The Ottoman government in Palestine
This chapter
deals with the administrative of the Ottoman government in Palestine and the
changes in its formation in the 19th century, the Walis until 1831,
the Egyptian rule, until 1840 and administrative changes since 1841.
Palestine
was conquered by Selim the First(1512-!520, the Grim) in 1517 and his successor
Suleiman the Magnificent(1520-1566)
built the walls of Jerusalem. The map of 1914 reveals that Turkey spread over Iraq ,Syria, Lebanon,
Palestine and the Western half of the Arab Peninsula .
In Palestine
lived in 1800 about 240000 Arabs and about 7000 Jews.
After 70
years the number of Arabs rose to 330000 and 18000 Jews and in 1914 there were about 650 to 700 thousands
Arabs and 85 to 90 thousands Jews(Shefek-Lisak
book). The Muslims were called "Ahl
Al zima . The non-Muslim communities: the
Greeks Orthodox, the Armenians and the Jews were organized in
"Millet".
At the end
the 19th century Palestine was divided into the Wilayet of
Beirut(formerly the Wilayet of Sidon) which included the Sanjak of Beirut
The Sanjak
of Acre, the Sanjak of Balka(east to the Jordan)-Nablus. The Wilayet of
Damascus including Sanjak of Damascus,
the Sanjak of the Khoran and the Golan and Sanjak Maan from A Salt in the north
to Aqaba in the south(Today Trans Jordan). In 1873 Jerusalem and Gaza became
the Mutasaraflik of Jerusalem under the direct rule of the Porte.
Also were
included Jaffa and Hebron and in 1908 also the district of Beer Sheva.
Capitulations are
privileges that European states obtained from Turkey.
France was
the first already in 1535, Russia in 1774 and other European countries in the
1840's. The heads of the churches and the consuls had a special status, and a uniformed with a decorative walking
stick who was Kawas who was announcing
their arrival. The foreign citizens were exempt from paying taxes, were not
subject to Turkish courts but to their respective consuls. In a conflict
between a foreign national and a local citizen a special court was composed.
The capitulations undermined under the Imperial authority and enabled the
foreign powers to built their own postal systems, roads and railways, hospitals,
and schools. After the eviction of the Egyptians in 1841 all the great powers
opened consulates(to be described later)
and Spain opened a consulate in 1854, Persia in 1893 and Greece also opened a
consulate.
1750-1840
Dahir al
Amr 1689-1775
In early
twenties of the 18th century Dahir became the Multazim(tax collector)
of the lower Galilee which included the townd of Safed, Tiberias and Nazareth which belonged to the Sanjak of Damascus. In
1740 he
encourage Rabbi Haim Abulafia to settle
in Tiberias where the Rabbi built hot baths and a shopping center. Salibi elder son Salibi governed Tiberias for 30 years.
In 1750 Dahir settled in Acre and governed Sidon and in Haifa which was a fishermen
village he built a wall. Rabbi Moshe Haim Luzato(Ramhal) lived in Acre in the 1840's.
Dahir had
good relations with the French merchants in Acre and he was very important in
the cotton and wheat markets. In Acre there were about 20 merchants and three consular agents: English, French and
Dutch. Dahir fortified the walls of Acre, built a palace, the White market, and
the port and allowed the Christians to built new churches.
In 1770 he
joined Ali the governor of Egypt who rebelled against the Sultan and was
supported by the Russian navy. After Ali's defeat in 1775, Acre was conquered by
Hassan Pasha the commander of the Turkish navy and Denizli, Dahir military commander who betrayed him and he
was killed in the battle.
Jazzar(the
butcher) Pasha 1720-1804
Was from
Bosnia and fulfilled several jobs in the Ottoman administration. In 1773 he was
the commander of Beirut when Dahir and the Russians besieged the town. Although
he had to surrender he got a lot of praise for his defence of the town. In 1775
he was one of the commanders in the expedition which defeated Dahir. In
September 1775 after Hasan the commander of the navy sailed to Cyprus he became
the commander. Later Hasan became the Grand Vazir and was Jazzar enemy until he
died in 1790.
Jazzar was
appointed to be the Wali of Sidon and settled in Acre. He defeated the sons of Dahir
who were local leaders in the Galilee and the Mutawalis-Shiite in the south of
Lebanon. He fortified Acre, built a water aqueduct and the market of Khan e
Umdan. He installed monopolized all the
trade in Acre and in 1791 evicted all the French merchants. His close financial
adviser was Haim Farhi and together with the French engineer Filipo who strengthened
the walls of Acre were very crucial
for the
defeat of Napoleon in 1799. From 1783 he was from time to time
the
governor of Damascus and thus was responsible for the annual convoy to Mecca.
