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The Kurds are one of the five great peoples of the Middle East, and the only one without a state, a dream that was briefly realized in Iran in 1946.
Kurds are widely distributed in Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran, and had a population of 2.5 million to 3 million before the war, one-fifth of whom lived in Iran.
The importance of the Kurds
The Kurds in Iran are mainly engaged in agricultural and animal husbandry production, and most of the products are used to ensure a self-sufficient life or are consumed in the local market, so the Kurds are to a certain extent on the fringes of the national economy.
They speak an Indo-European language close to Persian and are predominantly Sunni Muslims; As a result, both language and religion are the main basis for national unity, and the Kurds feel that they are on the margins.
This marginalization inspires a strong national identity among Kurdish intellectuals, a nationalist appeal that is far stronger than that of other minorities in Iran.
Historically, Iranian Kurds have historically been inhabited by areas with weak central government control, not only because Kurds live in economically backward mountainous areas, with rough roads and inaccessible roads, and military and economic influence that is difficult to penetrate;
More importantly, the Kurdish provinces of West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan and Kolmanshah are among the most tribal regions in Iran.
In particular, the level of education and urbanization in West Azerbaijan and Kurdistan provinces is extremely low, and farmers and herders in rural areas are mostly under the control of tribal mullahs.
Kurdish tribal forces
Specifically, Kurdish tribal forces are entrenched in the Maku region from the Iranian-Turkish border region to the Qasri-Shirin region on the southern Baghdad-Kolmanshah road.
After the Allied forces entered Iran, the three Kurdish provinces were occupied by British and Soviet troops. In the north, Kurdish armed forces were entrenched in the mountains west of Lake Urumiyah, but were contained by Soviet garrisons in Shahpur, Khoi and Maku.
The Soviet Red Army was in direct contact with the major tribes of the region, including Jalali in the northern mountains, Shikak in the mountains west of Shapur, and Herki west of Rezaye; The southern province of Kolmanshah was under British control, and the consulate became the center of British Kurdish policy.
The most powerful Kurdish tribe in the region was the Baneh, whose growing wartime power caused great trouble to the British occupation forces and the Iranian government; Mahabad became the center of the Vacuum, part of Kurdistan and West Azerbaijan province between the Soviet Union and the British-occupied areas, and thus the center of the separatist movement of intellectuals, beyond the reach of Iran's central government.
In Iran's Kurdish region, there are more than 60 major tribes, ranging in size from 120,000 to just a few thousand, the most prominent of which are Jalalis, Milanis, Shikhak and Helki.
In the northwestern region of West Azerbaijan Province, near the Turkish-Soviet border, the largest tribe is the Jalalis, a Kurdish tribe of about 25,000 people who fled to Iran in the 1920s to escape repression by the Turkish Kemal government; Milanis, with about 10,000 people, live west of Lake Urumiyah;
The Shikh tribe under the leadership of Amr Khan lives in the Khoi region near the Turkish border and has a population of about 40,000, making it the second largest Kurdish tribe in Iran; Near the Iran-Iraq border, the Helanpar tribe of 20,000 people lives the Helki tribe, a nomadic tribe that often moves between Erbil, Iraq, and Kurdistan, Iran.
Like other tribes in southern Iran, these Kurdish tribes were also affected by the centralization of the central government's policies during the Reza period.
However, Reza Shah's policies to improve communications, promote education and forced settlement have had much less effect in Kurdistan areas than in other tribal areas.
The reason behind the phenomenon
There are two main reasons for this: on the one hand, the complex terrain makes it extremely difficult for Reza troops to enter without technical equipment.
Even during the Khomeini era, when modern communications and transportation were available, the entry of Iranian troops into the region came at a great cost.
Kurdish tribes, on the other hand, have greater mobility than southern tribes such as Keshgar or Bakhtiari. Normally, Kurdish tribes in Iran choose to retreat to northern Iraq when threatened, rather than directly confronting Reza's forces.
Once the situation in Iran improves, these tribes will return home, the so-called "enemy advances, I retreat." But like Keshga and Bakhtiari, Kurdish tribes have fiercely resisted Reza's policies.
Among the many Kurdish chiefs, Ismail Agha Simko, the leader of the Shikh tribe, proved to be a major opponent of Reza Shah's centralized policy.
Simcoe started a massive rebellion in Kurdistan from 1918 to 1922, and Reza forces were unable to resist him because of their difficulty in gaining access to the mountains.
The central government was forced to reach a reconciliation agreement with the Shikh tribes in 1923, which restored calm to Kurdistan.
Reza did not spare Simko, who was secretly killed in the mid-20s, and the Shikh tribe was paralyzed by the leaderlessness of the dragons.
Although the central government has eliminated the sources of harm to order in the region, its rule is still limited to the cities. The collapse of Reza's regime shattered the calm in the region, and tribal and nationalist forces rose again.
