The Qajar dynasty lasted until 1925. [Wikipedia]

At this juncture the French in Egypt were being threatened by the British Fleet under Commodore Sir Sidney Smith, while a Turkish army was assembling in Syria. Napoleon's object was to compel the Ottoman Government to come to terms with France. He defeated the Turks on the Plain of Jezreel, and advanced as far as Nazareth and Safed; but he failed to capture Acre after a two month siege and the loss of most of his best soldiers, gallantly defended by Sidney Smith. By the beginning of June, 1799, Napoleon had withdrawn from Palestine. [Handbook of Palestine edited by H C Luke and E Keith Roach, McMillan, London, 1922 pp22-23]

To set the context, this came during the period known as "Tanzimat" (lit. Reorganization) 1838 to 1876. The Tanzimat era was characterised by various attempts to modernise the Ottoman Empire and to secure its territorial integrity against internal nationalist movements and external aggressive powers. The reforms encouraged Ottomanism among the diverse ethnic groups of the Empire and attempted to stem the tide of the rise of nationalism in the Ottoman Empire. During the Tanzimat period, the government's series of constitutional reforms led to a fairly modern conscripted army, banking system reforms, the decriminalization of homosexuality, the replacement of religious law with secular law and guilds with modern factories. The Ottoman Ministry of Post was established in Istanbul in 1840. [Wikipedia]

The fulfillment of the prophecies of Christ and of the Bible has been over a period of a hundred years or more matter of common knowledge and remark in the West. But the full extent of that fulfillment is only seen in Bahá'u'lláh. The proclamation of His Faith was made in 1844, the year when the strict exclusion of the Jews from their own land enforced by the Muslims for some twelve centuries was at last relaxed by the Edict of Toleration and "the times of the Gentiles" were "fulfilled." [GPBiv Introduction by George Townshend]

See History of Information.

The following is an example of one such concession: The Telegraph Concession in Iran in 1862 was a significant agreement that allowed a British company to construct and operate a telegraph line in Persain territory. This concession played a crucial role in the development of telecommunication infrastructure and British influence in Iran during the 19th century.

The concession was granted to a British entrepreneur named Charles Morrison by, Nasir al-Din Shah. The agreement gave Morrison the exclusive rights to build a telegraph line across Persia. This line was intended to connect the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea with branches extending to Tehran and other important cities.

The British government supported Morrison in securing the concession as it served British interests in the region. It was not only a means of communication but also had strategic importance as it facilitated the transmission of information and news across the vast Iranian territory and contributed to British control over their interests.

Construction began in 1864 and was completed in several stages over the following years. The concession allowed Morrison's company to operate for 70 years. The telegraph line facilitated communication between Persia and British India, which was also under British control at the time, and it played a role in the coordination of British interests in the region.

Also during this period the decline and breakdown of the Ottoman Empire continued. It was often referred to as the "Sick Man of Europe." This decline was characterized by administrative inefficiency, territorial losses, and the rise of nationalist movements in many of its provinces.

The concession met with controversy and criticism and became a symbol of the encroachment of European powers and their control over Iran's resources and infrastructure. This lead to the re-negotiation of the contract and the terms of the concession were revised to be somewhat less favourable to the concessionaire. [Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu'l-Baha's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p3; Wikipedia]

• See BKG460 for the Siege of Plevna.

In 1879 Britain and France agree to take joint control of Egypt's administration, know as "Dual Control" with Britain often controlling the more influential positions. This measure was taken partially our of fear that there would be a complete collapse of Egypt's government and financial system. This imposition dual control faced opposition from many Egyptians who perceived it as foreign interference in their country's affairs. This period contributed to the rise of nationalist sentiments in Egypt and calls for greater Egyptian autonomy and independence from foreign control.

Dual control lasted until 1882 when British forces effectively took control of Egypt during the Urabi Revolt, further solidifying British dominance in the country. Egypt was technically still part of the Ottoman Empire at this time, but in reality, it became a British protectorate, leading to a prolonged period of British influence over Egyptian affairs. [Wikipedia]

As usury was forbidden under Islam, the traditional money lenders in Iran were the Jewish sarrafs, who continued to dominate the field after the establishment of the Imperial Bank due to greater loan flexibility and cultural ties. At the time the only form of money in circulation was gold and silver coins.

In 1890 a similar Russian bank known as the Loan and Discount Bank of Persia was founded. The Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 split Iran into a Russian and British sphere of influence. It assigned to the Russian Loan and Discount Bank the revenues from the amortization of Persian debts in northern Iran, and the same for the British Imperial Bank in southern Iran.

