A 90-Year-Old Historical Document Reveals French Promise to Establish a Kurdish Government

PUKMEDIA

The historical document, revealing a promise by the former French High Commissioner to Syria, Damien de Martel, to work toward the establishment of a Kurdish government in the Euphrates canton.

An important historical document dating back more than 90 years has brought to light a little-known episode in Kurdish history, revealing a promise by the former French High Commissioner to Syria, Damien de Martel, to work toward the establishment of a Kurdish government in the Euphrates canton.

The revelation is based on an official and “highly secret” document preserved in the Iraqi archives, dated 18 Rabi’ al-Awwal 1353 AH (1934). The document was uncovered and analysed by Dr. Ali Salih Mirani, a lecturer at Zakho University, and published for the first time.

According to the document, secret meetings were held in Qamishli and Demir Kapu (the Iron Gate) in 1934 between a French envoy and prominent Kurdish tribal leaders. During these meetings, the French representative reportedly pledged to exert maximum effort to establish a local Kurdish administration that would serve the interests of the Kurdish people.

The document also sheds light on the political bargaining and pressure tactics used at the time. It notes that the French side threatened to reroute the proposed Eastern Railway project directly through Ain Diwar,a village in the northeastern corner of Hasakah Governorate, northeastern Syria, toward Türkiye if the Iraqi government refused to cooperate with the plan.

In one revealing incident, the French representative reportedly reacted angrily when Sheikh Daham al-Hadi of the Shammari Jarba tribe complained that his financial allowance had been suspended. The envoy immediately ordered that Sheikh Daham be paid 400 gold pounds, illustrating the intensity and urgency of negotiations during that period.

Historically, the document places these events within the broader context of French policy in Syria, where Kurdish aspirations for autonomy were used as a political tool to strengthen French influence over the Syrian Jazira region during the mandate era.

Although the proposed project never materialised due to regional and international pressures, the document provides rare insight into early international discussions surrounding Kurdish self-administration. It stands as a valuable historical record, highlighting both the challenges faced and the persistence of Kurdish political aspirations during a critical period in the modern Middle East.



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