The Iraq-Iran Conflict
Chapter 2
Re- publishing THE IRAQ-Iran Conflict, which was first published in 1981 by Institute of Studies and Research” will shed light on the present role of Iran in the occupation and destruction of Iraq. Iran of the Mullahs is very hostile to Iraq and the Arab Nation equally like Iran of the Shah and the United States of the neoconservatives.
Best Regards
Ibrahim Ebeid
Co-Editor, Al-Moharer.net
The Iraq-Iran Conflict
By Institute of Studies and Research
Chapter 2
THE GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Since long ago the region of Shatt-al-Arab has constituted an exceedingly controversial subject between Iraq and Iran. Despite all attempts at reconciliation, the conflict has only grown worse: expansionist Iran has persisted in trying to annex this area, whereas Iraq has tenaciously tried to conserve what it considers as a blessing bequeathed by history. A superficial analysis would attribute this conflict to mainly economic and geographical causes, but in fact it is more complex, translating a real confrontation between two profoundly different peoples, the Arabs and the Persians. Citing historical rights must take us back into the past in order to locate the roots of the conflict along with the political pretensions that are at odds in this part of the world. Only then shall we know the real meaning of the Iraq-Iran war.
This investigation will essentially deal with the history of Arabistan, which is at the heart of the conflict. The Shatt-al-Arab will also be included for it has always been Arab and Iraqi, with respect to both its profound reality and the political powers that have ruled it. How can the Shatt-al-Arab always have been both Arab and Iraqi? Before replying, we must take a glimpse at the geography of this region.
Before speaking of its history and the definition of Iraqi rights over Arabistan, these territories must be situated in their geographical context. From the Iranian border on the Gulf to Sharm-el-Sheikh or Ras-Sinai on the Red Sea, there are several strategic areas such as the Strait of Hormuz and Bab-al-Mandab, which enclose the Arabian Peninsula. Sovereignty over one or the other of these will be reflected in a minutely calculated regional equilibrium. It is thus that the Straits of Hormuz and Bab-al-Mandab, which constitute two strategic spots at the entrance of the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea, are Arab, whereas the islands facing the Arabian Peninsula, namely, Lesser and Greater Tumbs as well as Abu Musa, were occupied in 1971 by the armed forces of the Shah. They were not surrendered by the Iran of Ayatollah Khomeini. It is even the case that some of these islands have fallen under the direct control of the great world powers, as are Masirah and Socotra. The latter, once, was transformed into a Soviet military base.
The geographical and strategic makeup of the Arabian Gulf resembles that of the Red Sea: there, the Island of Perim controls the southern entry of this sea; it too is in an Arab zone, while Sharm-el-Sheikh has undergone “Israeli” occupation, implying a threat to navigation and to all the states bordering on that sea. In any case, it is the study in depth of the Shatt-al-Arab that directly interests our analysis. We shall successively treat the region of Shatt-al-Arab, the Strait of Hormuz, Arabistan and the three islands (Lesser and Greater Tumbs, Abu Musa), without forgetting that though they are presented separately, these regions form a whole: a single strategic entity and a unique source of wealth constantly envied by the Persians.
When one comes to realize that 635 waterways bathe this region, crossing rich plains which begin at Basra and continuing along both banks of the delta where the palm groves contain over 14 million palm trees, it becomes easier to conceive the evocative power of these areas often recalled in Arab literature and painting.
The Shatt-al-Arab constitutes the only maritime outlet of Iraq. It is the waterway connecting Iraq to the Gulf and beyond it, the oceans. A mere glance at a map will show that Iraq, locked inland between Turkey, the An-Nafud Desert to the south and the Zagros Mountains to the west, has but this narrow passage to the sea. Consequently, this region is vital for Iraq, as it links the south of the country to the north. That is why any state occupying the bank of Shatt-al-Arab isolates Iraq by cutting off this natural access to the Gulf from its southern part. This region is of primary importance to the country's economy, notably with regard to its privileged position in international commercial relations. It also goes without saying that the Shatt-al-Arab is the only natural waterway allowing vessels to reach the port of Basra. For this reason, too, Iran wishes to control the navigation in this region.
