Found this in "Ottoman Administration of Iraq, 1890-1908" By Gökhan Çetinsaya:
Cetinsaya's Introduction uses this 1864 report as a frontispiece to explain the internal politics of the Ottoman Empire to its Arab territories, as they struggled to reform the struggling empire.“In your humble servant’s opinion, no idea has ever circulated in central government, other than the forcible repression and devastation of the Arabs. And they (the Arabs) have never been viewed as potential friends…The Arabs are not savage, but they fear and hate us.
Abdullatif Suphi Pasa to Sultan Abdulaziz, 1864”
This stuff that Lawrence was feeding on was the air that Arabs breathed for generations: Hatred of the Turks.
How does this parallel our efforts in Kabul? Substituting Pashtuns for Arabs?
Which side are we on?
Is Lawrence's approach more useful to us or to Mullah Omar?
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