Resolute action quickly restored order
Sheikh Jaber keen observer
Ahmad was old enough to realize what was happening; the discussions of the men at the diwaniya made him a keen observer of the political game played by the Iraqi regime on his people; hence, he was observing the developing situation with growing concern. What what began as a sporadic discontent developed into a crisis that reached a climax during a session of the Legislative Council, when some of its members raised a dispute over agreements concerning the oil concession, which had been concluded by the Amir with the British authorities.
This interfering with the prerogative rights of the Ruler could not be tolerated; the Council was dissolved; while those instigated by the Iraqi political glamour or motivated by private interests, rose in protest against the government demanding unity with Iraq. Taking resolute action Sheikh Ahmad Al Jaber quickly restored order; in the process one man was killed, others were caught and sent to prison, many fled to Iraq and to Lebanon.
Capture
Taking advantage of the situation King Gazi of Iraq sent immediate orders to his generals in Basra to capture Kuwait, but his death in a car accident aborted his intent. The near miss of an Iraqi attack and the commotion accompanying the crises had a profound effect on Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad, who remained forever suspicious of Iraq’s intentions on his country. Incidentally those Kuwaitis who fled to Iraq lived to regret it, for they soon realized how hard life was
Lidia Qattan
made for them by the Iraqi authorities, at the same time, all the Kuwaiti possessions in Iraq were confiscate.
In the following year (in 1939) the thunder clouds of war gathering over Europe caused the pro-German government in Iraq to side with Nazi Germany, a power that made every European nation uneasy, in spite of Hitler’s reassurance of his peaceful intentions when he signed a friendly agreement with the British government.
Indeed, the pro-Germany government in Iraq prompted the British government to safeguard its interests in the Middle East if a war broke out, trying to gain Iraq on its side by the re-demarcation of the Kuwait-Iraq frontier in favor of Iraq.
In July 1939, the British and Iraqi government representatives met to discuss the issue. In the new agreement, Kuwait lost one mile south of Safwan, but that did not satisfy Iraq, for it demanded to establish a port at Khor Abdullah. The Amir strongly objected, for such a demand would have deprived Kuwait of part of its nautical boundary. Fortunately, around this time, in August 1939, the Second World War erupted and Iraq promptly sided with Germany.
Spared from further Iraqi intrigues and free to continue its good work, in Kuwait the Municipality kept preparing the country for its great leap ahead, when the revenues from the oil would had become available for major projects and innovations that would had transformed the country into a modern state.
Revival
Incidentally during the Second World War while most countries were suffering from the consequences of a global conflict, Kuwait was an oasis of peace and prosperity due to the revival of its ships industry, when the service of steamers disappeared from the Gulf and sailing ships were in great demand for transporting goods and passengers.
All through the war life in Kuwait remained quite normal, because of the far-sighted policy that effectively curbed the greediness of any merchant trying to take advantage of the world situation, to increase the price on basic necessities of living. Incidentally, it was at this time that Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad, then in his early teens, became directly involved in supervising the market, going around alone or in the company of some friends to check the price on goods.
Like everyone else in town, he was very interested on how the war was developing. News on the radio, the comments of people at the diwaniya and the Newsreel shown at the Safat Square by the British Political Agent every Friday evening, gave him a comprehensive picture of what was happening in the world. He was appalled by the destruction of entire cities and by the great suffering of millions of people, innocent bystanders in a conflict engendered by the greed of one man obsessed with power, Adolph Hitler.
To be continued