In general, the Kurdish movement in wartime Iran consisted of two parts: an autonomous movement dominated by tribal forces, whose demands were the same as Keshga's, to restore pre-Reza rights and to expand their territory.
As a special individual unit, the tribe is like the feudal princely states of Europe in the Middle Ages, with almost no concept of the nation-state, and localism, blood belonging, and kinship identity govern its actions;
The other part is a national movement dominated by Kurdish intellectuals, who carry out clandestine party activities centered on Mahabad, a major town in the southern part of West Azerbaijan Province, and fight to arouse the national awakening of the people.
The two forces, supported by the Soviet Union, briefly merged in early 1946, bringing the entire Iranian Kurdish movement to a climax.
After the Allied invasion of Iran in August 1941, the Kurdish-populated provinces of Kolmanshah and West Azerbaijan became the most tribal-agitated areas in Iran, while Kurdistan fared better thanks to the excellent coordination of local bureaucrats, intellectuals, and tribal leaders.
Kolmanshah province was one of the first to fall into a tribal crisis, and the tribal riots not only completely collapsed the Iranian government there, but also caused great distress to the British occupation forces.
British involvement
In September 1941, some 2,000 Kurdish militants, led by Sheikh Mahmound in Iraq, invaded Korman Shah province and briefly infiltrated around Sanadaj, the capital of Kurdistan province, forcing part of Iranian border guards to surrender and besieging another 1,000 Iranian soldiers in Sardasht.
In the vast area from Miandu Aibo to Zawadud, it is difficult for Iranian troops to resist the offensive of Kurdish armed forces. By November, Kurdish armed forces had seized most of Kurdistan and Kolmanshah provinces and established their own administration.
The British had to step in to prevent Kurdish forces from entering Sanandaj. The Iranian government also had to negotiate peace with Kurdish forces, but the Kurdish tribes were determined to continue their resistance until the government agreed to all of its demands, including autonomy.
On December 1, 17 Kurdish tribal leaders submitted a petition to the British political counsellor in Kormansh province asking for "asylum from the British government and help restore its rights."
"Once again, we cannot accept the unjust protection afforded by the weak and cruel Iranian government." The British authorities did not respond because the British government adopted an evasive attitude towards the Kurdish issue.
The British government believes that "if the Kurds are encouraged, then other minorities, such as the Arabs in Khuzestan, will seek our support against the central government".
"While our overall policy requires us to support the central government, we must also exert influence on the Iranian government to ensure that Kurds are treated as fairly as possible."
Britain's policy was a "policy of non-interference", "our policy is not to try to interfere with the Persians and Kurds, but to give them the opportunity to solve the problem".
"This policy of non-interference should be maintained for as long as possible." Failing to get a response, the angry Kurdish tribal leader decided to take action.
On December 9, 3,000 Kurdish forces, led by Mohammed Hama Rashid Khan, surrounded Diwandarra, the gateway to Sanandaj.
The leader of the Kolmanshah region took advantage of the collapse of the Iranian army to take advantage of the opportunity. By collecting weapons discarded by Iranian forces, Rashid's forces quickly acquired nearly 10,000 rifles.
Six days later, the British government finally responded, but it was very different from Rashid's demands. The British Consulate in Colmanshah issued a proclamation: "The British Government does not support Rashid".
"It is the policy of the British government to encourage the Iranian government to re-establish its authority in Kurdistan and appease legitimate grievances." Not only that, but in the face of Rashid's threat, the British army intervened again.
The Royal Air Force bombarded the Kurdish tribal forces in Rashid, and the tribal forces retreated 30 kilometers, and the siege of Sanandaj was lifted.
But the bombing campaign gave Rashid a pretext when he joined other Kurdish tribes in Kolmanshah province to issue a joint statement against Iran's central government.
The British counterattack not only failed to prevent Rashid from continuing to expand his power, but stimulated his greater ambitions. In February 1942, government forces and Rashid Kurdish forces fought fiercely in Saqqis, and the commander of the Iraqi garrison, Amini, was killed in the engagement.
This incident shocked Iran's central government and caused Iranian Prime Minister Forrugi to resign on February 28. In order to suppress the rebellion in Rashid, the Iranian government transferred an additional division of heavy troops to Kurdistan province.
In May, Rashid's forces in Kurstan were crushed by government forces and Kurdish resistance began to collapse in the region, but Rashid still established firm rule in Sadass, Bane, Avroman, and Merian.
After that, Rashid negotiated an agreement with the central government and not only became the officially recognized governor of the Bane and Saghez districts, but also received financial subsidies from the central government.
After reconciliation with the government, Rashid became the de facto ruler of the Bane region, which he ruled until 1944.
bibliography
George Kirk, translated by the Department of World History, Department of History, Fudan University: The Middle East 1945-1950, p. 106.