page_title: Battle of Aqaba
section_title: Aba al Lasan and Aqaba
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Aqaba / Battle and campaign / Aba al Lasan and Aqaba
caption_attribution_description: English: T E Lawrence and the Arab Revolt 1916 - 1918 In Wadi Itm near Resafe while discussing the terms of the Turkish surrender.
context_page_description: The Battle of Aqaba was fought for the Red Sea port of Aqaba during the Arab Revolt of World War I. The attacking forces, led by Auda ibu Tayi and advised by T. E. Lawrence, were victorious over the Ottoman Empire defenders.
context_section_description: Three Howeitat clans on Nagb el Shtar, the Dhumaniyeh, the Darausha, and the Dhiabat, aided the effort to secure the pass of Aba el Lissan, along the Maan–Aqaba road.  The Dhumaniyeh attacked the Fuweilah blockhouse at the pass while the Arab force under Auda and Lawrence attacked the Ghadir el Haj garrison along the rail line south of Maan, destroying ten bridges.  However, the Dhumaniyeh were unable to keep control of the pass when a Turkish relief battalion under Niaz Bey arrived, occupying Aba el Lissan.
  Auda personally led a charge of 50 horsemen against the Turkish troops on 2 July, while 400 camelmen under Nasir and Lawrence charged into their flank. The result was 300 Turkish casualties and only 160 prisoners, while the Arabs lost two dead. Lawrence was nearly killed in the action after he accidentally shot his camel in the head with his pistol. Auda was hit by six bullets, which destroyed his field glasses, holster, and scabbard; but left him unharmed.
  Three more Turkish posts lay ahead on the way to Aqaba: Guweira, Kethera, and Khadra.  Guweira was captured by Sheikh ibn Jad by the time Auda and Lawrence arrived, and the 120 soldiers in that Turkish garrison had become prisoners.  Kethira was taken on the night of 4 July, aided by a lunar eclipse.  Khadra, at the mouth of the Itm, and its 300-man garrison surrendered on the 6th.  Four miles onward, Aqaba and the sea now lay open.
caption: Discussing surrender terms, 5 July
exif: {}