Mohamed Pasha Jaff

  Mohamed Pasha Jaff was born in 1714. Brave and intelligent, he managed to unite the Jaff clans, making them a formidable force. He submitted to nither The Iranian or The Ottoman states (AlIraq Alhadeeth, from 1900-1950, Salim Taha AlTikriti,p. 54), which both were apprehensive of his increasing influence among his tribe, awaiting the opportunity to annihilate him thru the rulers of the two emirates or other enemies of Jaff tribe.

 As outlined in the memoirs of Karim Beg Jaff, Ahmed Pasha Baban and Mohamed Pasha Jaff did not see eye to eye, and conflict between them began and later exasperated because of his uncle Ahmed Beg bin Walad Beg, whereby Mohamed Pasha Jaff deserted Sheherzoor province, seeking sanctuary with the Princes of Ardilan in Iran.

 Then Mohamed Pasha became uncomfortable with behavior of  the Princes which forced him to return to the Ottoman lands to settle in the Khanaqeen Province and Qizel Rabat with his tribe. Later, he contacted the ruler of Baghdad seeking assistance, who welcomed him on arrival and provided all possible assistance.

 Then Ahmed Pasha learnt of these lose ties and decided to revert to settle the disputes, and indeed peace was restored between them after three years whereby Mohamed Pasha returned to The Shehrzoor Province again and remain in the area till the end of the Babanian Emirate in 1951.

 After the fall of the Babanian Emirate, Jaff tribe emerged as a developing force or replacement of the Emirate, after being its military backbone.

    In this regard, Abdul Aziz Sulaiman Noor states that Jaff created many problems and troubles to the Ottoman State (Tareekh AlIraq Alhadeeth from the end of the rule of Dawood Pasha to the end of Midhat Pasha rule – Cairo 1968- p. 70), and forced it bestow the title Pasha on Mohamed Pasha.

    But it seemed that the title influence Mohamed Pasha who was not, as we stated before,  to be subdued by either power. The citadel which he built in the Sherwanah province stands till now as a simble to his defiant spirit, and proof of his aspirations to freedom and independence from the influence of both powers. 

Shirwanah Castle

    It must be stated that this tendency was not a strange phenomenon which was a common among the leaders of the Kurdish tribes in every part of Kurdistan.

 This tendency was empowered, weather in the form of emirate or a tribal regime in some parts of Kurdistan, as a result of the oppression practiced by the rulers of The Iranian and Ottoman States towards the Kurdish people (The Iraqi Scientific Institute periodical, ed. 20, 1989). The on going revolutions and political movements, which demand Kurdish national rights are, but extensions of old aspirations.

 Hence it was not strange that The Ottoman State viewed with suspicion the emergence of Mohamed Pasha, and awaiting the right moment to exterminate him.

  Omar Pasha tried to pressurize Mohamed Pasha  Jaff to settle his tribe in the Sheherzoor area, which he declined because he saw in this an attempt to eradicate their influence and independence (Memoirs of Hasan Fahmi Jaff). Omar Pasha insisted on his demand, and forced Mohame Pasha to abandon Shehrzoor and seek refuge in Iran followed by all Jaff clans. He chose his summer residence in Jwanro, while Zahab was the winter refuge. 

 The guardians of the Iranian State welcomed the arrival of Mohamed Pasha Jaff , and the Naser Edin Shah Alqajeri bestowed on him the title of Khan, while appointing him the ruler of Zahab Emirate (1291 Hijri) together with all the Iranian border areas with The Ottoman State (Mashaheer Al Akrad, ed.2 p.258), also appointing his son Othman Beg ruler of Jwanro. The declaration (firman) of the appointment is still kept with Jaff family till now.

Document: Rule of Zahab Emarate- 1291 Hj

     Mohamed Pasha remained in Iran for three years whereby that period the influence of the Jaff tribe enlarged significantly, and began irritating The Ottoman State depriving the area of security and peace. This Ottomans tried unsuccessfully to eliminate the tribe, which led them to revert to diplomatic means in order to contain the danger, by requesting through their embassador in Tehran, to hand him over, which the Iranians rejected ( Bare Sehai Tarikhi, memoirs of Merza Melkem Khan, ed.1,1970).

