147 On a morning in mid-September, 1948, Sheikh Sultan bin Saqr alQasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, met with his brother Sheikh Muhammad bin Saqr. They agreed that Sheikh Muhammad would have to surrender himself to the English to be removed from Sharjah to Bahrain. As they walked down from the upper floor of the Fort where they had met, they could see the flag raised atop the Fort. This was a painful moment, as the flag was the one given to the Qawasim tribe after their defeat at the hands of the British forces, to replace their original flag which had the verse of the Qur’an “Help fromGod and an imminent victory ” printed on it. This was a British flag, known in Britain as Flag number 2, white with a red part in the middle. All the ships coming to or leaving a British port had to raise it and it indicated that the ship had a Captain on board. This flag on the Sharjah Fort was a symbol of oppression, servitude and humiliation. The brothers looked at each other with deep sadness. Was it because of the separation that will soon ensue especially that Sheikh Muhammad was not only a brother but the Ruler’s deputy and the one in charge of security in the emirate? Or was the sadness because of the degradation inflicted upon them by the English ? Nearby was al-Qasimia School, where the students sang their usual songs. Their chanting voices could be heard at the Fort. That day they were saying: This flag is worthy of sacrifice with our lives
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