Indonesia / Yemen: Habib Abdurrahman al-Zahir / Habib Abdoe'r Rahman Alzahier (1832 - 1896)

Habib Abdurrahman al-Zahir was a Yemeni Arab from the Hadramaut region who served as Vizir to Sultan Alauddin Ibrahim Mansur Syah of Aceh (r. 1857-1870). Following the death of the latter, Az-Zahir served for a time as de facto regent before travelling to Istanbul to seek Ottoman Turkish support for Aceh against the Dutch.

The Turks, however, only promised moral support, and al-Zahir returned to Aceh where he assumed a new role as a military commander against the Dutch in the service of Sultan Alauddin Muhammad Da'ud Syah II (r. 1875-1903).

In 1878 the Sultan (though by no means all the Acehnese forces) submitted to the Dutch under Major General Karel van der Heijden. Al-Zahir was granted a Dutch monthly pension of 1000 dollars (2,500 guilders) for life. In exchange for a promise of no further interference in Aceh, al-Zahir was exiled to Arabia together with his wives at Dutch expense.He died, probably at Mecca, in 1896.

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Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

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Pictures From History

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ACEH WARS