IOR/R/15/2/89

The file deals with political relations between the Sultan of Nejd [Najd] (from 1926 King of Hejaz and Nejd) [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd] (commonly referred to in the papers as Bin Saud or Ibn Saud) and the state of Iraq, specifically in terms of raids by Najdi tribesmen into Iraq (and Kuwait), and the British response to those raids.

The correspondence is mainly between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf and the Political Agent, Bahrain (also spelled Bahrein). There is also correspondence from Bin Saud; Abdulaziz Algosaibi & Company, Bahrain; and other British officials in the region. Enclosures to correspondence from the Political Resident to the Political Agent, Bahrain include copies of correspondence with the Political Agent, Kuwait; the office of the High Commissioner, Iraq; the Colonial Office, London; the Government of India; Bin Saud; and other British officials in the region.

The papers cover the following:

• reports on raids by Akhwan [Ikhwān] tribesmen, especially the Mutair, and their effect on Mesopotamian desert tribes;
• role in the raids of Akhwan leader Faisal al Dawish [Fayṣal al-Dawīsh];
• attack by Mutair on Busaiyah [al-Başīyah] in Iraq, November 1927;
• the response of the British to the attacks, e.g. permission from the Secretary of State for the Colonies for British aircraft to pursue Akhwan raiders across Nejd, November 1927;
• diplomatic contact between Bin Saud and the British via Abdul Aziz Gusaibi [‘Abd al-‘Azīz al-Quṣaybī], Abdulaziz Algosaibi & Company, Bahrain;
• implications for Bin Saud and the Akhwan of the construction by Iraq Government of a fortified post at Busaiyah (e.g. folio 171);
• notes of conversations between the High Commissioner for Iraq and his Counsellor and Shaikh Hafidh Wahba [Hāfiẓ Wahbah] (folios 308-315), February 1928;
• raid on Kuwait, January 1928, including involvement of Royal Air Force (RAF), use by Kuwaiti forces of motor cars against tribesmen, and requests by the Shaikh of Kuwait for purchase of machine guns and Lewis guns (folio 367) and advice on how to convert motor cars into armoured cars (folio 368), February 1928.

The date range indicates the covering dates of the main run of correspondence within the file. However, the earliest document is dated 27 November 1925 (enclosure to letter dated 12 December 1925).

The Arabic content of the file consists of approximately fifty folios of correspondence (with translations into English) from Abdulaziz Algosaibi & Company, Bahrain; the Political Agency, Bahrain; and Bin Saud.