Dhofar Rebellion
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The Dhofar Rebellion was an insurrection in the province of Dhofar against the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman from 1962 to 1975. It ended with the defeat of the rebels, but the state of Oman had to be radically reformed and modernised to cope with the campaign.
Background
In 1962, Oman was a comparatively backward country in the Middle East. Under Sultan Said bin Taimur, almost all aspects of twentieth-century development were outlawed. The population of Dhofar, who are linguistically different from the majority population of Oman, were even further discriminated against.The province of Dhofar consists of a narrow, fertile coastal plain, on which stands Salalah, the provincial capital. Behind this are the rugged hills of the Jebel Qara. From June to September each year, the jebel receives moisture-laden winds (the Khareef or monsoon) and is shrouded in cloud. As a result, it is heavily vegetated, and for much of the year is green and lush. To the north, the hills slope down via rough wadis and cliffs into the gravel plains and sand seas of the Empty Quarter.
Early years of the rebellion
In 1962, a dissatisfied tribal leader, Mussalim bin Nafl, formed the Dhofar Liberation Front (DLF) and obtained arms and vehicles from Saudi Arabia (Saudi Arabia and Oman had earlier clashed over ownership of the Buraimi Oasis, and the Saudis had already supported two failed insurrections in the Jebel Akhdar.) Additionally, the exiled Imam of Oman, who led a failed revolt against the Sultan in 1957-59, also supported the DLF. Bin Nafl and his men made an epic crossing of the Empty Quarter to reach Dhofar. As early as December 1962, Bin Nafl's guerilla band performed sabotage operations on the British air base at Salalah and ambushed oil industry vehicles; however, they then withdrew, having been sent by Saudi Arabia to Iraq for more guerrilla training.From 1964, the DLF then began a campaign of hit-and-run attacks on oil company installations and government posts. Many of the DLF were trained former soldiers of the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces (SAF), or of the Trucial Oman Scouts in the United Arab Emirates.
From the early days of the rebellion, Nasserite and other left wing movements in Yemen and Aden were also involved. In 1967, two events combined to give the Rebellion a more revolutionary complexion. One was the Six Day War which radicalised opinion throughout the Arab world. The other was the British withdrawal from Aden and the establishment of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY). From this point, the rebels had a source of arms, supplies and training facilities adjacent to Dhofar, and fresh recruits from among well-indoctrinated groups in the PDRY. However, this also led to a split between those such as bin Nafl who were fighting for local autonomy and recognition, and the more doctrinaire revolutionaries (led by Mohammad Ahmad al-Ghassani) who renamed the rebel movement the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arabian Gulf (PFLOAG). One of bin Nafl's lieutenants, Said bin Gheer, was an early and influential defector to the Sultan.
By 1969, the DLF and PFLOAG fighters (known widely as Adoo) had overrun much of the Jebel Qara, and cut the only road across it, that from Salalah to "Midway" (Thumrait) in the deserts to the north. The units of the Sultan's Armed Forces were understrength, badly equipped and generally not properly trained to face hardy guerillas on their own ground. Small detachments of the British RAF Regiment and Royal Artillery had to be deployed to protect the vital airfield at Salalah from infiltrators and harassing mortar and rocket fire.
Other insurgents in the north of Oman formed another organisation, the National Democratic Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arabian Gulf (NDFLOAG). In June 1970 they attacked two SAF posts at Nizwa and Izki. They were repulsed but the incident convinced many (including the Sultan's British advisers and backers) that new leadership was required if Oman was not to collapse into disorder.
Coup
On July 23 1970 Said bin Taimur was deposed. (The coup was almost bloodless. Folklore has it that one of the plotters, two of the Sultan's bodyguard and the Sultan were slightly wounded, all by the Sultan himself). He was replaced by his son, Qaboos bin Said, who immediately instigated major social, educational and military reforms.One step which had a major impact on the uprising was the announcement of an amnesty for surrendered fighters, and aid in defending their communities from rebels. The surrendered rebels formed Firqat irregular units, trained by teams from the British Special Air Service Regiment. Eighteen Firqat units, numbering about 100 each, were eventually formed. These played a major part in denying local support to the rebels.
The first serious step in re-establishing the Sultan's authority on the Jebel Qara took place in October 1971, when Operation Jaguar which involved five Firqat units and a Squadron of the SAS was mounted. After hard fighting, the SAS and Firqats secured an enclave on the Eastern Jebel from which they could expand. In a major hearts and minds operation, recaptured areas of the Jebel received aid in the form of clinics, schools, roads and newly dug wells.
Meanwhile, the regular units of the SAF were expanded and re-equipped. (Officers and NCO instructors from the British Army and Royal Marines were attached to all units.) They began to establish lines running north from the coast and up to the summit of the Jebel Qara, to interdict the movement of rebels and the camel trains carrying their supplies. The Shah of Iran sent a brigade of troops to assist in this task. The lines were really effective only in the dry season, when air support was available from BAC Strikemaster and Hawker Hunter aircraft of the Sultan's Air Force.
The defeat of the rebellion
Nevertheless, the rebels were being deprived of support and supplies. To retrieve the situation, they mounted major attacks on the coastal towns of Mirbat and Taqa. At Mirbat, 250 Adoo faced 100 assorted Firqat, paramilitary Gendarmerie and a detachment of the Special Air Service. In spite of the low Khareef cloud cover, air support was available and helicopters landed SAS reinforcements. The Adoo were repulsed with heavy losses.From this point on, the rebel defeat was inevitable, although they thwarted an offensive by the SAF in 1973 intended to seal the border with the PDRY and capture the main Adoo base in the Shershitti Caves. The SAF gained one success when they made a helicopter landing to capture one position codenamed Simba at Sarfait near the border. This post was held for two years, and overlooked the rebels' supply lines along the coastal plain although it did not block them. The Adoo earned the respect of their opponents for their resilience and skill.
In January 1974, after several splits and defections, the rebel movement renamed itself the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman (PFLO). This contraction of their aims coincided with a reduction in the support they received from Russia and China. Meanwhile, the Adoo were steadily driven by the Firqats into the western part of the Jebel Qara.
In July 1975, the SAF launched a second "final" offensive. An attack from Simba, intended to be a diversion, nevertheless succeeded in reaching the coast and thus finally cutting off the Adoo from their bases in the PDRY. Over the next few months, the remaining fighters surrendered or sought sanctuary in the PDRY.
The Rebellion was finally declared to be defeated in January 1976.
See also
External links
Sources
- We won a war, by John Akehurst, M. Russell, 1982, ISBN 0859550915
- SAS Operation Oman, by Tony Jeapes, William Kimber, London, 1980 ISBN 0718300181
- Armed Forces & Modern Counter-insurgency, edited by Ian Beckett and John Pimlott, St. Martin's, New York, 1985, ISBN 0312004494
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