Jaafar Shekak - betrayed and executed by the Persians

[Anthea]

Jaafar Shekak - betrayed and
executed by the Persians

Picture of Kurdish hero Jaafar Shekak and his comrades after being betrayed by the Persians - published in the newspaper La Vie Illustrée on August 4, 1905

"Shekak" means that you have the dialect "Kermanci" in Rojhelat Kurdistani.

This painful and historically important image shows Kurdish hero Jaafar Shekak and two of his comrades hanged upside down, after being treacherously captured and executed by the Persian government. The picture was taken in the courtyard of the Persian crown prince's palace and shows how brutally the regime tried to quell the Kurdish resistance.

The photo was published in the French newspaper La Vie Illustrée in the issue of August 4, 1905 and is a rare testimony to the repression and violence targeted against Kurdish freedom fighters in the early 20th century.

This isn't just a picture - it's a historical cry for justice, resistance, and the memory of those who sacrificed their lives for their people's freedom.

[Anthea]

Jafar Agha was a Kurdish
chieftain of the Shekak tribe

He played an important role in the leadership of the tribe. In 1905, Jafar Agha was killed in Tabriz by an Iranian government trap. His death caused tensions in the region, and led to his younger brother Simko Shikak taking over the leadership of the Shekak tribe

Jafar Agha was born in Chahriq-e Olya to Mohammad Agha Shikak, who belonged to the Awdoyi clan of the Shikak tribe, and was the son of Ismail Agha, the leader of the tribe, who died in 1816.

As children, Jafar Agha and his younger brother Ismail (Simko) Agha both had very high morale as they would sit together and listen to stories about their ancestors fighting against the Turks and Persians.

Jafar Agha later became the leader of the tribe, and enforced his rule throughout Iranian Kurdistan. In the lands controlled by Jafar Agha, the Iranian government had no authority. When Jafar Agha robbed rich people, he distributed the loot evenly to the poor. Jafar Agha regularly looted and pillaged Urmia, Salmas, and Khoy. Simko had often accompanied him as well.

In 1905, Hossein-Qoli Mafi Nezam-ol-Saltaneh, the governor of Tabriz, invited Jafar Agha to Tabriz for negotiations and swore on the Quran that Jafar Agha would not be harmed.

The governor also promised recognition of a Kurdish autonomy with Jafar Agha in control. When Jafar Agha arrived, he entered the office of the governor, and was shot in the heart as he was unsuspectingly walking up the stairs.

His body was cut into pieces and displayed. Simko succeeded Jafar Agha as the leader of the tribe and swore to take revenge. Simko used the same methods as Jafar Agha and also targeted Assyrian and Azerbaijani communities.