Before enumerating the various points of contention in this zone, two regions should also be treated, the Strait of Hormuz and Arabistan:
That muddy delta...barren landscape inhabited by skeletal brush, beneath a humid sky at the gates of the Orient. This time...the Shatt-al-Arab constitutes the battlefield. Tributary of the Tigris and the Euphrates, cradle of ancient Mesopotamia, this delta, opening upon the Arabian Gulf, is the jugular vein of Arabistan and the oil fields...
A point of communication where the waters of the Gulf merge with those of the Indian Ocean, it derives its strategic importance from this situation. The power controlling it has at the same time supervision of the Jugular feeding the world economy in petroleum. It is through this channel, whose width never exceeds 60 km that boats navigate at a rhythm of one oil tanker every ten minutes, equivalent to 62% of the oil transit intended for world consumption distributed in the following way: 90% of Japan's energy needs, 70% of the Common Market's consumption and 50% of the American needs. The Strait of Hormuz is the sole passageway out of the Gulf for the coastal states: Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
It is indeed this key position that in the course of history and its fierce battles was at stake. It is known that this region is inhabited by Arab tribes. Still today, it can be seen what the Arab civilization at the Bedouin era was like from the customs and characteristic features of these populations. The Strait of Hormuz was regained by the Arabs in the beginning of the 20th century. It had always been a place of combat and contestation between the World Powers, and hence, was occupied from the end of the 15th century by the Ottomans, the Persians and the Portuguese successively, and at the beginning of the 16th century by the English. Throughout history, the region of Hormuz knew a strategic importance which only increased with the discovery of oil. The economic weight of the Strait of Hormuz pushed the Shah of Iran into preventing the implantation of any foreign power along the banks of the straits, notably on the coast of Oman. Iran therefore fought against the revolution in Dhufar, which opposed the regime of Oman. Furthermore, the Shah carried on a policy of hegemony in this area. He organized a military expedition to overthrow the islands in the straits so as to build bases. The Shah made of Chah Bahar a naval base with ultra-modern equipment able to shelter submarines.
The Shah spent billions of dollars on American technical assistance and equipment. As soon as the English evacuated the Gulf, November 30, 1971, he grasped the islands located near the straits. His troops took over the Lesser and Greater Tumbs and Abu Musa. After the revolution, Iran conserved its control over the straits and in 1980; the Iranian fleet pursued its military operations there. Moreover, the Iranian patrol boats based on the Island of Bandar Abbas escort to this day the tankers going through the straits.
Due to the specific character of the Khomeini revolution, the mutual apprehension of the United States and U.S.S.R. was stirred. Reacting to Iranian threats, Moscow and Washington sent their fleets toward the Gulf where, from then on, they have remained stationed and in a state of alert, not far from the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. If the straits are vital to this region, they are all the more so to the entire world. Hence, the preoccupation of the Western powers at the outbreak of war between Iraq and Iran. Immediately after Iran had threatened to bomb the straits in case of foreign intervention in that conflict, the United States emitted a communiqué dated September 20/1980, proposing the calling of a six-member conference - United States, Great Britain, France, West Germany, Japan and Italy - with the security of the straits on its agenda:
We have consulted a certain number of friendly countries about the conditions of oil supplies and international navigation in the Gulf. Given the importance of reducing the economic consequences of the conflict between Iraq and Iran upon international navigation and the world petroleum markets, the United States indicated that they may hold a meeting to discuss this problem if necessary. However, no meeting of this kind was decided. (3)
Whatever the nature of this Iranian threat, and despite the narrowness of the straits, the affirmations indicating that the mere sinking of a boat would block them are obviously false. Actually, there is a sizeable distance between the coasts; the maritime lines traced on the maps the truly navigable space. In principle, a maximal margin of security is accounted for in the strait's navigability: it is thus that the basis for any cargo is a draft of 20 meters while in reality the half is more than sufficient. Weighing this observation, the distance actually navigable in the straits extends over 50 km.
Nevertheless, fear of seeing the straits closed down because of the Iranian Revolution remains strong (4). Such an act would provoke the economic collapse of numerous states, especially those with an Industrial structure. The event could even provoke a world war.
