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Conference urges Bahrain to stake claim for lands under Qatar control

Manama - The conference focused on Al Zubarah, capital of Al Khalifa in the Qatari peninsula and the islands of Bahrain.

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A conference themed "Al Khalifa Rule in the Qatari Peninsula ... History and Sovereignty" organised by the Bahrain Institute for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (Derasat) urged Bahrain to stake claim for lands which were historically ruled by the Al Khalifa family.
Documents revealed for the first time in the conference held on Saturday detailed the rule of the Al Khalifa family on the Qatari peninsula throughout history.
The conference focused on Al Zubarah, capital of Al Khalifa in the Qatari peninsula and the islands of Bahrain, the rebellion against the Al Khalifa's legitimate rule of the peninsula and the Qatari invasion of Al Dibal in 1986.
The conference also discussed an important historical phase of the Gulf region - the Al Khalifa rule and their sovereignty on the Qatari peninsula since the establishment of Al Khalifa state in Al Zubarah in 1762.
The conference brought together leading historians, who presented papers that shed light on the history of the region from the 18th century onwards, the tribes, sub-tribes, clans and segments in the region, and the rule of Al Khalifa in Zubarah, the Qatar Peninsula and the Bahrain Islands.
The forum also covered the Qatari aggression in Dibal in 1986 about which Bahrain has released a book highlighting its causes.
Speakers at the forum made it clear that as per the law, rights are not forfeited or dropped even after passage of long time.
Citing similar historical incidents, they said that Germany apologised and compensated victims for a mishap that occurred 120 years ago or the reaction of the United States towards the Native Americans (Indians).
One of the most important issues addressed at the conference was the descendants of Al Khalifa clan and their relocation from Arabian Peninsula to Qatari peninsula and the establishment of Al Khalifa's state after most of the tribes in the region pledged allegiance to the Al Khalifa clan.
The conference threw light on the assault by Al Thani clan, the current rulers of Qatar, on Al Naeem tribe back in 1937, who were occupying Al Zubarah at that time and who historically have been pledging allegiance to the Al Khalifa family of Bahrain.
This aggression by Qatar on Al Naeem tribe had resulted in Qatar's occupation of Al Zubarah and forced displacement of its dwellers.
The government-funded Derasat centre demanded of the government of Bahrain to claim its occupied lands in the Qatar peninsula.
Dr Hamad Ibrahim Abdullah, Assistant Professor of History at Bahrain University, said the assaults by Al Thani on Zubarah had resulted in the killing 100 members of Al Naeem tribe members, and many of whom were shifted to Bahrain for medical treatment.
Hamad Mohamed bin Sarai, professor of history at the UAE University, said that Shaikh Zayed was ruling the UAE then when he ordered dispatching of as many as 2,000 fully armed troops to stand by Bahrain and hold back the aggressors.
Bin Sarai presented a document which proves Al Khalifa's rule on Zubarah and substantiated that the Kingdom of Bahrain has never dispensed with Zubarah.
He said Zubarah is historically documented and is deemed a legitimate right of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
However, since the kingdom was more keen on the unity of the Gulf countries it did not raise the issue, he added.
Social media users have expected that Bahrain may move the International Court of Justice to claim its lands.
Shaikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Chairman of the board of trustees of Derasat, said the conference gains importance in terms of timing as it represents a new event to find out truth and achievements of the history of Al Khalifa's ruling of Qatar's peninsula and Bahrain islands.
The Derasat centre released a book titled 'Qatar's aggression on Dibal in 1986'. The book sheds light on Qatar's immature behaviour not just in recent days but also during the Iraqi-Iran war in the 1980s.
On April 26, 1986, workers at Fasht Dibal were shocked to see four choppers carrying Qatari soldiers landing at their place in a flagrant attack on the sovereignty of Bahrain.
They shot fire in the air and kidnapped all the workers and sabotaged the properties of the company that employed these workers.
The Qataris seized several Bahraini officials and 29 workers. Two days after the assault, Doha announced Dibal a no-man zone. The incident sparked a crisis between Bahraini and Qatar, forcing  Saudi Arabia to mediate between the two Gulf countries.
Despite regarding Qatar's assault as a blatant aggression on its sovereignty, the Kingdom of Bahrain adopted a self-control policy to calm down the situation and to maintain the unity and security of the GCC.

Recommendations

1-The establishment of a specialised committee to lay bare the crimes of the oppressive Al Thani occupation of the sovereign Bahraini territories in international arenas and debunk any attempt to falsify facts or erase them from the historical annals.
2-Take necessary steps to reinstate rights to the descendants of people who were displaced by the Al Thani rulers in 1937, targeting the inhabitants of Al Zubarah, particularly the Al Naeem tribe - which amounts to war crimes.
3-The acts perpetrated by the Doha regime to change the facts on the ground in Al Zubarah and to remove the material heritage represent a universal humanitarian crime which has no statute of limitations.
4-The Doha regime shall put an end to all hostile acts against the Kingdom of Bahrain. It should stop supporting terrorism, media campaigns and selective naturalisation. It should also pay compensation to the families of the innocent victims and the damaged infrastructure.
5-Call on national educational, media and cultural institutions to focus more on the Al Khalifa Rule on the Qatari Peninsula, which represents a core part of Bahrain's national history and source of pride.
6-Call on researchers, scholars and specialists to exert more efforts in their historical researches to enrich Gulf and Arab and international libraries with detailed and thorough studies that focus on the Rule and Sovereignty of the Al-Khalifa Dynasty of the Qatari Peninsula, which represented then a successful model for the establishment of a viable and thriving modern state.
malzarooni@khaleejtimes.com