Document :

 The growing influence of Mohamed Pasha and his disregard to state laws, infuriated the Iranian rulers, leading to open differences between Mohamed Pasha and First Minister of the State Prince Ferhad Merza, the uncle of Naser Edin Shah AlQajeri, who was the Governor of Sinendg between 1284-1291 h., by demanding from Mahamed Pasha to settle the tribe, naturalize its members, and respect laws of the land, and to prohibit all acts of disturbances on the Iranian borders, otherwise he would forbid all the unsettled Jaff  clans from entering the Iranian land from the Ottoman territories.

 When Mohamed Pasha rejected all these conditions, ferocious fighting erupted between The Iranian Army and Jaff tribe, resulting in defeat of the tribe. 

 Ferhad Merza began pressurizing Mohamed Pasha Jaff, and arrested one of his confidants, Habib Khan the head of Babajanies, a  clan of Jaff . Mohamed Pasha requested his release, but to no avail.

 The rugh treatment followed by the Iranian rulers made Mohamed Pasha to contact his friends in ruling circles of The Ottoman rulers, and Tahseen Pasha the Governor of Baghdad in particular, showing willingness to return to the custody of The Ottoman State. Mahmood Beg, Mohamed Pasha’s son, was sent to accompany him on his return to the Ottoman territories (Kurdistan).

The ruler of Baghdad realized that it was in his interest to welcome back Mohamed Pasha, although the majority of other officials were distrusful of him, seeking an opportunity to eliminate him. To make him feel assured at the beginning, he was appointed Deputy Mayor of Sulaimania, most probably in 1294h., during the Mayorship of Ibahim Pasha and Thabit Pasha  (History of Sulaimania and Surroundings,p.183). Then he was moved to become Chief Officer (Qaem’maqam) of Halabcha.

 During Mohamed Pasha’s stay in Iran, The Ottoman State began to strengthen Aziz Shawees the Head of the one of Jaff clans, the Karamwaisi, the Shateri  branch, whom did not follow Mohamed Pasha when he left Iraqi Kurdistan.

 This attitude by the Ottomans was designed to maintain a balance of power; but upon Mohamed Pasha’s arrival in Halabcha, his adversaries in the official circles of The Ottoman State and their agents began enticing  members of the Karamwaisi clan against him, and making obstacles in the administration of the city, which forced him to arrest and imprison Aziz Shawais in Halabcha, where he later died in prison of  pneumonia.

 Mohamed Pasha’s enemies wasted no time in benefiting from this opportunity by spreading rumors  that Mohamed Pasha poisoned Aziz Shawais in prison, which infuriated members of the clan and decided to avenge him, when they did manage to kill Mohamed Pasha in 1299h., while on a hunting trip near Chimen Ibrahim Semin in the Kofri province.

 His mercenary killers took refuge and under the protection of the leader of the Hamawand, the well known tribe for its courage and pride, who also had their differences with Mohamed Pasha Jaff, caused by his killing of Khola Piza, one of the leaders of that tribe.

 Therefore it was hardly surprising when when Jwameer Hamawend did not hesitate to come to the rescue of Mohamed Pasha’s killers. Consequently Jaff tribe launched a violent campaign under the leadership of Mahmood Pasha Jaff against the Hamawand and the Karamwaisi tribes to avenge the killing of its leader.

Jaff & Hamawand campaign in chamchamal near Karkuk city

  After vicious battles the Hamawands were defeated, while the Karamwaisi were annihilated to the last person. Afterward Jwameer Hamawand fled to Iran and remained there till his death.

  After the signing of the secnd Arz room treaty in 1847, we found the Iranians and the Ottomans join forces politically to destroy all the Kurdish movements (Arabs and Kurds- Monther AlMoselly-p.192), by gathering tribes’ leaders, Sheikhs, and religious leaders around them, granting them  salaries and lands to disaffiliate them from revolutions and rebellion .

 This Ottoman policy was strongly consolidated during the rule of Medhat Pasha in Baghdad in 1869 when he put a complete end to all independence tendencies of the Iraqi provinces, achieving a unified administration, and distributed land and estates to heads of tribes, shkiekhs, aghast (aghwat).

 This Policy, however, did not stop the continuous Kurdish revolts and rebellions. It is worth mentioning that the political conditions of the Ottoman State was deteriorating, giving rise to political parties and social organizations opposing the existing authorities and aspiring to overthrow Sultan Abdul Hameed.

 The most prominent of these parties was( Party)Hizb al Itihad W Al Taraqi which had under its wings most of the intellectual elites of ethnicities which comprised The Ottoman Empire. Mohmood Pasha Jaff, who became the leader of the big Jaff tribe at that time, was among those who joined the party.

Shirwanah Castle