place in Arabia, attention will be drawn to onethe Wahabite. The Wahabis are a cross between the Hanbalite and Zahirite sects or, in western parlance, the Puritans of the Church of Islam. They cling tenaciously to orthodox Moslem tenets and strive for the reform of Islam in conformity to the teachings of the Koran. They believe in:

1) Prohibition of alcoholic drink and tobacco

2) No shaving

3) No veneration of shrines, even that of the Prophet

4) No wearing of jewelry, other ornaments or silk

5) Non-intervention of a third party between the Faithful and Allah

6) Resistance to all foreign influences (Christianity, etc.)

7) The personal interpretation of the Koran and traditions (of the Prophet)

8) The proselytization of all non-Wahabite Moslems

Thus the victory of Emir Ibn Saud, who knows the Koran by heart, is virtually a Puritan Revolution.

*The 16 States of Arabia: Kingdom of Iraq; French Mandate of Syria; Kingdom of Hejaz; Emirate of Nejd_and Hasa; Emirate of Jebel Shammar; Principals of Asir; Imamate of Yemen; British Protectorate of Aden; Sultanate of Oman; Sultanate of Koweit; Emirate of Kerak; Emirate of Bab-el-Mandab; Emirate of Lahj; State of Hadramaut; Emirate of El-Mohammerah; Emirate of Bahrein.