THE ISLANDS OF THE TWO TUMBS AND ABU MUSA
In spite of its limited area, the Arabian Gulf is very deep, which has facilitated the formation of a multitude of small islands. These islands were created by natural phenomena, for instance, river alluvium (Bubiyan and Warbah Rivers), or by the action of waves and marine currents carried by the wind toward the coasts, or else by coral rising to the surface of the sea found all along the coasts of Qatar and Bahrain. The majority of these islands are saline, namely, those of Larak, Henqam, Tumb, Abu Musa, Forur, Sirri, Halul and others that have immerged.
• Abu Musa
Abu Musa is a rectangular island situated 24 miles from the city of Sharjah along the coast of Oman and 44 miles from the Iranian coast. It is low land covered with sand plains studded with greenery and palm groves crowded around wells of drinking water. Several volcanic hills are to be seen, the altitude of which does not go beyond a hundred meters. Approximately one thousand people live there; they belong to two Arab tribes originating from Sharjah. The island's economy is based on raising livestock, fishing and agriculture. Immediately after the Iranian conquest, efforts were made to somewhat modernize the island.
• Greater Tumb
Greater Tumb is located at the entrance to Bab-al-Salam in the Strait of Hormuz, 19 miles from the Emirate of Ras-al-Khaimah. Its area is 35 sq. miles. It is inhabited by about 800 people of Arab origin and was under the administrative control of the Ras-al-Khaimah Emirate. Its inhabitants live from fishing and tending animals.
• Finally, Lesser Tumb is found in the Strait of Hormuz about 6 miles to the west of Grand Tumb islet. A little over half a mile long and less than half a mile wide, it is made up of deep-colored hills attaining 40 m. The only life on this islet is Arab fishermen and shepherds.
Due to their proximity to the Strait of Hormuz, these Islands hold a considerable interest, comparable to that of Gibraltar at the entrance to the Mediterranean, or that of Aden at the entrance to the Red Sea.
Back-to-back with the coasts of the Emirates, these three islands constitute observation posts for the coastlines of the Gulf countries: United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq and Iran. (5)
Any power possessing these islands reinforces its position in the Strait of Hormuz and thus controls the entire region militarily, politically and commercially. From a strategic point of view, the Strait of Hormuz and the three islands are complementary. Aside from this, these islands are rich in minerals. The English Company Alwan Al Wadi Azahabi (6) possesses, in exchange for annual dues of approximately $ 250,000, a monopoly that was granted at the beginning of the century by Salem Ben Sultan, the uncle of the Sheikh at Sharjah. This company continues today to exploit the iron oxide deposits. Abu Musa is also well known for its red earth from which cosmetic products (for example, lipstick) can be manufactured. The abundance of the maritime resources around this island allows a fisherman with "traditional" equipment to earn 150 Rials a day (about $45). Oil drillings have been undertaken in its territorial waters, leading to the discovery of deposits that have not yet been tapped because of rivalries between the English and American oil companies.
The history of these three islands is closely tied with that of Oman. These territories have had a common fate over the centuries. From the 18th to the beginning of the 19th centuries, Oman was prosperous. The Arab tribes called Al-Kawassem, who have the same origin as all those settled around the Gulf, transferred their ancient capital of Ras-al-Khaimah to Sharjah under Sultan Ben Sakr (1803-1856). (7) The Al-Kawassem tribes led a fierce resistance against the English penetration. Great Britain was finally successful in reducing them and occupied Ras-al-Khaimah along with all other Al-Kawassem forts. London then imposed several conventions, signed successively between 1820 and 1853. Following the English occupation and the decline of the Al-Kawassem, particularly after the loss of its fleet, Iran started to extend its control over this region. It is hence that in Lanja in 1887, the Iranians overthrew the Arab government led by the Al-Kawassem and occupied Sirri which is found to the west of Abu Musa and was dependent on the Emirate of Sharjah. Afterwards, they occupied Henqam, which belonged to the Bani-Yass Arab tribe. Despite the extension of its influence to the west of the Arabian Gulf, Iran never pretended to hold sovereignty over the islets of the two Tumbs nor Abu Musa. The Emir of Sharjah, on which Ras-al-Khaimah depended, maintained control of these three islands. All existing sources attest the sovereignty of Sharjah over these islets. Lorimer, who was given the task of making up a "guide to the Gulf" by the Indian government, indicated that these three islands were under the power of the Sheikh of Sharjah "who sojourns on them at moments of great heat". (8) In his research this author was able to consult secret documents placed at his disposal by the government of India, but which were only made public in 1960.
