The Role of British Diplomats in Yazidis Affairs in Iraq 1932-1939: An Archival Study

Studying the history of minorities in Iraq has been an important field of interest for many scholars. This study (The Role of British Diplomats in Yazidis Affairs in Iraq, 1932–1939) is an attempt to present and analyze the role of the British diplomats toward the affairs relating to the Yazidi minority in Iraq during a very important period in the latter’s cotemporary history. The Yazidis, who had been living in Sinjar, a sub-district of Mosul in northern Iraq, had been in continuous conflict with Ottoman authorities. This was partly due to their refusal to perform mandatory military service (compulsory conscription) and pay taxes. Ottoman campaigns were conducted against them to subjugate them by force to Ottoman rule. This was the reason for their isolating themselves in a mountainous area far from the city center. When the British developed influence in Iraq, an opportunity was presented to the Yazidis to defend themselves. Their leaders asked British authorities to defend their interests and to help them get rid of the oppression of the Ottomans. For the purpose of establishing British influence among the Yazidis, the former called the Yazidi leaders to hold a conference and issue a plea to the British authorities in Iraq to include them under British protection. Britain was planning to set up a Yazidi princedom in Sinjar to serve as a buffer between Iraq and Syria, kipping the French away from oil fields.