Mcgowan Afaf (1 results)
More imagesPublished by Defense Intelligence Agency, Washington DC, 1985
- Softcover
Seller: Dendera, London, United KingdomDendera
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Add to basketSoft cover. Condition: Very Good. Original staple-bound wraps 22 x 28cm. vi + 17pp including 2 full-page colour maps, 3 b/w photos, and 3 tables. Very good with a handwritten reference number to the back wrap. Extremely rare - Worldcat records it with no locations. None on Jisc. The title page states: "This is a Department of De…fense Intelligence Document prepared under an interagency agreement for the Western Division, Directorate for Research, Defense Intelligence Agency… for official use within the US Government and distribution is limited to US Government agencies". Dated July 1985 with information up to 1 March this gives practical information to US personnel rotated into the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) which enforced the disengagement of Egyptian and Israeli forces in Zone C, eastern Sinai. It focuses on Bedouin history, culture, customs, traditions and lifestyles to heighten awareness of cultural differences in order to avoid misperceptions of Bedouin behaviour and intentions that might result in a crisis situation (Preface). MFO was formed in 1981 to keep the peace in support of the Camp David Accords (1978) which provided for Israel's withdrawal from Sinai, and the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty (1979). To circumvent the Soviet threat on behalf of Syria to veto a UN-led operation, it was created as an international force backed by the US, Egypt, and Israel with US civilian observers, headquartered in Rome with offices in Tel Aviv and Cairo. Deployment began in Jan 1982 and it remains active today. The 1979 Treaty divided Sinai into 4 Zones (A-D) specifying varying militarisation for Egypt and Israel. Zone C's boundary ran parallel to the Egypt-Israel border down towards Ras Mohammed at Sinai's southern tip. MFO was based in Zone C where only it and Egypt's civilian police were permitted to operate. It had 2 main camps (North and South) and 30 installations including an observation post on Tiran Island. Zone C was further divided into Sectors each with a Control Centre. The author opens with a description of Sinai's ecology. His description of broader Bedouin culture covers Islam (Sunni of the Hanbali or Maliki Schools are fierce in battle with the strictest honor codes), mosque architecture (low stone enclosures), religious holidays, Koranic law (an eye for an eye) etc. He notes how Islam unified tribes under a common faith without reshaping their structures. Discussions on heritage and culture cover honour, hospitality, protection laws for guests (Salt Bond, Dakhila, Wajh, Rafiq), marriage, divorce, and circumcision. On Sinai's Bedouin he describes tribal confederations, sections, clans, and leadership; areas of habitation; others living in Sinai (such as the Haytham said to be descended from the Crusaders, Christian and of lower social class; and peasant descendants of black slaves brought over to herd camels and till the soil); camps and movements (the tent, its furnishings, and men's and women's sections). On political factors, he describes how Bedouin value simplicity, frugality, and freedom, before discussing the policies of Egypt (to settle the Bedouin), Israel (border crossings: "it has been impossible to determine the official Israeli policy toward infractions"), and Jordan (smuggling, raiding, treatment of loot, movement across borders). On military implications he describes the Sinai Bedouin as "the most peace-loving in the Middle East", apolitical and freedom loving. Egypt has conscripted them for internal security, tracking smugglers and as trackers and guides, whereas Israel has a voluntary unit of Negev Bedouin. Maps show Sinai and its tribal divisions, the latter a complex patchwork with 7 of the 13 named tribes represented in Zone C (Ramilat, Masaid al Swarikah, Lahyawat, Tarabin, Tiyaha, Mazinah, Huwaytat). Tables on tribes of Al Tur, Al Tih, and Al Arish give names, locations, clans and populations. Photos show a Bedouin in an improvised low stone enclosure mosque, sword dance, and winter camp.