At the beginning of the 20th century, as an effect of the Persian occupation, trade in the port of Lanja declined and was finally ruined after the emigration of the Arab tradesmen toward the coast of Oman. In the meantime, the Arabs developed the Island of Abu Musa and transformed it into a commercial center used for the exportation of their merchandise. They requested that the British shipping companies include this islet among their mooring ports while awaiting the creation of a free one. Abu Musa quickly rivaled with the Iranian ports.
In 1904, a Persian ship, the "Muzafiri", dropped anchor at Abu Musa. On board, there was a high-ranking British official taking care of customs for these islands, who lowered the flag of Sharjah to replace it by the Persian flag. An Iranian customs administration was then established on the island. This act of aggression caused the Sheikh of Sharjah to write a letter of protestation to the British agent in the Gulf. Great Britain backed out and thus obtained the withdrawal of the Iranians from that island. Sharjah was then able to restore its former prerogatives, after an Iranian occupation which had lasted three months.
Iran, having renounced this territory against its will, made further attempts to occupy the three islands. Great Britain , reticent at the thought of seeing Iran control these areas that are rich in natural resources, threatened to question Iran's occupation of the Arab islands of Sirri and Henqam. From then on, the status quo was maintained up to the middle of the 20th century. The departure of the English from the Gulf in 1971 made things easier for the Shah. The latter accepted to drop his claims to Bahrain but succeeded in getting the approval of the World Powers for his plan to occupy the three islands, taking advantage of the ceremonies on the occasion of the 2500th anniversary of the Persian Empire to assure himself the tacit support of those powers. (9)
Among themselves the Arab countries of the Gulf had planned to create a federation. Realizing the danger, the Shah threatened to occupy the islands, and then did just that on November 31, 1971, on the eve of the proclamation of this union.
ARABISTAN
The Iraq-Iran conflict principally concerns this area. All throughout its history and even though it makes up a territory that is naturally Arab, Arabistan had been annexed, occupied or shared by different foreign powers. It is located southeast of Iraq and is bounded on the north and east by mountains of the Zagros chain. These mountains stretch over a distance of 620 miles and are 120 miles wide; their altitude varies from 1100 to 1700 meters. Rising up behind Arabistan, they seem to be a natural barrier separating this region from Iran. To the west, Arabistan reaches the two Iraqi departments of Basra and Missan, while to the south it is bordered by the Arabian Gulf. The surface area of Arabistan is about 71,430 sq. miles, with 263 miles in length and 238 miles in width. In 1936, Iran amputated 9,800 sq. miles by annexing them to its southernmost department. The population of Arabistan numbers 3.5 million composed of Arab tribes having come in successive waves from the Arabian Peninsula well before Islam.
This region is known in Arabic under the name "Ahwaz", plural of the name "Hawz" and derived from the verb "Haza Yahuz", which means appropriation. This name simply designates the right a person actually exercises over a territory. It dates back to the period when Alexander the Great conquered Persia and divided it into provinces. The Arabs of this region reassembled themselves in an independent department they called "Ahwaz", in reference to the properties owned by the various tribes therein. (10) Subsequently, the Persians were to call this territory Ahwaz with an unvoiced "h", which takes away its meaning; in fact, the Arabic alphabet contains two letters which correspond, first, to the unvoiced "h" and, second, to the voiced "h". This phonetic shade of difference does not exist in Persian, both letters being confounded in one unvoiced "h", whereas to confuse these two phenomena in Arabic would modify the meaning of a word or make it incomprehensible, as with "Ahwaz". When this word became current in Persia, it lost its etymological meaning by the transformation of its voiced "h" into an unvoiced one. (11)
Later on, the Persians named this region Khuzestan, that is to say, the "land of combats and forts", for the Arabs had constructed military fortifications there which were to serve as bases of operations in their expansion towards Persia and India. Under the Safawid Dynasty, this region was known under the name of Arabistan rather than Khuzestan, in reference to its inhabitants (12). The term Arabistan, which indicates the Arab nature of a people or territory, is the word used by all non-Arab populations of the region to designate the Arab lands situated on their frontiers; it is thus that the Turks called Syria, and even today, the Persians say "Saudi Arabistan" for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (13).