After Napoleon retreat, he continued to fortify the walls of Acre. During his
reign Acre numbered 15 to 20 thousands inhabitants. He died in 1804 and was
buried in the mosque of al-Jazzar.
Haim Farhi
1760- 1820
A scion of
a very respected family in Damascus whose father Shaul and his brothers served as financial advisers in the Sanjak of
Damascus. He was the financial adviser to the Wali of Damascus and in 1790 he
became the Saraf(literally money changer)
or financial advisor to Jazzar.
The French
traveler Forbin(1779-1841) who visited
the Levant and Acre in 1817-1818 wrote that thanks to Farhi important position
there was an increase in the number of Jews in Jerusalem, Gaza and Tiberias.
Farhi obtained a reduction in the Head tax that the Jews had to pay. In 1794
when Jazzar went on a 4 months pilgrimage
to Mecca he was jailed and his nose and
ear were cut(probably by Jazzar order). When Jazzar came back he was
reappointed to be Saraf. A short time before Jazzar death in 1804 he was jailed
again. Suleiman, Jazzar successor reappointed him to be the Saraf.
The
traveler Burkhart and Arab sources write that the Farhi family ran the northern region of Palestine and Damascus. Farhi
was also instrumental in the appointment of Soleiman to be the Wali of Damascus.
Farhi also over came the Bahri, who were
Greeks Catholic and competed with Farhi on financial deals. He had good
contacts in Kushta where his brother Yehezkel was a Saraf. The latter also
helped to install Abdalla who was 17 as Soleiman successor. Very soon after
Abdalla ordered to murder Farhi and his body was thrown into the sea.
The Farhi
family tried to depose Abdalla but failed. Raphael Farhi brother fled from
Damascus to Baghdad and returned to
Damascus in 1827 and became the Saraf of the Wali.
Soleiman Pasha
1808-1819
Soleiman
el Adil(the Just) was a Mamluk and was appointed in 1785
to be the
Wali of Tripoli in Lebanon. He sided with the rebels against Jazzar in 1789 and
fled after the rebellion collapsed. Later he was pardoned by Jazzar and was
appointed to be the governor of the town of Sidon. After the death of Jazzar he
overcame his rivals he was appointed to be the Wali of Sidon and he resided In
Acre. In 1806 suppressed a rebellion in Jaffa and the Sultan granted him to be
also the governor of Jaffa, Jerusalem and Gaza. In 1809 until 1811 he was also
the governor of Damascus and he continued to be involved there until his
death. In 1817 he made peace between the
Tukan and Nimr in Nablus which was part of the Sanjak od Damascus. In 1809 the towns
of Tripoli and Latakia became part of the Sanjak o f Sidon which were
under his rule. In 1810 Emir Bashir the governor of Mount Lebanon became his
ally.
He
released Haim Farhi from prison and he
became his closest advisor.
Soleiman
and Farhi continued monopolistic
commercial and economic policy. He built in Acre the Mosque of the Sea and a
palace north to Acre which is today in the youth village Manof. In 1815 he finished to built a water aqueduct from
the springs of Kabri, which is 12 km long and survived until 1948 when it was
partially destroyed due to an explosion.
He also
upgraded the road between Acre and Beirut.
Abdallah Pasha 1819-1832
Born in Acre (1801-1853) and the son of Ali Aga Husander who was a very senior
adviser of Jazzar. Ali Aga took part with Soleiman in the Mamluk rebellion
which failed against Jazzar in 1789. Ali
Aga was the vice Wali of Soleimanand built in 1810 the Majdala mosqueand died
in 1814. His son Abdalla got religious education. Haim Farhi helped Abdalla to
take power but in 1820
Farhi was executed. Abdalla like his predecessor was also the governor of Gaza, Jaffa, Jerusalem
and Nablus and was hostile to the
Christian and Jewish communities. He was victorious in the battle against
Darwish the governor of Damascus and the Farhi family in the years 1821-1822.
He succeeded to quash a rebellion in Sanur near Nablus which was organized by
Abdalla Jarar the local chief in 1831 with the help of Emir Bashir. Together
with the rich merchant Catafago he controlled all the trade in Acre but
generally the economic situation was not good. In October 1832
Ibrahim Muhamad Ali son conquered Acre and Abdalla went into exile in Egypt for 20 years and then to Kushta
where he died 2 years later.
