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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Saudi Arabia
Index
Seeking to win over beduin tribal leaders and obtain their
loyalty to him and his cause, Abd al Aziz established Ikhwan
communities in which the beduin tribesmen could settle and adopt
a sedentary way of life. The Ikhwan were supported by Abd al Aziz
with land, seed, tools, and money, as well as arms and
ammunition. A mosque was built in each community, and these
mosques also served as military garrisons. By 1915 there were
more than 200 settlements and in excess of 60,000 men in
readiness to heed Abd al Aziz's call for warriors in his
continuing battles to unite the peninsula.
The Ikhwan became dedicated, even fanatical followers of the
young Al Saud leader. Acquiescence to discipline was not an
Ikhwan virtue, but Abd al Aziz was an uncommon leader able to use
the power of the brotherhood and its prowess in battle to his
advantage. The greatest of the Ikhwan successes was the conquest
of the Hijaz after World War I, but the bold exploits of the
Ikhwan also marked the beginning of their end. When Sharif
Hussein, the Hashimite ruler of the Hijaz, entered into military
negotiations with the Al Rashid, Abd al Aziz's reaction was swift
and harsh. He sent the Ikhwan against the Al Rashid stronghold at
Hail, which was captured with little difficulty in 1921.
Emboldened by their success, the warriors disregarded orders and
crossed the border into Transjordan. The raiding and plundering
of their Hashimite ally aroused the British, who counterattacked
with devastating effect, using armored cars and aircraft.
Other Ikhwan expeditions succeeded in overpowering Asir, an
independent enclave in the southwest. In defiance of Abd al
Aziz's authority, however, they continued to raid the British
protectorates. Recognizing that the wild forays of the Ikhwan
could only be a constant irritant and source of danger to his
leadership, Abd al Aziz began to form a more conventional and
more disciplined army. He entered Mecca and laid siege to Jiddah
and Medina, which were occupied by the end of 1924. These
successes led to the capitulation of the Hashimite kingdom of the
Hijaz, leaving the Al Saud in control of the entire peninsula,
except for Yemen in the southwest and the British gulf
protectorates.
Having acquired such a tremendous area, Abd al Aziz then
faced the daunting task of governing it. First, however, he had
to deal with the rebellious Ikhwan. The zealots of the
brotherhood regarded the Western-influenced modernization pursued
by Abd al Aziz as a betrayal of the fundamentals of Islam that
had been their raison d'ĂȘtre since the beginning of their
association with the House of Saud. Renewed Ikhwan raids against
defenseless groups in Iraq incensed the British, who were trying
to stabilize the region, and finally compelled Abd al Aziz to
force the submission of the Ikhwan. When the Ikhwan leadership
revolted against Abd al Aziz, he took to the field to lead his
army, which was now supported by four British aircraft (flown by
British pilots) and a fleet of 200 military vehicles that
symbolized the modernization that the Ikhwan abhorred. After
being crushed at the Battle of Sabalah, the Ikhwan were
eliminated as an organized military force in early 1930.
The suppression of the Ikhwan brought to an end the chronic
warfare in the Arabian Peninsula except for a series of incidents
between 1931 and 1934 along the poorly defined border with Yemen.
Abd al Aziz placed his eldest son, Saud, at the head of an army
that succeeded in occupying much Yemeni territory but could not
defeat the Yemeni warriors so adept at defending their mountain
passes. Pressure by European powers determined to maintain the
status quo on the Arabian Peninsula finally brought peace, and
much of the occupied territory was restored to Yemen.
During the 1930s, Abd al Aziz, who had made himself king,
allowed the remnants of the Ikhwan to regroup as a beduin
militia. They became known as the White Army because they wore
traditional white robes rather than military uniforms. For Abd al
Aziz, the White Army served as a counterbalance to the small
regular army, thereby helping to ensure his control over internal
security. In addition to the two armies, there was the Royal
Guard, a lightly armed body of absolutely loyal officers and
troops, whose mission consisted entirely of protecting the
monarch and the growing royal family.
Data as of December 1992
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