The Conquest of al-Hasa was achieved by the forces of

Ibn Saud Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud (; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted as 1876, although a few sources give it as 1880. According to British author Robert Lacey's book ''The Kingdom'', ...

with support from the

Ikhwan The Ikhwān (, ), commonly known as Ikhwān man Aṭāʿa Allah (, 'Brethren of those who obey God'), was a Wahhabism, Wahhabi religious militia made up of traditionally nomadic tribesmen which formed a significant military force of the ruler Ibn ...

Jones, T. ''Embattled in Arabia''. 03 June 2009. in April 1913. The oasis of al-Hasa was conquered from an Ottoman garrison, which had controlled the area since 1871. The Turks were worried by the strong forces that Ibn Saud had gathered in the area of pastures and wells between

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

and

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. Jamal Pasha, the governor of Baghdad, threatened to send two battalions to Najd, saying that they would march from one end to the other. The emir of Riyadh answered daringly that he would soon make Jamal Pasha’s task easier by decreasing the distance the battalions had to cover before meeting him. Nadim Bey, the Turkish

Mutasarrif Mutasarrif, mutesarrif, mutasarriff, or mutesarriff () was the title used in the Ottoman Empire and places like post-Ottoman Iraq for the governor of an administrative district in place of the usual sanjakbey. The Ottoman rank of mutasarrif was e ...

of al-Hasa, sent his representative to Ibn Saud to discover his intentions. Ibn Saud claimed that he was going only to attack a tribe in Kuwait. Simultaneously he sent people to

Hufuf Al-Hofuf ( ', also spelled Hofuf or Hufuf, also known as "Al-Hasa", "Al-Ahsa" or "Al-Hassa") is the major urban city in the Al-Ahsa Governorate in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, with a population of 729,606 (as of 2022). It is known f ...

to purchase a large amount of rice and dates. Through his agents in al-Hasa, the ruler of Najd learned of the location of the Turkish garrisons and established contacts with the local population. The Russian consulate in Basra reported back: ''"The attack on

began at night. The Najdis used the trunks of palm trees, ropes and ladders, all prepared beforehand. The town soon fell, as did the Kut citadel, with the exception of the Ibrahim mosque in the fortress, where the

and a part of his garrison ensconced themselves. There were 1,200 Turks in Hufuf at the time."'' The mosque was mined, and the people inside were warned that the mines would be detonated and the mosque stormed unless they surrendered. The

decided to lay down his arms. The men of the garrison were led out of the town by an escort headed by Ahmad ibn Sunayyan, a distant relative of Ibn Saud. The Turks left for Bahrain by sea. The

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

religious community leaders of al-Hasa negotiated a surrender and recognition of the Saudi political authority in exchange for leniency and religious freedom, which was granted at the time by Ibn Saud. The Ottomans swiftly acknowledged the loss of al-Hasa, and recognized al-Hasa and Nejd as being under the rule of Ibn Saud.

Ottoman attempt to regain Al-Ahsa

In Bahrain, the British blamed the Turks for submitting to Ibn Saud and warned them of the consequences of the wrath of the supreme Ottoman authorities. They encouraged them to return to Al-Ahsa and enticed them with support and assistance. The Ottoman soldiers were deceived by the British’s advice and promise, so they chartered ships and returned to the port of Al-Uqair. They were confronted by a company headed by Bin Nader from Ibn Saud’s forces and clashed with them in a bitter fight that resulted in a number of deaths and the capture of thirty Ottoman soldiers. The news reached Ibn Saud while he was in Al-Ahsa, so he went out to Al-Uqair and released the Turkish prisoners. He sent the rest of the soldiers to Bahrain and wrote to the ruler of Bahrain and to the English political advisor there blaming them. They answered him: “The Turkish soldiers left Bahrain, heading to Basra, and we do not know who they were.”
he Arabian Peninsula in British documents

References

History of Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia 1913 in Asia 20th century in the Arabian Peninsula Conflicts in 1913 Wars involving Saudi Arabia Violence against Shia Muslims in Saudi Arabia Wars involving the Ottoman Empire {{Portal, Saudi Arabia

Ottoman attempt to regain Al-Ahsa

See also

References