A drawing of Abdul Rahman Shahbandar and his colleagues in 1922

Views: 28159


Image Source: Hasan al-Hakim Library

They were charged with recieving money from the US to topple the French Mandate in Syria. Shahbandar (center) was sentenced to 20 years. Hasan al-Hakim (left) was sentenced to 10 and so was Said Haidar (right) also sentenced to 10. They had worked with US diplomat Charles Crane during his April 1922 visit to Damascus, where he donated $2,000 USD as scholarships for Syrian students wanting to study in the US. The Mandate regime claimed that this money was going to be used for an armed insurgency in Syria.