Abu Dhabi, June 14: Haneen Dajani and Kareem Shaheen – ABU DHABI
When Fatima al Tamimi spotted Iranian jets flying towards her home in the island enclave of Greater Tunb on the eve of the UAE’s independence, she was convinced there was trouble.
“We were preparing the children to go to school and the men were going fishing, the women were all still at home,” said Mrs al Tamimi, who belongs to one of Tunb’s better-known families.
Mrs al Tamimi’s memories of the night of November 30, 1971, when Iranian marines landed on the islands, are clear, even though she cannot say exactly how old she herself is.
She had just returned to Greater Tunb, a 10-square-kilometre island near the Strait of Hormuz, after giving birth in Dubai.
“It was still early, before dawn, and nobody had had breakfast yet. The Iranian planes arrived, we didn’t know what was happening,” she said.
The men had an early start, off for a long day of fishing at sea, a source of income for the tiny island, which sold its catch in Dubai in the evening. The mothers were getting the children ready for school – an establishment set up by Ras al Khaimah’s Government that served about 30 students.
As the invasion continued, confusion gave way to anxiety.
Members of her family, including her brother, sister, sister-in-law and their children, gathered in a windowless room at her husband’s house, hoping to evade the Iranian soldiers. They were later joined by her husband, uncle, his wife and children.
They were eventually spotted at 7am.
“They barged into our houses, they broke the doors and the cupboards with their boots. We thought the house was going to collapse on us. They asked us if there were any British soldiers,” she said.
Britain was preparing to officially end its protectorate of the emirates with the creation of the UAE.
The Iranians spoke to her in Arabic, she said: “They told me, ‘Aunt, don’t be afraid, we are just following orders.’ The women were terrified. They had never seen something like this before.”
“There was a shooting and they killed one person – Salim Suhail,” Mrs al Tamimi added.
Suhail, one of six Emiratis stationed on the island, was killed during the invasion in a shootout when he refused to yield his position.
His family was honoured in March by the Ministry of Interior, which has designated him a “martyr”.
Tunb’s older citizens were taken to the police station, where they signed a document instructing them to leave the island on the condition that they could return within three days. That promise was never fulfilled.
When the fishermen returned for noon prayers, they and their families were all put on boats and shipped to Ras al Khaimah in a seven-hour ordeal.
When they reached the port, they found Sheikh Saqr Al Qassimi, the emirate’s Ruler, awaiting them.
Many of the residents were observing a sunnah, an Islamic tradition practised by the Prophet Mohammed, in which they fasted for several days during the Arabic month of Shawwal.
When they arrived after sunset, having endured the arduous journey, they had not had anything to eat or drink since dawn.
“We got there at maghreb; those who were fasting did not have iftar,” said Mrs al Tamimi, who still lives in Ras al Khaimah. “They got us police cars to take us to Sheikh Saqr’s house.”
Temporary housing was soon set up for the families.
But a sense of relief pervaded.
“Alhamdullilah, Allah saved us,” she said.
Historical significance
One of the earliest documented references to the islands of Abu Musa and Tunb was by the 15th century explorer and navigator Ahmed bin Majid, who mentioned the islands in his travel poems.
“Abu Musa was very important in history, for both the local inhabitants and the Indian and European powers,” said Dr Hasan al Naboodah, a historian at UAE university.
“Due to its strategic location at the mouth of the Gulf and a long distance from the shores, it was a meeting place for negotiating international parties during the Portuguese rule, as well a safe harbour for ships from pirates, storms and conflicts in the sea and main ports.”
The island had thriving mines, and was also an important centre for pearl diving and fishing.
“It was also a place where locals would collect their supplies of eggs from seagulls and turtles,” the historian said.
The island was mentioned by explorers and referred to in Dutch and French maps during the 17th and 18th centuries. It was also mentioned in British official documents in the 19th century.
“Whenever Abu Musa Island was mentioned in the British documents, it was linked to the Sharjah rulers,” said Dr al Naboodah. “There is no dispute about its Arab identity.”
—Agencies