In 1931-1932, the first Barzan Revolution, led by Sheikh Ahmed Barzani, began between Barzan forces and Iraqi government forces with the support of British forces. After several battles and clashes, government forces were able to control the Barzan region and forced Barzan forces to retreat into Turkish territory.
The Kurdish question, as an important issue in the Middle East after World War I (1914-1918), was the subject of many regional and national discussions. Like all regions of Kurdistan, the Barzani region was not free from problems and conflicts. At the end of 1914, the British government realized that the Ottoman Empire, Britain's ally, was intent on entering the war and was busy with the movement. Britain, in response to this attitude of the Ottoman state, wanted to protect its interests, so it occupied the Basra region. After three years of war, the Ottoman army lost control of the war. Britain and Russia were able to occupy parts of Iraq and Iran. In the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916, Mosul fell into the hands of France, and Britain was able to convince France to exchange Mosul for its share. On March 11, 1917, the British, led by Sir Stanley Maud, occupied Baghdad. On August 30, 1918, after the end of World War I, the Treaty of Modros allowed Britain to occupy part of Mosul, Baghdad, and Basra and defeat the Ottoman Empire. In November 1918, Sheikh Mahmud Hafid was appointed by the British as the civilian leader of the Sulaymaniyah region and was given the title of Naqib (the leader). Sheikh Mahmud, as a Kurdish representative, demanded Kurdish rights. When the Sheikh Mahmud Revolution began in Sulaymaniyah in May 1919 against the British occupation, Sheikh Ahmed sent a Barzani force under the leadership of Mustafa Barzani to aid Sheikh Mahmud's revolution and asked the tribal leaders to cooperate.
When Sheikh Ahmed, under the command of his brother Muhammad Sadiq, sent a force to defend the attack on Acre, on November 4, 1919, Colonel Bill and Captain Scott were killed in an ambush. After these events, the British saw Sheikh Ahmed as a great enemy of Britain and began to encourage the Assyrians against the Barzanis, but they were in vain. On March 3, 1920, the San Remo Congress declared Iraq under British rule, which led to the start of the National Revolution in Iraq.
On October 25, 1920, during negotiations between Sir Percy Cox, the British Semitic representative, and Abdulrahman Naqib, an agreement was reached to form the first interim government of Iraq. This government consisted of eight ministers and twelve ministers without portfolios, and there were no Kurds among them. On August 23, 1921, King Faisal ibn Hussein became the king of Iraq. As a first step to strengthen its authority, the Iraqi government established the first police station in Barzani in 1925. Sheikh Ahmed Barzani believed that the government's efforts were to provide services to the region, but the government had another goal.
In 1925, the revolution of Sheikh Said Piran began in Northern Kurdistan. Sheikh Ahmed sent a force led by Mustafa Barzani to help the revolution until it ended. In 1927, the British government of Iraq launched a military attack against Sheikh Ahmed and was heroically responded by the Barzanis. In the same year, the government established a military base in the Bilê region. In this situation, the Kurdish Solidarity Association was established and Sheikh Ahmed became the president of that association. On February 31, 1928, the Sami envoy sent Major Wilson to Sheikh Ahmed to calm the situation.
In this situation, Sheikh Ahmed sent a letter to King Faisal I, requesting unity of stance between the Kurdish and Arab nations to expel the British from Iraq. Sheikh Ahmed sent his brother Mustafa Barzani to the governor of Mosul to replace the British forces with an Iraqi force. The governor of Mosul agreed and an Iraqi force under the command of Muhammad Barqi replaced the British force. The British were impressed by Sheikh Ahmed's actions and began to plot.