THE CITIES OF ARABISTAN
In former times, the cities of Arabistan could be grouped into two zones, those in the north and those in the south, but with the discovery of oil in 1908 at Masjed Suleiman, a third zone was constituted to the west. During history, these cities changed names several times according to circumstances and to the power administrating them. For this reason, it is necessary to give some details on the most important cities of Arabistan.
• Abadan
This city is also known under the name of the island on which it lies: Khodr Island; in Persian, it is called Abadan. Located 18 km to the south of the city of Mohammarah, today it is above all a port through which the oil of Arabistan transits. An imposing petroleum refinery is also found there. Built upon an island running north-south, surrounded by the waters of the Shatt-al-Arab, this very ancient locality was visited by many famous travelers.
All the historians of the first Islamic times cited it as belonging to the department of Basra. Abadan never experienced an exceptional development; however, at certain periods its duties were in the order of 441,000 dinars, a relatively high sum paid to the treasury of Basra where the region's central administration was located. In the past, this city was thought of as an Iraqi borderline city. Its location gave rise to an Iraqi saying: "There are no villages beyond Abadan" (14).
• AI-Mohammarah
It is called Khorramshahr in Persian and is found at the outlet of the Karun River in the Shatt-al-Arab. It is an important port the economy of which is closely dependent on the region of Basra. Hajj Youssef Ben Mardaw, a Sheikh of the Arab tribe of Bou-Kasseb, was responsible for its construction in 1812. Hajj Youssef and his men made it their capital, calling it Al-Mohammarah (15). This name designates the color red in Arabic, and was probably given to this city because of the color of the earth — red sand — carried by the Karun all the way to its mouth. Today, Mohammarah is one of the most important ports of Arabistan. Recent works to expand it now permit the largest vessels to use this port.
• AI-Ahwaz
It is called Al-Ahwaz in Persian (see above for the phonetic variation between these two words). This city is found along the Karun River in the center of Arabistan. Long ago it was the capital of this emirate, but suffered enormously during the revolts of the Zanjs.
Al-Hawizah
It takes the name Dasht-Mishan in Persian and is situated on the Karkheh River to the northeast of Mohammarah near the Iraqi department of Missan. It is the place where the Bani Tarf tribes resided. Later on, during the Mongol period, the Arab state of the Moucha'chi'ins made it their capital (in 1441).
• Dezful
The Persians named this city built among the hills Kantaret Kaz or Kantaret Al-Kala'a. It is located in the north of Arabistan. To the southwest of this locality, ruins of the city of Al-Shush are to be found, where French archeologists discovered in 1901-1902 the famous ziggurat (stela) of Hammurabi.
• Felihiyah
This city, known as Chawkan in Persian, is inhabited by the Bani-Kaab tribes. It was the capital of the Arab emirs of Arabistan before being supplanted by al-Mohammarah.
• Tustar
Finally, this city called Shushter by the Persians, with its perennial springs, is considered as the heart of the fertile valley of Arabistan.
All of these localities with their original Arab name and the way they have more recently been called in Persian bring us to an analysis of the complex identity of Arabistan as seen through this ambivalence. Beyond its two banks, the Shatt-al-Arab forms a plain of constant fertility where the climatic and vegetal conditions attest to its unity. Enclosed by two mountain chains, Arabistan runs toward an opening upon the Gulf in its southern part: "The plain of Arabistan", writes Donald Wilber, "is a prolongation of the low plain found in the south of Iraq" (15). This plain is composed of lime deposited by the waterways flowing in this region and more especially by the two greatest of them, the Karun and the Karkheh. There was a time when Arabistan and a part of the Iraqi department of an-Nasiriyah were flooded over with water. Arnold Wilson claims that Arabistan was constituted at the same time as the other countries in the low region found in between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. All these lands have a geographical unity that brought prosperity to Mesopotamia and the Chaldeans. Later, it came under Arab control, whose domination spread throughout Persia and beyond (16). All these territories formed by the lie-accumulation of lime are exceptionally rich in oil. The potential of the oil layer in this region is 68 billion barrels; presently, it produces between 3 and 4 million barrels per year. (at the time of the publication of this book)
Louis Massignon considered this region as an Arab territory and described it as follows:
We find ourselves in the middle of the Shatt-al-Arab delta, hut this delta, compared to that of the Nile, the Ganges or the Chinese rivers, clearly appears dissymmetric, and curiously so. It occupies a part of the floor of the gulf having subsided and which it has filled, forming on its southwest extremity the Arabian plateau with its appearance of an Indo-African peneplain, while on the northeast side more recent Persian plications are found.