Emir Bashir Shihab the Second 1767-1850
His father was Yusuf Shihab from a Suni family who became a Christian
and was the only Maronite governor of Mount Lebanon.
With the help of the Druse family Junblat it took him 5 years to to
defeat his rivals and in 1795 he became
an ally of Jazzar. But during the siege of Acre by Napoleon he stayed neutral
and this caused a rift between him in Jazzar. Bashir managed to recruit the
support of Sidney Smith the British naval commander, and the Sultan let him to continue to rule Mount Lebanon.
But he never made peace with Jazzar. In 1810 Soleiman reaffirmed his title of
governor. He fought together with Abdalla against Darwish from Damascus. But
later Bashir lost the support of the Druzes in Lebanon. His second son Halil
helped Ibrahim to conquer Acre. In May 1832. After Ibrahim retreat in 1841he
went into exile to Egypt and then to Kushta where he died.
The Egyptian rule in Palestine 1831-1840
Muahamad Ali(1769-1849) was of Albanian origin and was part of the
military army that reestablished the Ottoman rule in Egypt after the retreat of
Napoleon army from Egypt in in !801. In 1805 he was appointed to be the Wali of
Egypt. Between the years 1821 to 1827 his army under the command of his son Ibrahim(1789-1848) helped the Sultan to
suppress the Greek rebellion. Ibrahim returned to Egypt after the defeat of the Turkish in
Navarino in 1827. Four years later in 1831 invaded Palestine and occupied Gaza,
Jaffa and Jerusalem. In May 1832 the
Egyptian army occupied Acre and Damascus and proceeded to Turkey and in
December 1832 defeated the Ottoman army in Konya 200km east of Kushta.
According to the Kutaya agreement
Signed in March 1833 Muhamad Ali was recognized as the governor of Syria
and Palestine. The French writer Lamartine who visited Acre in 1832 met the
French colonel Sebb who was Ibrahim military advisor and helped him with his
relations with the foreign consuls.
The Egyptian rule legislated secular laws, limited the powers of the
religious judges(Kadi) conscripted the locals, levied head tax.
Local councils(Majlis) were established that had legal, administrative
and economic authority over the Muslims the Christian and the Jews. New methods
in agriculture were introduced, the status of the non-Muslim minorities was
improved
and the collection of taxes was more effective. Public works were
carried out and new roads were built.
The first British Consul Young arrived in Jerusalem in 1839
The governor Muhamad Sharif lived in Damascus and and he ruled Syria,
Lebanon and Palestine. The "Ayala" of Sidon included Jerusalem,
Nablus and was headed by Husein Abdul Hadiof Bedouin origin and his son
Soleiman succeeded him in 1837.
In 1834 a big rebellion broke out in Jerusalem and Ibrahim was defeated
near the Solomon pools in the vicinity of Beth-Lehem.
The situation was so desperate that his father had to come in person
with reinforcements that sailed from Alexandria to Jaffa.
They first to had deal with a rebellion in Sanur near Nablus, and then also
Nablus surrendered. Then they advanced to Jerusalem, Hebron and finally to
Kerak in Jordan all of which capitulated rapidly. At the end of 1834 there was a rebellion of the Alawites in Syria,
the Druses in the Hauran in 1837-1838 and the Maronites in Lebanon in 1840. After the British conquered
Acre in 1840 Ibrahim retreated from Damascus in December 1840 and had to fight
his way thru Gaza against the locals on
his way back to Egypt.
1840-1914
Until the reforms the Sultan was the an absolute ruler and also the religious
and known as the king(Khalif) of the believers. The Grand Wazir was his prime
minister and his "deputy". The important governors were titled Pasha and
they usually had to pay to get the jobs. They were responsible to collect taxes,
for security, and conscription of soldiers in the event of war. Most time they
were independent of the central of government and occasionally they fought each
other. There rule was generally short since the Porte was afraid that they will
get too strong. They were busy accumulating money and furthering their personal
interests.
The time of the Sultans Abdul Majid the First and Abdul Aziz in
1839-1876 is known as the "Tanzimats"( reforms). New modern methods were introduced in the civil administration
and in the army, legal European codes
were adopted and new courts were established. The financial system, tax
collection was modernized new roads were paved and a Telegraph system was
installed. Modern schools were opened health services were developed and also
municipal services. A new Constitution was introduced in 1876, according to which
all citizens were equal regardless of
religion. Change were made in the structure of the Millets in order to
weaken the religious leaders and their separatist tendencies.