Bank Melli, an Iranian-controlled central bank, was established in 1928. [Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu'l-Baha's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p3; Wikipedia]

During a tense period of political struggle, a bomb was thrown into the Iranian Majlis (parliament) while it was in session. The explosion caused damage to the building and injured several parliamentarians, but there were no fatalities. The identity of the individual or group responsible remains a subject of historical debate. Some believe it was an attempt to disrupt the growing influence of the constitutionalists and the Majlis, while others suspect foreign interference. The event had significant political repercussions. It galvanized public opinion and further fuelled the demand for constitutional government and the rule of law. [Wikipedia]

Sultan 'Abdu'l-Hamid II lived from 1842 to 1918) and reigned from 1876 to 1909. During his reign large portions of the Ottoman Empire were lost. Following his defeat in the war with Russia in 1878, Tunisia was occupied by France (1881), and Egypt was controlled by Britain (1882). In 1897, the Empire was forced by the Europeans to recognize the autonomy of Crete. The Sultán ruled as a despot, and brutally repressed the Armenians between 1894-6. In 1908, due to the lack of support among the army and the rise of the Young Turks, 'Abdu'l-Hamid was forced re-enact the Constitution of 1876 which he had suspended earlier, and which, for the first time in an Islámic state, defined the rights of both the ruler and his subjects. He was ultimately deposed when he attempted to plot a counterrevolution against the Young Turks and was exiled to Salonika, where he died in disgrace.

The period of this reign was of the so-called pénétration pacifique, the technical term used euphemistically in contemporary Western works, during which the country was subjugated by the Western Powers and lost its sovereignty as well as its natural resources. [Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu´l-Bahá's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p6]

After defeating the Ottoman army they confiscated on large scale the lands of the Arab peasants on which Italian settlements were established and large numbers of Italian settlers were brought in for the cultivation of cash products. The war cost Italy 1.3 billion lire, nearly a billion more than Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti had estimated before the war. This ruined ten years of fiscal prudence.

This war is notable for the introduction of new military technologies including the use of the airplane for reconnaissance and bombing. It also included the first instance of an airplane being shot down by ground fire.

The Italians also used a wireless telegraph network established with the help of the Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi.

This war is considered by historians as a precursor of the First World War. Members of the Balkan League, seeing how easily Italy defeated the Ottomans and motivated by incipient Balkan nationalism, attacked the Ottoman Empire in October 1912, starting the First Balkan War a few days before the end of the Italo-Turkish War. [Wikipedia]

The Battle of Benghazi was a preliminary to the fascist invasion of Ethiopia and Italy's ambitions to establish its own colonial empire. [Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu´l-Baha's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p18]

The main provisions included the following:

Austria declared war on Serbia.

Given that the Balfour Declaration was not a unilateral document on behalf of the British but rather something which had been agreed upon privately by allied diplomats before it was issued, it is viewed as the beginning of a legal process, which involved the San Remo conference of 1920 where the Declaration was officially adopted by the allied powers and latter, the creation of the British Mandate for Palestine in 1922.

The implementation of the Declaration was not without its failings. It provided for the safeguarding of the rights of the residents of Palestine saying ‘nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine'. In the run up to WWII that the British wanted to placate the Arab leadership in the Mandate. They issued a White Paper limiting Jewish immigration to the Mandate to fifteen thousand every year for five years, ultimately refusing entry to thousands of Jewish refugees from Europe, many of whom would tragically die in the Holocaust. [Wikipedia]

The British army took the city in the 1st Battle of Haifa: The battle was won due to a courageous uphill assault by the Jodhpur Lancers of the Indian Army who took the German and Turkish artillery and machine gun emplacements on top of Mount Carmel by surprise. This attack is believed to have been one of the last cavalry charge in modern military history. Each year, on this date, the Indian Army commemorates this victory as Haifa Day. [AY104; BBR335; DH148, Scroll In 68095]

It was a global conflict originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. It led to the mobilisation of more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, making it one of the largest wars in history. An estimated nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a direct result of the war, and it also contributed to later genocides and the 1918 influenza pandemic, which caused between 50 and 100 million deaths worldwide. Military losses were aggravated by new technological and industrial developments and the tactical stalemate caused by gruelling trench warfare. It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history and precipitated major political changes, including the Revolutions of 1917–1923, in many of the nations involved. Unresolved rivalries at the end of the conflict contributed to the start of World War II about twenty years later. [Wikipedia]

Shoghi Effendi's tribute is as follows:

"To ... President ... Woodrow Wilson, must be ascribed the unique honour, among the statesmen of any nation, whether of the East or of the West, of having voiced sentiments so akin to the principles animating the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh, and of having more than any other world leader, contributed to the creation of the League of Nations—achievements which the pen of the Centre of God's Covenant acclaimed as signalizing the dawn of the Most Great Peace, whose sun, according to that same pen, must needs arise as the direct consequence of the enforcement of the laws of the Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh." [CoF36]