In April 1931, Sheikh Ahmed requested the League of Nations for the independence of Kurdistan. The British were even more angered by Sheikh Ahmed's stance and began to spread propaganda against Takya Barzan and its leader. This led the Brotherhood to twice attack the Sherwani tribe and the villages of Girkal, Kolek, and Babkê in 1931, with the encouragement of the British. The Barzan forces under the command of Sheikh Ahmed, first in the summer of 1931 under the leadership of Mustafa Barzani, on November 25, 1931, and for the second time under the command of Wali Beg, were able to defeat the Bradostians' attack. In response to these events, the Governor of Zebar tried to mediate, and on December 3, 1931, the Governor of Zebar asked Sheikh Ahmed to send his representative to him. Sheikh Ahmed sent his brother Muhammad Sadiq with a force that Mustafa Barzani had left for another purpose outside Barzan. The government realized that only a few people remained in the village of Barzan, so it decided to attack Barzan.
On December 9, 1931, Iraqi forces attacked the village of Barzani from three sides, but the attacking forces were defeated and 126 soldiers were killed and several were taken prisoner. On the other hand, Barzan's forces suffered 5 martyrs. This battle is known as the Battle of Barqi Beg. This resistance led to the emergence of the The First Barzan RevolutionAfter this war, due to the arrival of winter and the participation of part of their forces in the second Sheikh Mahmud revolution, the government accepted Sheikh Ahmed's request to stop the war until the spring of 1932. During the ceasefire, the government was able to gather several Aghas and tribal leaders of the region against the Barzanis and gather more forces in the Rwandiz, Acre and Amed regions. On December 12, 1932, the Council of Ministers decided to attack Barzan, and on February 18, 1932, a letter was sent to the Turkish government to prevent Barzan from entering Turkish territory. After these actions, Sheikh Ahmed realized that the state wanted to reorganize itself and was gathering forces to attack Barzan.
On March 10, 1932, the government sent a message to Sheikh Ahmed asking him to appear before the Governor of Zebar (Bile) and gave him only two days to prepare and agree to establish a government headquarters in Barzan. Sheikh Ahmed was aware of the government's intentions, so he rejected this request. After the rejection, the government launched a ground attack from three directions with the support of British air forces. As part of the defense preparations, Barzani's forces were divided into three fronts: the Mergasur-Shirwan Front led by Mustafa Barzani, the Balinda-Amedi Front led by Muhammad Sadiq and his assistant Haji Taha Akrey, and a force led by Sheikh Ahmed remained in Barzan. On March 18, 1932, the first clash between the two fronts took place in Kork and the government forces were defeated and turned to Mergasur. On April 3, 1932, the Battle of Dola Vajê took place with the participation of Day forces against Barzan forces from Mergasur to Geliyê Vajê and Mamişk. In this battle, the losses of the government forces reached 253 killed and wounded and several government soldiers were taken prisoner. In that battle, the Barzan army had 13 martyrs and 34 wounded. After the defeat of the Iraqi army, the British air force bombed the Barzani area from all sides. On April 27, 1932, a British plane was shot down by the Barzanis, the pilot and his assistant were captured in Sherwan Mazen. Sheikh Ahmed requested that doctors be sent to treat the prisoners. On May 3, 1932, Captain Holt arrived with doctors and linguists to Sheikh Ahmed. Sheikh Ahmed and Captain Holt discussed the government attack, the release of 25 Barzanis who were captured by Sediq Agha Oramari on the front line. They agreed to hand over Amed to the government, in exchange for which the pilot and his assistant should be released.
