Jafar Agha
Jafar Agha | |
|---|---|
 A portrait of Jafar Agha | |
| Born | |
| Died | 1905 |
| Cause of death | Ambush |
| Nationality | Kurdish |
| Title | Chieftain of the Shekak tribe |
| Predecessor | Teymur Agha |
| Successor | Simko Shikak |
Jafar Agha (Kurdish: جەعفەر ئاغا, Ce'fer Axa) was a Kurdish chieftain of the Shekak tribe in the early 20th century in Qajar Iran. He played an important role in the leadership of the tribe. In 1905, Jafar Agha was killed in Tabriz by an Iranian government trap. His death caused tensions in the region, and led to his younger brother Simko Shikak taking over the leadership of the Shekak tribe.
Biography
[edit]Jafar Agha was born in Chahriq-e Olya to Mohammad Agha Shikak, who belonged to the Awdoyi clan of the Shikak tribe, and was the son of Ismail Agha, the leader of the tribe, who died in 1816.[1][2] As children, Jafar Agha and his younger brother Ismail (Simko) Agha both had very high morale as they would sit together and listen to stories about their ancestors fighting against the Turks and Persians. Jafar Agha later became the leader of the tribe, and enforced his rule throughout Iranian Kurdistan. In the lands controlled by Jafar Agha, the Iranian government had no authority. When Jafar Agha robbed rich people, he distributed the loot evenly to the poor. Jafar Agha regularly looted and pillaged Urmia, Salmas, and Khoy. Simko had often accompanied him as well. In 1905, Hossein-Qoli Mafi Nezam-ol-Saltaneh, the governor of Tabriz, invited Jafar Agha to Tabriz for negotiations and swore on the Quran that Jafar Agha would not be harmed. The governor also promised recognition of a Kurdish autonomy with Jafar Agha in control. When Jafar Agha arrived, he entered the office of the governor, and was shot in the heart as he was unsuspectingly walking up the stairs.[3][4][5] His body was cut into pieces and displayed. Simko succeeded Jafar Agha as the leader of the tribe and swore to take revenge. Simko used the same methods as Jafar Agha and also targeted Assyrian and Azerbaijani communities.[6]
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ Houtsma, M. Th.; et al. (1993). "Shakāk". E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913-1936. Vol. 4 (Reprint ed.). E.J. Brill. p. 290. ISBN 90-04-09796-1.
- ^ Houtsma, M. Th.; et al. (1993). "Salmas". E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913-1936. Vol. 4 (Reprint ed.). E.J. Brill. p. 118. ISBN 90-04-09796-1.
- ^ The Passion and Death of Rahman the Kurd: Dreaming Kurdistan, Carol Prunhuber, 2010, pp. 282, ISBN 9781440178153
- ^ Tribe and State in Iran and Afghanistan (RLE Iran D), Richard Tapper, 2012, pp. 383, ISBN 9781136833847
- ^ From Qajar to Pahlavi: Iran, 1919-1930, Mohammad Gholi Majd, 2008, pp. 382, ISBN 9780761840299
- ^ The Political Development of the Kurds in Iran: Pastoral Nationalism, F. Koohi-Kamali, 2003, pp. 82, ISBN 9780230535725