Just what: reliance is to be placed upon any statement issued by the German propaganda machine may be seen by its latest performance. On Saturday the enemy news agency carried a' "blurb" to the effect that the Iraqi rebels would continue to fight At that that all leaders of the rebel have fled the country, and, accord-communique issued in Baghdad, the n has returned to normal. Thus has fo ignominious failure one of intrigues in the Middle East. That to two important facts, one, British acted promptly, and with force to deal with the situation, the other, that the Germans complete-"ly failed to render assistance to their Iraqi dupes, who were left in the lurch. The Scheme was an imposing one. Following the of the Government at Baghdad by the rebels it was sought to rouse the of Moslem in a holy war against the toa "such venture. They know their Ger-dern realize the fact that it stands knew better than to flee to his German masters. Instead he made for Iran probably realizing that he would be made to pay the penalty of failure if he fell into German "The failure of the Germans to give effective aid to their henchman—a reproach which Germany has freely levelled against Great Britain in the case of nations which it has overrun,—may, on the one hand, be due to the bad faith to be expected of the Nazis, or, on the other, to the excellent resistance which has been offered by the British and the Greeks to the German invasion of Crete, which has proved to be not quite the walkover which Hitler apparently expected. Even the Italians, so highly scorned by the Germans, have had to go to their aid in Crete, and, while some headway has been made, the British and the Greeks have taken a terrible toll of the invaders. Apart from a few aeroplanes which are now reported to have left Iraq the Germans sent mo assistance whatever. True the French in Syria helped the rebels with war material to the extent of 800 tons, but the Iraqi insurgents were left entirely to their own devices and the assistance which was promised by the German intriguers was not forthcoming. It is now apparent that what Hitler wanted to do was to create a diversion embarrassing to the British at the very least, or start a movement which might have made the British position in that area uncomfortable if not untenable.
In that they failed. At the risk of further dissipating the forces disposed in the East the British sent sufficient men to the spot to ensure that the rebellion would be brought to nothing. The small Iraqi air force was speedily disposed of, the ground forces routed after somewhat severe fighting. In a comparatively short space of time, resistance to the British advance broke down, and led to the application for an armistice. Abdul Ilah, the lawful regent, is reported to be on his way back to Baghdad, and the re-establishment of the real Government ihrough'the agency of British forces constitutes a setback for Hitler on the one hand, and considerable enhancement of British prestige throughout the Moslem world on the other.
It should now be pqgsible for the British and the Iragi to return to their former friendly relations. It is quite clear that there is no cause for British reproach so far as the Regent is concerned, for he and his following were the victims of a coup d'état which was carried through efficiently and with the maximum of surprise. Hitler has failed to obtain the Iraqi oilfields at a bargain price. He will now have to fight for them, and it is expected that he will do so. Whether he will use Syria as.a base remains to be seen, but there is reason to believe that Admiral Darlan will consent to that being done. In this connection it will be remembered that while in a recent statement he insisted upon the inviolability of the French Colonies, he made no reference to those countries under a French mandate, thus leaving a loophole for the German use of Syria without laying himself open to a charge of lying. For the moment Hitler's search for more oil has been frustrated. It is not to be believed that he will now stop, for his need for fuel and lubricant becomes daily more urgent. But his plans have been again definitely delayed, and that in itself is a signal reverse.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.