At the end of May 1932, Sheikh Nureddin Barifkani visited Sheikh Ahmed and presented the government's demands, on the condition that negotiations be held in the village of Hostan near an Iraqi army base. Sheikh Ahmed rejected this request due to distrust of the government and the British. Two days after Sheikh Nureddin Barifkani's return, fierce British air raids began, forcing the villagers to take refuge in caves and evacuate the villages. In these attacks, 79 villages were destroyed and 1,365 houses were burned. After this unfortunate situation, Sheikh Ahmed gathered prominent figures such as Wali Beg, Khalil Khoshvi, Ahmed Nadir, Abdullah Kirkemoyi and Hasan Mihemed Amini and discussed the situation in the region. The decision to retreat into Turkey was made. On June 10, 1932, all the families gathered in the Olive Valley and the surrounding villages and prepared to enter Turkish territory. But before leaving, Sheikh Ahmed held another meeting with prominent figures and some decisions were made, including that only a few families would cross into Turkey, that those who were not in danger would return to their villages and hand over some weapons to the government, and that approximately 200 to 300 people under the command of Xelîl Xoshêvî, Ehmed Nadir, Ebdullah Kirkemoyî and Hesen Mihemed Emin would remain on the border of the Gerdiyan villages with additional weapons when necessary and continue the armed movement and protect the displaced families until they crossed into Turkey.
On June 12, 1932, the group attacked the Mazuri region with the Kalhe Rekani Gangs and were defeated. On June 15, 1932, the Iraqi army advanced towards Sherwan Mazin. From June 19 to 20, 1932, they attacked the Zeta Valley and were defeated, killing 75 of them. On June 20, 1932, Muhammad Sediq and Haji Taha Akrey were sent to the village of Girane to negotiate with the Turkish state authorities and allow the Barzanis' families to enter Turkey, and the government accepted on the condition that they surrender their weapons. On June 21, 1932, Barzani entered Turkish territory, and on June 22, 1932, Sheikh Ahmed entered Turkish territory, with their retreat. The First Barzan RevolutionThe uprising ended, but the armed movement continued. After the invasion of Turkey, Sheikh Ahmed, Haji Taha Akrey and Ali Barzani were transferred to Ankara, while Mustafa Barzani and Muhammad Sadiq were transferred to Erzurum.
After Barzani went to Turkey, the Iraqi government imposed its control over the Barzan region and established many police and military bases in the area. The fighting subsided until the spring of 1933, and after the tripartite agreement between Turkey, Iraq, and the British, the Turkish government handed over Sheikh Ahmed to the Iraqi government. This caused the people of Barzan to be dissatisfied and leave Turkey and head for Barzan. After Barzani returned at the end of August 1933, the Iraqi government was afraid that Barzani would start a revolution again. Therefore, Sheikh Ahmed was released. In exchange for his release, he promised the government that Mustafa Barzani would be sent to Mosul. In return, the government decided to grant a general amnesty to the Barzanis, except for Khalil Khoshawi.
Shortly after, Sheikh Ahmed was summoned to Mosul. After his departure, Sheikh Ahmed sent a messenger from Mosul to Barzani to summon Mustafa Barzani. After Mustafa Barzani's departure, both were arrested, and Muhammad Sadiq, Babo, Sheikh Abdulsalam's children, and all their families were summoned to Mosul, then transferred to southern Iraq. After this news, Khalil Khoshvi, Ahmed Nadir, and Abdullah Kirkamoyi, who had been The First Barzan Revolution As the Barzan armed movements remained in the region, they retreated to the mountains. The fighting continued until the martyrdom of Ahmed Nader in September 1935 and the martyrdom of Khalil Khoshevi in February 1936, thus the first Barzan revolution was suppressed until after the return of Mullah Mustafa Barzani in 1943.
Source:
- Mustafa Muhammad Karim, Political Developments in the Barzan Region in the Years (1902-1932), (Hewlêr - Roxana Press-2022), pp. 136-182.
- Masoud Barzani, Barzani and the Kurdish Liberation Movement (1931-1958), Volume 1, Issue 2, pp. 24-54.
- Abdulaziz Eloqeili, History of the Barzan Elolaa Campaign, 1932, (Baghdad- Al-Shabab Press- 1956).
- Bahram Walid Beg, Barzan Sheikh Ahmed's Revolutions in Iranian Documents (1909-1970), Volume 1, (Tehran-Sazman Chep Ahmedi Publishing House-2021), pp. 109-161.