According the Wilayets laws 1864 to 1871 the Empire was divided into
regions: The Wilayet(formerly Ayalat) was divided into Sanjaks or Mutarasafalics
headed by the Wali. The Sanjak headed by
the Sanjak Bey was divided into Nahiyas
headed by the Mudir and the Karya(village) was headed by the Kaymakam. In the
first half of the 19th century there were 5 sanjaks in the Ayalat of
Damascus: Safed, Lajun(Megido and the valley of Jezereel),Nablus, Gaza and Jerusalem. In the second half until 1917
there were only 3 Sanjaks: Jerusalem Acre and Nablus, but thr lass two belonged
to the Wilayat of Sidon which became later the Wilayat of Beirut.
The Ottomans had a policy of changing occasionally the administrative
system to thwart the attempts of the big powers to grab Palestine and to subdue
Arab nationalism. Jerusalem was from 1854 an independent Mutasfarilic and under
the direct control of the Porte and all European had consular representation.
Parts of Jordan where included in the Sanjak of Nablus and was called
Albalka(North to Amman including A Salt the local capital) and was later part
of the Wilayat of Damascus. Nazareth became in 1906 part Jerusalem region to make
it easier for the Christian pilgrims. In 1901 Beer-Sheva which was part of Gaza
became an independent to strengthen the Turkish rule on the border with Egypt
which was under British control.
The governor of the region was Turkish with good education and usually
spoke an European language and his term of office was
Usually and was assisted by an administrative council. The officials
Were subject to the governor and to the relevant office in Kushta.
Some of them were Turkish and some of them Arabs. Governor Soraya Pasha(1857-1863)
and governor Izzat(1864-1867) managed to weaken the power the chief of the
Hamulas in the mountains and of Bedouins and to improve the security situation.
The Turkish garrison in Palestine numbered between 2 to 3 thousands soldiers
all non-Arabs and artillery units in Acre and Jerusalem. The police was
composed of locals. The military commander was reporting directly to the
authorities in Kushta and not to the governor but usually there was good cooperation between the civil and
military authorities. In 1877 the local authorities law was enacted and new municipalities were
created. In Jerusalem, Acre and Nablus there were municipalities already from the sixties. The judicial system became
more liberal and civil courts were created and called Nizams and a Civil code
called "Majala" was enacted. The legal system was under the control
of the Ministry of Justice in Kushta and some of the judges had legal training.
The governors had occasionally conflicts with the important local families.
Rauf Pasha (1877-1879) had a conflict with the Husseinis and the Khaldis and
Akram Bey(1906-1908) had a confrontation
with the top officials of his government. The governors needed the knowledge to
deal with the foreign consuls, some of them had the backing of powerful
ambassadors in Kushta. The majority of the foreign citizens were Jews and they
were under the jurisdiction of the consular courts. From 1857 to 1914 there 25
governors.
The governor Nazif Pasha(1867-1869,1872-1873) contributed a lot to the
building of new roads. The Magid newspaper reported in 1860(תרכ"א) that on the Jaffa Jerusalem
road were erected 17 guarding towers. In 1869 in preparation of the visit of
Kaiser Franz-Yosef the road was widened
for the passage of carriages. In 1873 the road was widened again and a
Khan(small hotel) was erected which included a stable and few rooms where
Montefiore stayed in 1875, and the guests had to buy coffee. The khan was in
Bab el Wad(the gate to the valley) 25 km from Jerusalem and 35km from Jaffa and
was tower number 13. The khan was Turkish property and was leased to among
other to Yitzhak Rokakh, Shlomo Rosenthal and Moshe Kossover. After the opening
of the railway line in 1892 the number of guests decreased.
A short time after the installment of the Telegraph in Kushta ,
Jerusalem was connected in 1865 and
several more offices opened in other towns. On the other hand the Turkish
postal service was not efficient and Austria
and several other countries opened their postal offices. The health service became more modern and special
inspectors were appointed to prevent the spread of plagues. It was quite common
to impose quarantines to stop the spread of plagues from neighboring countries.
From 1867 foreign citizens were allowed to purchase land but the but the
process was encumbered by hurdles from the government. But usually with the
help of the consuls most hurdles were smoothed. In the Sixties new laws were
enacted which strengthened the status of
the Millets and it easier to the Non-Muslims to integrate.
