Cause of the Waziristan War between England and Afghanistan

About the cause of the Waziristan War between England and Afghanistan, started as a conflict between Hindus and Muslims.

YEAR: 1936

WAR: The Waziristan War

PLACE: Waziristan district, on the India-Afghanistan frontier

OPPONENTS: England v. Waziristan

PROVOCATION: A 16-year-old girl, Musamat Ram, against the wishes of her Hindu family, ran off with Nur Ali Shah, a Moslem school-teacher. Musamat Ram's parents objected to her lover's being a Moslem, told the police she'd been abducted. She was brought back, protesting she had become a Moslem. Her lover was sentenced to jail for 2 years. A minor Moslem tribal chief in Waziristan, the Faqir of Ipi, resenting British invasion of his land in 1919, seized upon the incident to preach jihad, holy war, against the British. The Faqir renamed Musamat Ram, calling her "Islam Bibi"--the Baby of Islam--and demanded vengeance for her persecution. Soon, Wiziri tribesmen were up in arms. British and Indian troops marched in. The conflict lasted 2 years, cost the British and Indians $11 million.

RESULT: The war gained neither side a victory. The British failed to catch the Faqir, who had escaped into exile. The only winner was Musamat Ram, the Baby of Islam. The Wiziri court reversed itself. She was declared a Moslem. Her lover was released from jail. They lived happily ever after.

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