Crimes In Memory

Crimes in Memory is a book by Dr. Anas al-Raheb; issued by Dar al-Farabi Publishing House in Beirut. The book shocks the reader about the crimes committed in the past ,yet their stark results still linger.

In an analytical manner, the author highlights the references that had laid the ground for many decisions and events but with impacts in the present. You, as a reader, will eventually find out that the equations of today have had their seeds ,in fact ,sown  in the past.

Those crimes, which crossed the red lines , were decisions that missed logic. Agreements, coups, betrayals and withdrawals were recorded with pressure their results still showing now. 

Crimes in Memory includes  what we are seeing now – setbacks of fake heroism in the past.

After the Allied countries had seized the territories of the fading Ottoman Empire in the Arab region, they drew borders among provinces,turning them into prisons that surround the peoples inside them and separate them from each other, thereby limiting their movement and development, and perpetuating an imagined principle of sovereignty and independence of each of the Arab provinces. 

Furthermore, the Allied countries usurped territories belonging to a particular province, annexing it to another one, thus  maintaining foggy subordinate areas in order to create a permanent state of conflict.

They appointed puppet rulers acting on their behalf to consecrate the borders and prevent the achievement of unity between the Arab countries. The French occupation, for instance, divided Syria along sectarian lines into six independent states. It also divided the Syrian society into sects and ideologies to keep Syria in a state of permanent conflict and division. The Iskenderun province was awarded to Turkey, which  prompted some of Iskenderun patriotic leaders to announce that: “An independent village is way better than belonging to a large and authoritarian country; we surely have lost the Iskenderun province but we haven’t lost the right to claim it.”

The British occupation, in turn, allowed Jews to immigrate to Palestine and establish a state there. It is worth noting that when Britain was unable to suppress the Palestinian revolution in 1936, it turned to our Arab rulers to help it mediate to end the revolution, and obediently they fulfilled its demands in that revolution and in the 1948 war, too. Among the “achievements” was the Arab League, which was sponsored by Anthony Eden.The Arab people believed back then that the Arab League was the house of Arabs and it was their sole way to achieve unity. With the Arab League, however, the Pan Arab struggle was turned into a smaller national struggle.

Meanwhile, the Arab rulers resorted to misleading their angry peoples, spreading lies about their rule’s immunity, strength, and wisdom. The newspaper headlines included their heroism and army victories along with their preparation for the next great battle. Their statements revolved around their intention to continue fighting until victory was achieved, and in that respect,they exchanged cables of congratulations for their immortal accomplishments.

These are crimes accurately recorded in the book “Crimes in Memory.” The first chapter begins under the title “Natural Syria during World War I”. Sharif Hussein cooperates with the British and then the revolution takes place, and he continues to cooperate with them despite his knowledge of Sykes-Picot and Balfour Declaration. 

Then, in the second chapter, the author deals with natural Syria after the First World War. He mentions the mandate, division, revolutions, constitution making, attempts to resettle Jews near Antioch and buying lands for them, along with the 1936 Palestine revolution and how it was put out at the request of the Arab rulers, all the way to the issue of usurping the Iskenderun province. 

As for the third chapter, it is about the suffering of Syria during the Second World War and the creation of the Arab League as an alternative to unity. 

The fourth chapter deals with the independence period in Syria, the Palestinian issue, the partition project, the 1948 war, and the armistice agreements. 

The fifth chapter focuses on the stage of coups, and regional &international interventions. 

In Chapter Six, the author tells about the return of civil rule in Syria, the Baghdad Pact, the tripartite aggression on Egypt, and conspiracies against Syria. 

The seventh chapter deals with the period of unity with Egypt. In the eighth chapter, he talks about separation from unity, leading to the March 8th Movement, and attempts at a rapprochewith Egypt & Iraq. 

In conclusion, the chapters of the book constitute evidence ontothemselves of the crimes that reside in memory, noting that the author differentiates the ruler from the ruled, rightly distancing them apart with respect to the aforementioned crimes.

The book has participated in a number of annual international book fairs, in Kuwait, Jeddah & Beirut.

Reem Haddad 

Translated by Rayan Faghoury