The Siege Goes Yet Longer

Anglo-Indian forces suffer a defeat at Dujalia, extending the siege of the 6th Poona Division in Kut, Iraq, against the Ottoman Empire, today in 1916.

British forces in Iraq, 1916; Source: Wikipedia

The First World War had been raging for nearly two years by this point, and away from the rain and mud streaked battlefields of Europe, fighting occurred all across the Middle East - Arabia, Syria, Palestine, and Iraq. Here, European Imperial forces tried to take over Ottoman territories as and when they came, to incorporate them into the Empire. Britain took the lead in this task, often deputing the British Indian Army to fight poorly supplied battles in an area with searing deserts, scantily populated towns, suffering from rampant thirst and starvation.

The Anglo-Indian force dispatched to this region secured British oil interests in the region, and they overextended their advance, citing weak Ottoman defences in the area. This overextension would lead to the 6th Poona Division being stuck and surrounded at Kut, in Iraq.

Under siege, the British planned to relieve it by the 3rd Lahore and 7th Meerut Divisions, and a small portion of the 13th Western with English troops. After disembarking at Basra, this relief force had to march on unpaved ground, staying along the river Tigris, which they couldn’t use due to insufficient boats.

The Ottomans faced similar problems, but they were dug in and well-entrenched. They only had to wait to starve out the 6th Poona at Kut, while the British were racing against time to relieve their forces. In the hurry, Dujalia redoubt became the site of a pitched battle. Nighttime attacks on the 7th gave way to the full assault the next day. The Forces failed to achieve surprise, and thus faced machine gun fire whenever they tried to push forwards.

As casualties mounted, the British-Indian forces were on the verge of a breakthrough, but their supply of ammunition was running out. In a surprise attack, the Ottomans took up their positions again, forcing the British to retreat from the bank, and condemning the besieged defenders at Kut to a long, deadly siege.