When the Persians discovered by what dubious means this Agreement was contrived, they arose in fury, there was a coup d'état with the backing of the Cossack Brigade, Siyyid Zia-ed-Din came to power (1921) and abrogated the Agreement. Then he himself would be overthrown, and replaced by Reza Khan of the Cossack Brigade as Minister of War and Commander in Chief. Thus an illiterate one-time army private, once a sentry at a hospital gate, would eventually (1925) become a powerful Shah. [AY172, 210]

During the period of the later Qajar shahs, namely Muzaffar al-Din (r. 1896–1907) , Muhammad-‘Ali (r. 1907–9) and Ahmad (r. 1909–25) , the Iranian state became steadily weaker and sank into anarchy as a result of years of revolution, war, corruption, injustice, insecurity, and foreign intervention and occupation, all of which took a heavy toll on the local population. The country was thoroughly disappointed with the outcome of its hard-won freedom, the incompetence of successive cabinets, the inefficiency of the shahs, and the corruption of the bureaucracy. The continuous interference of foreign powers in Iran's affairs, especially Britain and Russia, combined with their excessive consular rights were a constant source of national humiliation and impotent dissension, which by 1921 had turned into loud, nationalistic protests throughout the country. The people looked for a strong government that would overcome these weaknesses. [The Forgotten Schools: The Bahá'ís and Modern Education in Iran, 1899–1934 p107]

The notion of a Jewish state evolved during the nineteenth century and in the aftermath of the French Revolution, which generated the idea of nation states and nationhood in the modern sense. The first plans came from non-Jewish sources. Napoleon Bonaparte suggested the settlement of European Jews in the Suez region to safeguard a canal project he had envisaged. Lord Palmerstone, British Foreign Secretary from 1830-1841, seeking to halt French advances in the East, planned the establishment of a British-backed Jewish client-state in Palestine to stop their advance and block Muhammad Ali´s progress. Plans of this kind set up by the Powers for safeguarding their own interests were quite numerous. When the Germans were constructing the Berlin-Baghdad Railway in the years before its completion in 1940, plans were made to settle Jews in Asia Minor alongside the rails or bestow an Ottoman Pashaliq (Territorial administrative division) upon the territory occupied by them.

After the French Revolution the Jews of Central and Western Europe now felt that they were citizens of their respective countries. Orthodox Jews refused the idea of a Jewish state believing that only when the Messiah came that such a state could be founded.

But then anti-Semitism was on the rise in Europe from the early and mid 1800s with such beliefs as Social Darwinism, Eugenics, Scientific Racism, Racial Hierarchy: the Nazi Racial Theories and the lingering concepts of colonialism and imperialism. The horrors of the Holocaust played a significant role in discrediting and rejecting these racial and biological ideologies that were not based on sound scientific findings.

Jews had started to immigrate into Palestine after the first anti-Jewish pogroms in Russia in 1881 and more especially after the establishment of the World Zionist Organization in 1897, it was of a different, a political nature. The Jewish immigrants came now with the explicit aim to establish a state of their own and to the exclusion of the Arab inhabitants of the land.

"The Jewish Colonial Projects in Palestine" refer to the efforts by Jewish individuals and organizations to establish settlements and communities in the region of Palestine, primarily during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These efforts were part of the broader Zionist movement which aimed to establish a Jewish homeland in what was then part of the Ottoman Empire and later became the British Mandate of Palestine. These projects played a significant role in the eventual establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.

First Aliyah (1882-1903): The First Aliyah was a wave of Jewish immigration to Palestine that began in the early 1880s. During this period, many Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe and Russia settled in agricultural communities, known as "moshavot," in various parts of Palestine. They aimed to establish self-sustaining agricultural settlements and escape persecution in their home countries.

Baron Edmond de Rothschild's Support: Baron Edmond de Rothschild, a wealthy European financier, provided financial support to many Jewish settlers in Palestine. His contributions were crucial for the development of Jewish agricultural communities and wineries in the region.

Second Aliyah (1904-1914): The Second Aliyah brought another wave of Jewish immigrants to Palestine. Many of these immigrants were inspired by socialist and labour-oriented ideologies. They established kibbutzim and collective communities, which emphasized communal living and shared resources.

Jewish National Fund (JNF): The JNF, founded in 1901, played a pivotal role in acquiring and developing land in Palestine for Jewish settlement. It purchased and reclaimed land, planted forests, and financed infrastructure projects.

Balfour Declaration (1917): During World War I, the British government issued the Balfour Declaration, expressing support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine. This declaration laid the foundation for future Zionist aspirations.

