In 1886, in Switzerland, Armenian Hınçak Association, which killed thousands of Muslims in Anatolia was founded. Although Muslims were not allowed even to become a civil servant in Russia and Britain, Armenians could even be ministers in the Ottoman country. However, they initiated terrorist policies on grounds of rights and freedom slogans. They were slaughtering even the babies and children by making raids on hundreds of Muslim villages.
Upon such terror and horror, Sultan Abdulhamid the 2nd, commissioned Müşir Zeki Pasha, the commander of 4th Army centered in Erzincan to stop Armenian terror. The actions of the Pasha who gave no quarter to the terrorists resulted in a campaign against Abdulhamid in European press.
Historian Count Albert Vandal, member of French Academy, used the title of Le Sultan Rouge for Abdulhamid for the first time, and unfortunately, Ittihat party supporters, translating this phrase as Kızıl Sultan (Red Sultan), started to speak ill of Sultan Abdulhamid together with the Armenians. Unfortunately, accusations by the Ittihat party supporters against Sultan Abdulhamid as Armenian murderer and their calumniating him as Red Sultan even influenced the textbooks of the Republic period.
At this point, two issues should be particularly noted: First, the Ittihat party supporters who calumniated Abdulhamid as Armenian Killer and Red Sultan, were calumniated afterwards with the same titles due to the Armenian forced immigration in 1915, thus realizing the justice. Anyway, the primary reason of the incidents in the East was that they set Armenian committees free after they came to power.
Second, Sultan Abdulhamid, during his reign, the 2nd never executed capital punishment for his opponents except for de facto conditions such as Raid on Çırağan Palace, contrary to the allegations of some historians. He even did not issue an order to the 1st Army fearing that people of the same nation would kill each other, in order to stop the members of the army coming from Thrace.
Palestinian Policy of Sultan Abdulhamid the 2nd The eternal enemies of all Muslim Turks, Ottoman State in particular, constantly and always inverted and used against us the historical facts in our favor which we should consider as a matter of pride, thus falsifying the history. The relationship of Ottoman State with Palestine is one of these issues. People who do not know the legal and political order carried out by the Ottoman state in Palestinian territories advocate that all disasters coming down on the Arabic world constitute a bad remembrance of Ottoman dominance. Nonetheless, the fact is the opposite way.
The Jewish people had assembled the 1st Zionist Congress in the precedence of Theodor Herzl, the founder of Zionism in Basel Province of Switzerland. Jewish bankers and riches were mobilized to found Jewish State. Herzls appearance before Abdulhamid the 2nd was accepted on 19 May 1901 by mediation of Austria Ambassador. Herzl, reminding that Jewish immigrants from Spain and other European countries were welcomed by Ottoman State in 1492, explained innocently that they wanted to settle down in Palestine. He proposed on behalf of the world Jews that they would be loyal citizens to Ottoman State and provide millions of gold money to Ottoman State.
Abdulhamid the 2nd, strongly refusing such proposal by a journalist to the sultan, knew that he defied the Jews after the Armenians. Despite the Jews, seeing the impossibility of settling down in Palestinian territory by force, sent their president Theodor Herzl (1860-1904) in person to the sultan used their money power, the reply of the sultan shows that it did not work: I do not sell even a hand span of territory, because this land is not mine but Ottoman nations. My nation gained these soils by shedding their blood. We give them back only the way we took. Ottoman State imposed significant legal measures against the desire of Jews to settle down in these soils:
First: Ottoman State turned the legal statute of Palestinian soils into state land with a decree dated 18 Rajab 1287/1871. However, since 20 % of the land was still private land, Jews could settle down in these places as much as they could. Abdulhamid the second, immediately after he ascended the throne, published his decree dated 25 Rabi II 1308/1883: Such legal regulation indirectly prevented any legal possibilities that Jews could be sold properties. On the other hand, he tried to eliminate such possibility by buying as much land as possible in Palestine with his personal possessions.
Second: Abdulhamid the 2nd, upon seeing that Jewish rush to Palestinian territory could not be prohibited despite all precautions, issued a Royal decree to solve Jewish problem considerably in spite of the reports and protocols by the Grand Viziers Office and Special Committee. The special committee, one of the members of which was Ahmet Cevdet Pasha and which was preceded by Grand Vizier Muhammed Salih Kamil Pasha, presented on 20 Dhul hijjah 1308/14 July 1307/1891 their petition to the Grand Viziers Office that 400 Jews coming to Safed district in Palestinian soil as tourists and 40 Jews in Haifa should be admitted to citizenship. The Grand Viziers Office presented the same to the Sultan with a letter of the same date signed by Kamil Pasha. Sultan Abdulhamid, with an excellent common sense and foresight, clarifies the issue with his decree dated 21 Dhul hijjah 1308 (15 July 1307 (1891). This historical document reveals that the Jews demanding to settle down in Palestinian soils are refused on grounds of the following items:
a) The reason why Jews want to gather and settle down in Palestinian soils, in particular Jerusalem is that they want to found a Jewish state. It is definitely necessary to prevent this.
b) Ottoman soils are not empty soils where anyone who wants can settle down. They are either private property, or foundation land or state land. The decree dated 1278 is important from that point of view.
c) There is no just reason and meaning of admitting to the Ottoman country the Jews, who were expelled by the Europeans, who claim that they are civilized nations to the rest of the world,.
d) Armenians, who were protected in Ottoman country for centuries caused trouble for the State. It is dangerous with regard to the future of the state to admit Jews, when there is Armenian disturbance.
Jews, by causing at least as much terror as the Armenians during the 1st World War and afterwards, confirmed Sultan Abdulhamid the 2nd. Therefore, no Jews shall be admitted to Ottoman citizenship and they will not be permitted to settle down in Ottoman country. Third: Abdulhamid the 2nd did not get contented with these and prohibited soil and property selling to Jews over all Ottoman State territories. In brief, Ottoman State protecting Palestine with state guarantee weakened in the reign period of Ittihat and Terakki with a parallel weakening in Palestinian problem. The collapse of Ottoman state brought about a parallel collapsing in the problem too.
Abdulhamid the 2nd lead to great advances during his 33-year reign and left a trained staff for the new generations and the Republic. Therefore, his educational institutions should be cited at the top of the list of his works.
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