Intercommunal tension During the
Crimean wart the animosity of the Muslims towards the other Millets increased
and in 1856 were riots against non- Muslims in Nablus. High tension was also
during the crisis in Lebanon in 1860. During the Turco-Russian war in 1877-1878
there was a lot of inter-religious
tension . During the failed Urabi Pasha revolt in Egypt in 1879-1882 the Imams carried
inciting speeches against aliens in
general and against the Brirtish in particular. In some towns the locals
threatened the foreign residents and
reserves (Radif) were called up in
order to keep the calm. In 1895 there was severe unrest in Turkey
because of the Armenian problem and the Druze unrest supported by the British.
There were also incidents that were caused by locals in Haifa in 1880 and in Ramle in 1881 and in Jaffa in 1908. The
growing number of local residents especially in Haifa and Jaffa caused jealously
and unrest because they enjoyed extra privileges. The authorities did their
utmost to keep law order in order to prevent foreign intervention.
Akil Aga(1820-1870) was a Bedouin chief from
the Khawara tribe who ruled the Galilee and had good connections in Transjordan.
Most of the time he cooperated with the Turkish authorities but sometime he
clashed with them and was exiled to Kushta for two years. He was the of the
American traveler captain Lynch on his
trip on the Jordan river. During the crisis in Lebanon in 1860 he defended the
Christians in the Galilee and the residents of Nazareth from the Muslims and
the Druses. He is buried in the town of Iblin in the Galilee.
Muslim refugees The Ottomans had a policy of
giving asylum to Muslims who were harassed like the Muslims in French Algiers,
the Circassians from the Caucus and the
Bosnians who rebelled against the Austrians. Most of them were settled in the
Galilee and were very loyal to the government and were involved in activity against
the Bedouins.
The towns from 1840 to 1914
Jerusalem Became more important after the Turks
took over with the help of the big powers. Its status was similar to Damascus
and in 1872 the governor was directly subject to Kushta and had high rank.
Construction of new buildings which started during the Egyptian rule was accelerated.
Since the fifties houses were built outside the walls like "Mishkenot Shaananim"
a Jewish neighborhood and the "Russian compound". On the other hand
the gates of the city remained open at night only at the seventies.
In the beginning of the 19th century there were 9000
inhabitants including 2000 Jews and there numbers rose to 5000 in 1840 and 17000
in 1880 and in 1914 45000 out of 70000.
Acre Became less important after the
British siege of 1840. The Frenchman Saulcy wrote in 1850 that you can see the
marks of the artillery shells but s still the main town of the region but
steamboats prefer to go to Haifa. The town was still the trade center and the
wheat from the Hauran went to Acre. Since 1888 Acre became part of the Wilaya
of Beirut.
Acre remained a military stronghold and building outside the walls was
not allowed. In the town was a central prison of the Empire like in Rhodes and
Tripoli in Libya. In 1913 an extension of the Hijaz railway was built from Haifa
to Acre.
According to different sources the number of residents in the 19th
century was between 10 to 15 thousands and during 100 years no increase in the
number of residents was registered. According to the British census of 1922
there were only 6500 residents.
Gaza was an important crossroad to Egypt
from Jaffa, Jerusalem
and Hebron and also a stopover to
the pilgrims going to Mecca. The economy was mainly based on agriculture. Ships
could unload their goods on the open sea and in about 1900 they started to build a port. The
population numbered in the beginning of the 20th century about 10000
and rose to 25000 in 1914. There was a small Jewish community which numbered
less than 100.
Jaffa was the
"port" of Jerusalem and most tourists, pilgrims and immigrants
arrived there. The economy was based on agriculture and especially citrus and
the "Jaffa" brand was very famous. In the beginning of the 19th
century Jaffa numbered 3000 persons, in 1880 the number is 10000 and in 1914 the
number is 40000 to 45000 of which 10000 to 15000 Jews.
The city council in Jaffa was established in 1871, there was an improvement
and the wall partially opened. The governor of Jerusalem appointed a municipal person
in charge(Kaimakam) and in the members of the council were Muslims, Christians
and Jews.
The bureaucracy dealt with finance, the port and customs, postal service,
health and sanitation. In 1897 was inaugurated the town hall(SaRaya) and in
1900 the Clock tower. In 1865 a new quay was built with a lighthouse and in
1876 a new Customs house and in 1886 a big office building for the port. In 1892 a train station was opened
near the port and also a new Customs house. In 1876 consular agents acted for
Britain, Germany, France, Austria, the U.S, Spain and Russia. In 1891 the Lunz guide there were also agents
who acted for Italy and Persia. Russia was represented by Marabuti, the British
by Amzaleg, and the French by Philibert.
