Kuwait–Nejd Border War
Encyclopedia
The Kuwait-Najd Border War erupted in the
Aftermath of World War I
, when the Ottoman Empire
was defeated and the British invalidated the Anglo-Ottoman Convention, declaring Kuwait to be an "independent sheikhdom under British protectorate". The power vacuum, left by the fall of the Ottomans, sharpened the conflict between the sheikhdom of Kuwait and Najd
. The short war resulted in sporadic border clashes through 1921.
insisted that Kuwait was in full control of all territory out to a radius of 140 km from the capital; however, the ruler of Najd
, Abdul Aziz ibn Abdul Rahman ibn Saud, argued, in September 1920, that the borders of Kuwait did not extend past the walls of the capital. Ibn Saud noted that the Convention had never been ratified and that Kuwait was not effectively in control of the disputed territory.
In May 1921 ibn Saud's Wahhabi Bedouin
s of Nejd attacked a Kuwaiti detachment in southern Kuwait, forcing its retreat. In October, they raided Jahra
, 40 km from the capital battles occurred in which the Kuwaitis were mostly victorious. Some 200 people were killed in the battle. In response, the British deployed gunboats, armored cars and aircraft
. Eventually, the Bedouin
s withdrew.
set Kuwait's border with Saudis and also established the Saudi-Kuwaiti neutral zone
, an area of about 5,180 km² adjoining Kuwait's southern border.
Aftermath of World War I
Aftermath of World War I
The fighting in World War I ended in western Europe when the Armistice took effect at 11:00 am GMT on November 11, 1918, and in eastern Europe by the early 1920s. During and in the aftermath of the war the political, cultural, and social order was drastically changed in Europe, Asia and Africa,...
, when the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
was defeated and the British invalidated the Anglo-Ottoman Convention, declaring Kuwait to be an "independent sheikhdom under British protectorate". The power vacuum, left by the fall of the Ottomans, sharpened the conflict between the sheikhdom of Kuwait and Najd
Najd
Najd or Nejd , literally Highland, is the central region of the Arabian Peninsula.-Boundaries :The Arabic word nejd literally means "upland" and was once applied to a variety of regions within the Arabian Peninsula...
. The short war resulted in sporadic border clashes through 1921.
History
Sheikh Salim Al-Mubarak Al-SabahSalim Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah
Sheikh Salim Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, CSI was the ninth sheikh of Kuwait of the line of Al-Sabah. He was the second son of Mubarak Al-Sabah and is the ancestor of the Al-Salem branch of the Al-Sabah family. He ruled from February 5, 1917 to February 22, 1921. Prior to his ascension, he served as the...
insisted that Kuwait was in full control of all territory out to a radius of 140 km from the capital; however, the ruler of Najd
Najd
Najd or Nejd , literally Highland, is the central region of the Arabian Peninsula.-Boundaries :The Arabic word nejd literally means "upland" and was once applied to a variety of regions within the Arabian Peninsula...
, Abdul Aziz ibn Abdul Rahman ibn Saud, argued, in September 1920, that the borders of Kuwait did not extend past the walls of the capital. Ibn Saud noted that the Convention had never been ratified and that Kuwait was not effectively in control of the disputed territory.
In May 1921 ibn Saud's Wahhabi Bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
s of Nejd attacked a Kuwaiti detachment in southern Kuwait, forcing its retreat. In October, they raided Jahra
Battle of Jahra
Battle of Jahra was a battle during the Kuwait-Najd Border War. The battle took place in Al Jahra, west of Kuwait City on October 10, 1920 between Salim Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah ruler of Kuwait and Ikhwan followers of ibn Saud, king of Saudi Arabia....
, 40 km from the capital battles occurred in which the Kuwaitis were mostly victorious. Some 200 people were killed in the battle. In response, the British deployed gunboats, armored cars and aircraft
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
. Eventually, the Bedouin
Bedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
s withdrew.
Aftermath
The 1922 Treaty of UqairUqair Protocol of 1922
The Uqair Protocol or Uqair Convention was an agreement at Uqair on 2 December 1922 which defined the boundaries between Iraq and Nejd and between Kuwait and Nejd. It was brokered by Percy Cox, the British High Commissioner to Iraq, in response to Bedouin raiders from Nejd under ibn Saud...
set Kuwait's border with Saudis and also established the Saudi-Kuwaiti neutral zone
Saudi-Kuwaiti neutral zone
The Saudi–Kuwaiti neutral zone, also known as the Divided Zone, was an area of 5,770 km² between the borders of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait that was left undefined when the border was established by the Uqair Convention of December 2, 1922....
, an area of about 5,180 km² adjoining Kuwait's southern border.