Muslim World & Occupation (part 2)
Thursday, 08 April 2010
Written by Islamstory
Egyptian awakening
By the year 1875, France and Britain were the two countries that controlled most of the Muslim World. France controlled Algeria, while Britain controlled Egypt. In 1879 Egypt was fully controlled by the British power. The power of Ismâ`îl Pasha, Khedive of Egypt, shrank in face of the British power. He underestimated this matter. In a desperate try to get out the British trap, he started to make real political reforms. He accepted a list of Egyptian representatives and gave them the full right to monitor the internal affairs as well as the monetary issues exactly as in European systems. He insisted on the reinstatement of the British ministry and he appointed an Egyptian prime minister to head the Egyptian ministry on 17 May 1979.
Britain realized that this action was a real threat to its interests. Britain, immediately, pressured the Othman Caliph to depose Ismâ`îl, and this was done on June 26, 1879 and his son Tawfîk Pasha was made his successor.
The new caliph learnt his lesson well and decided to submit to the foreign dominion. He cancelled what his father did and chose Rîyâdh Pasha, the new prime minister, to form a new ministry.
The colonization of the East of Africa
The British concern of Egypt did not make Britain forget about the French colonial activities at that time towards another Arab country, which is Tunisia.
It is worthy to mention that Britain showed no objection to the French occupation of Tunisia.
Moreover, Britain declared that Tunisia is considered merely as a natural part of the French possessions in the East of Africa. Of course Britain did not issue this declaration for free. The price was that France would show no objection to the British occupation of the island of Cyprus, which the Othman Caliph handed to the Britain under pressure.
France started its attempts to control Tunisia as it offered its ruler, Muhammad As-Sâdiq, in 1879 to accept a treaty of submitting to the French protection, the matter which he refused severely. He also refused another appeal of coalition with France in 1880. Finally, France decided to unveil its ugly intention and prepare for the military action.
France found a justification for such military action in the following incident: A group of Algerian tribes – called al-Karmîîn – that immigrated to Tunisia after the occupation of Algeria passed the borders back to Algeria. Upon this France accused the ruler of Tunisia of failing to control the tribes. On 24 April 1881, France launched a military attack on Tunisia. On 11 May, the French forces besieged the palace of the Tunisian ruler and forced him to sign a treaty that his country will be under the French protection. [1]
As to Egypt, public complains of the government, which was loyal to Britain, increased and culminated in the famous Abdeen Strike on 9 September, 1881. The army, led by the Egyptian leader Ahmad `Urabî, called for this strike, which fruitfully resulted in reinstatement of the ministry of Rîyyad Pasha. [2]
On Tuesday 11 July 1882, Britain launched a military attack against Egypt. The English fleet bombed the city of Alexandria. Egypt was not military ready for to defend itself as the Egyptian weapons were old and rusty. However, the English fleet faced a fierce resistance from the Egyptians, both the military and the public, but ultimately the British army won and occupied Egypt after the defeat of the Egyptian army in the battle of el-Tal el-Kebir on 13 September 1882. [3]
Then Britain occupied Sudan, which was like an integral part of Egypt, in 1899. To achieve it colonial plan, Britain made a railway that goes along the black continent (Africa) starting from Cape Town in South Africa - which was under the British dominion - to Cairo, the capital of Egypt. The aim of such colonial aspiration was to transform the African fortunes of raw materials to the Egyptian port, then to Britain through the Mediterranean Sea so that Britain may use in industry.
Britain sought for expanding its power in the Arabian Gulf. In 1899 – the same year of British occupation of Sudan – Britain signed a treaty with the ruler of Kuwait in which he pledged that there will be no foreign representation in his country except by the permission of the British government and also pledged that Britain will be granted the right of protection of Kuwait eternally. [4]
To complete the invasion of the Muslim countries of the East Africa – of which Libya was the only free country at that time – Italy directed its navy fleet toward the Libyan ports of Tripoli and Barqah on 4 October 1911. The Italian attack on Libya did not face great resistance from the Libyan army – that was affiliated to the Othman Caliphate – and Italy managed to occupy the big coastal cities of Libya. [5]
During World War One, Britain attacked Iraq on 6 February 1914. Britain managed to control the triangle area that falls among the cities of Basra, Amarah, and Nasiriyah. Britain directed a military expedition to Baghdad to occupy it, but it failed to achieve this until the withdrawal of the Othman forces after Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916). It took four years to occupy Iraq by Britain. [6] After that, Britain promised the Zionist Federation to facilitate the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine as stated in the Balfour Declaration of 1917.[7]
As to Saudi Arabia, it was not under the British protection until the year 1915. in this year king Abdul Aziz Al Saud made an agreement with Britain that Britain is to help Saudi Arabia against any other country in case of war. This agreement was valid till the year 1972 as it was replaced by the Treaty of Jeddah. [8]
Footnotes:
[1] al-Ghazwah al-Ist`mârîyyah lil-`Alam al-`Arabî wa Harakât al-Muqâwamah: Prof. Abd al-`Azîm Ramadan, Dâr al-Ma`âref, page 164.
[2] Ibid: 76-86
[3] Urabi Revolt: Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer, translated into Arabic by Abul Aziz Urabi, General Egyptian Book Organization 1997, page 225.
[4] al-Ghazwah al-Ist`mârîyyah lil-`Alam al-`Arabî wa Harakât al-Muqâwamah: Prof. Abd al-`Azîm Ramadan, Dâr al-Ma`âref, page 27-28.
[5] History of Libya, from the end of the 19th century to 1969): N.E. Brushin, translated into Arabic by `Imad Hâtem, Markz dirâsat Jihad al-Libîyyîn dhadh al-Ghazw al-Itâlî, No. 11, Page 103.
[6] al-Ghazwah al-Ist`mârîyyah lil-`Alam al-`Arabî wa Harakât al-Muqâwamah: Prof. Abd al-`Azîm Ramadan, Dâr al-Ma`âref, page 272.
[7] Qadaya Islamiyyah Mu`aserah: Prof. Hassan Himdân al-`Alkîm, Center of Asian Studies, Cairo University, second print 1997, page 29.
[8] al-Ghazwah al-Ist`mârîyyah lil-`Alam al-`Arabî wa Harakât al-Muqâwamah: Prof. Abd al-`Azîm Ramadan, Dâr al-Ma`âref, page 30.
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