British Mandate Period (1920-1948): After World War I, the League of Nations granted Britain the mandate to govern Palestine. During this period, Jewish immigration and settlement continued, despite tensions with the Arab population. The Arab-Jewish conflict over land and political control intensified.

Haganah and Israel Defense Forces: Jewish settlers organized defense forces, such as the Haganah, in the 1920s to protect their communities. They provided defence for Jewish communities and countered Arab attacks, facilitated the illegal immigration of Jewish refugees to Palestine, coordinated the various Jewish paramilitary groups and were involved in the acquiring and stockpiling of weapons and military equipment. These groups later evolved into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

1948 Arab–Israeli War (1947-1949)

With the British Mandate coming to an end, the United Nations approved the partition plan for Palestine, leading to the declaration of the State of Israel on the 14th of May 1948. The following day a military coalition of Arab states, including Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq, invaded Israel to prevent its establishment. They took control of the areas designated for Arabs and attacked the Jewish forces and settlements. As a result of the war Israel got all the lands mandated to them by the UN and 60% of the territory meant for the Arabs as well as the area that had been meant for an "international zone". Israel had retained its independence and had expanded its territory.

This period is known as "Nakba" ("catastrophe" in Arabic). Some historians estimate that around 720,000 out of the 900,000 Palestinian Arabs that had lived in the land that was to become Israel were expelled. Another estimate says the 400 Palestinian villages were destroyed, civilians were massacred and around a million men, women, and children were expelled from their homes at gunpoint. [The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Ilan Pappe; Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu´l-Bahá's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p24; Palestinian Expulsion and Flight]

Further details on the conflicts, Causes, Key Events of the War, as well as Outcomes and Consequences can be found here.

The UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) is a UN agency established in 1949 that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. It's mandate encompasses Palestinians displaced by the 1948 Palestine War and subsequent conflicts, as well as their descendants, including legally adopted children. As of 2023, more than 5.9 million Palestinians are registered with UNRWA as refugees. [UNRWA]

The war had a profound human cost, with estimates of Algerian casualties ranging from 400,000 to 1.5 million, alongside 25,600 French soldiers and 6,000 Europeans. The war also saw the perpetration of war crimes, including massacres, rape, torture, the destruction of villages, and the displacement of over 2 million Algerians. Upon independence, approximately 900,000 European-Algerians fled to France. The FLN targeted the Harkis, Algerian Muslims who served with the French army, for retribution, with many facing brutal violence. About 90,000 Harkis found refuge in France, where they and their descendants form a significant community​. [Wikipedia]

1844 May 24 Samuel F.B. Morse sent the first telegraphic message over an experimental line from Washington D.C. to Baltimore; the message said: "What hath God wrought?" which is a verse from The Book of Numbers 23:23. Also see The Book of Job 38:35 where it says Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go and say unto thee, Here we are?

1858 Aug 16 the first transatlantic telegraph cable was an undersea cable running under the Atlantic Ocean used for telegraph communications was laid across the floor of the Atlantic from Telegraph Field, Foilhommerum Bay, Valentia Island in western Ireland to Heart's Content in eastern Newfoundland. The first communications occurred August 16, 1858, reducing the communication time between North America and Europe from ten days.

1894 May 10 Marconi sent a radio wave 3/4 mile, the first "wireless" transmission.

1897 Marconi Co sent the first ship-to-shore message 12 miles. 1899 Mar 3 the ship "East Goodwin" was saved after sending the distress signal "HELP". This system of HF radio for safety at sea communications as replaced globally by geostationary satellites with the launch of the INMARSAT system (International Marine Satellite) on the 1st of February 1982. [International Journal of Maritime History]

1969 October 29 The birth of the Internet. First message from computer to computer in different locations. UCLA student Charley Kline attempts to transmit the text "login" to a computer at the Stanford Research Institute over the first link on the ARPANET, which was the precursor to the modern Internet. After the letters "l" and "o" are sent the system crashed, making the first message ever sent on the Internet "lo" and the first crash of the system.

• Available online at Bahá'í Library.

On 3 July 2013, Morsi was deposed by a coup d'état led by the minister of defense General Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. The situation of Egypt's Bahá'í community remained uncertain. The prescriptions of the 1960 Presidential Decree, despite the revolution, had yet to be annulled. This meant that despite the 2009 lifting of the restrictions on identification documents, the Bahá'í Faith still had not received actual recognition as a religion and Bahá'í were frequently subjected to public vilification. It was a period of extreme unrest. It is estimated that between Sisi's overthrow of Morsi and the 2014 presidential elections, an estimated 20,000 activists and dissidents were arrested by the police under the interim government. El-Sisi went on to become Egypt's president by popular election in 2014.