In sum, on its left, the delta has the desert which is barely higher, and Basra is the first oasis behind its canals; to the light, it is punctuated by a system of faults and sub sidings. which, with its aligned oil fields, prolongs the gulf up to the great bluish, pale arcs and parallel folds of the Arabistan and Pars mountains. On this side the waters of the delta are so abundant that they annex the Karun and its basin...
Recent surveys have shown that beneath the Shaft. 30 or 40 meters below the ground, a subterranean Shatt flows, produced by infiltrations from the first and to which are owed the fresh water sources found in the gulf area (16).
The region of Arabistan and the south of Iraq have an identical climate, at the same time desert-like and Mediterranean. There is no clear separation between seasons. However, in Arabistan as in Basra, summer and winter are more marked, while autumn and spring last only shortly.
The Iraq-Iran conflict has revived the problem of to whom Arabistan belongs. This territory constitutes a national problem in the Arab mind. Examination of the past appears to be the best instrument for analyzing the identity of this territory and its population. Thus, a recollection of the events which brought about the separation of Arabistan from the Arab lands would now seem appropriate.
Notes-chapter 2
(I) the waters around AI-Faw are well known for the quality of its fish.
(2) Le Point, n" 419, September 24, 1980.
(3)Le Monde, September 30, 1980.
(4) Between March 1979 and November 1980, Iran reiterated its threat to block the access to the Strait of Hormuz 14 times.
(5)Le Monde,September 25,1980.
(6) Meaning “the colors of the golden valley”.
(7) Abed, S.A., The Role of Al-Kawassem in the Arabian Gulf, Baghdad, 1976, p. 114 on. (Arabic).
(8)Lomier.J.G. Gazette of the Persian Gulf. Oman and Central Arabia, Calcutta. ‘Volumes, 1908.
(9) Briere, Claire and Blanche, Pierre, Iran, Revolution in the Name of God, Seuil, Paris, 1979, pp. 9-10.
(10) Hamawy, Yakout, Encyclopedia of the World, I, p. 380 (Arabic).
(11) Le Strange, L., The Land of the Eastern Caliphate. Cambridge 1905, p. 267. Baghdadi Safi-el-Din. Observation Post of Places and their Names, I. Cairo, 1954, p. 135. (Arabic).
(12) The references are numerous; we shall limit ourselves to citing:
— Ibn Hawkal, Image of the Earth. Al-Hayatt Library. 1968, p. 225 on. (Arabic).
— Aboul-Fida, The Reform of Lands, p. 311 on. (Arabic).
— Dairat Al-Maarif, Al-Islamiyah, Encyclopedia of Islam IX, ch. 1. Baghdad, p. 37. (Arabic).
— Al-Istikhri, M. Al-Masalek, Wal-Mamalek (Routes and Countries), I. Cairo, 1961, p. 62. (Arabic).
(13) Sarkis, Yaakoub, Geographical Research, I. Baghdad, 1948, p. 237. (Arabic).
(I3) Haidary F., The Title of Glory: Baghdad, Basra, and Najd. Baghdad, 1962, pp. 179-81. (Arabic).
(14) Hourani, Georges, The Arabs and Navigation in the Indian Ocean, Cairo, 1958, p. 44. (Arabic).
(I4) Wilber, Donald N., Iran, Past and Present, Princeton University Press, 1956, p. 12.
(15) Wilson, Sir Arnold, Southwest Persia, A Political Officer's Diary, 1907-14, Oxford I'MI, p. 93.
(16) Massignon, L. "Mohammarah", Journal of the Muslim World. No. II, Year II, November. 1908, p. 385.
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