Abu Nabut(1770-1833)"the man with the wooden
baton" was appointed by Soleiman Pasha to be the governor of Jaffa and was
dismissed in 1822. Then he was appointed as governor in Alexandria, Tsaloniki
and Diarbakir in the South of Turkey. He built the Mahmudia mosque in the main
square(The tower clock today) and the "Sabil Abu Nabut"( place to
drink water) today
in Ben-Zvi road.
Safed In 1800 there were 3000 Jews and 3000
Arabs and in 1914 it was 9000 Jews and 5000 Arabs.
Tiberias In 1800 it was a walled city with
1000 Jews and 1000 Arabs. In 1914 a Spa was opened, a railway station in nearby
Tzemakh, postal office and telegraph.
Hebron in 1800 had 6000 inahabitants
including 300 Jews. At the seventies the number rose to 9000 including700 Jews
and in 1914 about 15000 including 1500
Jews.
Nazareth In 1800 there were 1500 inhabitants and in 1914 there were 7000 Christians
Arabs and 3000 Muslims. During the 19th century monasteries and
churches, and education and medical institutions. The town was an important
commercial center and in 1906 it became part of the Jerusalem Mutasfarilic to
make it easier for the European tourists
and pilgrims(especially the Russian pilgrims)
Beth-Lehem In 1800 lived in the town 1500 and in
1914 about 10000 most of them Christian Arabs. The main industries were agriculture,
tourism and souvenirs industry.
Ramleh In 1800 lived there 2000 inhabitants
and in 1880 about 3500 and 4000 in 1910. There were 4 mosques, 3 monasteries
a hotel for travelers to Jerusalem and telegraph office since 1865.
Lydda(lod) in 1800 lived there 1000 inhabitants
and in 1880 about 2000. The Greek monastery was of St. Georgious was rebuilt next
to the central mosque
Beer sheva In 1900 the Turkish government
decided make the town which was small the capital of the South. The idea was to strengthen the control over the Bedouins
and the border with Egypt. The town had the same status as Hebron, Jaffa and
Gaza.
A new Soraya was built a mosque and postal office. In 1908 the district
of Ouja al Hafir(Nitsana) was established
which is at the northern tip of the Egyptian-Israeli border.
Summary Because of the dependence of Turkey
on the European powers they opened
consulates in Jerusalem and appointed
consular agents in other towns.
At the end of the Crimean war in 1856, new reforms were introduced and, the
economy and tra trade grew bigger and the country became safer. Occasionally
there were tensions between the Muslims and other communities. Still Bakshish
and corruption were very rife.
The Aqaba Incident, 1906 and
marking the border with Egypt
Lord Cromer the British Agent was the real ruler of Egypt from 1882
until 1907. William Bramley(1871-1960)
arrived in Egypt in 1891. He spoke Arabic and toured the deserts of Egypt and
Sinai.
He was in charge of research and mapping of North and East Sinai.
Cromer suggested that Bramley will accompany the delegation which Herzl
sent to check the possibility of settling in El Arish , but in the end Bramley
did not join them.
On the 10th of January 1906 Bramley arrived in Um Rasrash(Eilat
today) accompanied by 5 Egyptian policemen and encountered Rushdi the Turkish commander.
The British were afraid the Turks will build a branch from the Maan station of
the Hijaz railway in the south of Jordan to Aqaba 120 km to the west. Rushdi
who was promoted to be a general got reinforcements to prevent the Egyptians
headed by Bramley to land in Ras el Nakeb or Taba.
Cromer decided to send the "Diane battleship to Aqaba and another
war ship to Rafah near Gaza.
In the meantime
diplomatic negotiations were held between the Egyptians headed by Cromer
and the Turks to establish the border between Egyptian Sinai and Palestine. The
British sent naval and infantry reinforcements
in May 1906 to Egypt and Piraeus in Greece. Heavy pressure was implemented by
the Russian and
French ambassadors in Kushta. The
pressure was effective and
Rushdi ordered his force to retreat from Taba but not from
Um Rashrash and Ras el Nakeb. In May a Turco-Egyptian delegation arrived
to Aqaba to mark the border. The parties could reach and agreement and it was
decide to continue the negotiations in Kushta. The conflict ended with the
signature of the border agreement between Egypt and Palestine on the
the first of October 1906 which is today the border between Israel and
Egypt.
