First Battle of the Jordan

The War Office promised General Edmund Allenby, Commander in Chief of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF), substantial reinforcements after his successful capture of Jerusalem. The Imperial War Cabinet was keen to know when Allenby would be ready to make further advances; they wished operations against the Ottomans to continue as forcefully as possible within the means at Allenby's disposal and they attached importance to the cutting the Hejaz Railway. The French, however, imposed an important qualification to Joint Note 12 which gave qualified approval for a decisive offensive against the Ottoman armies; no British troops in France could be deployed to the EEF. It was therefore decided to reinforce the EEF with one or possibly two British Indian Army cavalry divisions from France and three divisions from the Mesopotamian campaign, which were to be supported by more artillery and aircraft. On 7 March 1918, the promised reinforcements were reduced to just one Indian division and four batteries of 6-inch howitzers from Mesopotamia due to arrive by the end of May. Further, Indian infantry battalions and cavalry regiments based in France were, during March and April, to be substituted for British infantry and mounted formations which had had long experience serving in Palestine; they would go to the Western Front. Four additional aircraft squadrons were, however, promised for the coming summer, in addition to squadrons then being formed and a Canadian construction battalion was to be sent from France as soon as its replacement, in the process of formation in Canada, arrived on the Western Front. Also promised were enough railway track to complete the doubling of the railway to Rafa and a single line beyond Haifa. By July it was hoped that 152 locomotives and 3,245 wagons would be available, with a promise of more if required; railway personnel and labour to run this railway were to come from Mesopotamia. Allenby had written to General William Robertson, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, in late January regarding his wish to cut the Hejaz Railway at Amman – an important Ottoman line of communication to the garrisons to the south of Amman, which would considerably weaken their positions. Without reliable supplies and reinforcements Bedouin and Arab forces in the region could be encouraged to attack and rebel against these weakened Ottoman Empire forces and lengthen Allenby's right. Allenby continues: "If I could destroy 10 or 15 miles of rail and some bridges and get touch with the Arabs under Feisal – even temporarily – the effect would be great." A necessary prerequisite to the first Transjordan attack was a broadening of the EEF' base to better support the proposed attack on the Hejaz Railway at Amman. During the Battle of Tell 'Asur between 8 and 12 March 1918, the front line in the Judean Hills was pushed further north giving a substantially stronger base for attacks eastwards. A general advance on a front of between and up to a maximum of depth of between by the XX Corps and XXI Corps, pushed Ottoman forces north from the River Auja on the Mediterranean coast, north on both sides of the road from Jerusalem to Nablus, capturing Ras el Ain and Tell 'Asur and from Abu Tellul and Mussallabeh on the edge of the Jordan Valley. The Balfour Declaration Although it was not published in the Middle East at the time, the Balfour Declaration was published in London in November 1917 and became widely known. The declaration, which established the idea of a Jewish national homeland in Palestine, contained a proviso that such a homeland would not be at the expense of the rights of the Palestinians already living there. The establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine depended on a compliant Palestinian population and the British were eager to conciliate wherever possible. Orders were issued to be "carefully friendly to the Arab tribes" from east of the Jordan River, as they fought with the Sharif of Mecca against the Ottomans. These Arabs were to be treated with the greatest consideration, all payments to them were made in cash and all friction was to be avoided. Politically, Britain needed Feisal's support and Feisal needed British military support and the British encouraged the people to look to Feisal and the Hashemites as their new rulers. Military cooperation between the Arabs and the British Empire forces was expected during these Transjordan operations although it was to be fairly limited. T. E. Lawrence and the forces of the Arab Revolt based on Aqaba had blown up lengths of rail track, bridges and Ottoman supply trains with explosives. In early March Sherifian Arabs led by the Emir Feisal and guided by Lawrence were raiding Ottoman units south of El Kutrani and were in some force about Tafila on 11 March but withdrew a week later. In response the Ottoman Army sent a strong force including a German infantry battalion south from Amman to defend the railway and the important town of Ma'an. The Bedouin near Madaba were inclined to be hostile to the Ottoman Army and it was hoped that the planned attack on Amman might attract their support. s ==Prelude==

On 1 March, aircraft of No. 1 Squadron AFC reconnoitred El Kutrani and reported a camp of 150 tents, 14 large dumps, 150 rolling stock including three trains and seven gun positions south-west of the station. Nearby a new aerodrome with six hangars and a number of tents had two large two-seat aircraft on the ground. A combined Australian and British air raid on 4 March by Nos 1 and 142 Squadrons dropped 45 bombs on this aerodrome without much success. During the period the whole area on the Jordan front and the Amman position, including all camps and defence positions, was reconnoitred and mapped. At Shunet Nimrina a considerably increased Ottoman presence was noted on 3 March and successfully bombed on 6 March. The establishment of a bridgehead on the east bank of the Jordan River and the advance to Es Salt and Amman was to be preceded by diversionary attacks across the entire front and coordinated with an Arab raid led by T. E. Lawrence on the Deraa Hejaz railway station. The aim of these attacks was to destroy or damage a long viaduct known as the Ten Arches Bridge and tunnel near Amman on one of the Ottoman Empire's strategically important lines of communication – the Hejaz Railway. This rail line ran from Damascus southwards through eastern Syria east of Jerusalem all the way to Medina. By destroying the tunnel and viaduct which would be difficult to repair, the rail line could be cut for a considerable period of time and the Ottoman forces to the south would be isolated. Ottoman Army pressure on the Arab forces operating in the Ma'an area would be reduced and Allenby hoped Shea's attack would encourage the recall of a large Ottoman force which had occupied Tafila in March. Despite the extended front Shea's force would be operating on far from reinforcements, resistance to the attack was expected to be light. Ottoman forces The headquarters of the Ottoman Fourth, Seventh and Eighth Armies' were located at Amman east of the Jordan River, and at Nablus and Tulkarm in the Judean Hills, respectively, while their commander in chief's headquarters was at Nazareth. About 4,000 to 5,000 German and Ottoman soldiers with rifles, a large number of machine guns and 15 guns defended fortified positions covering the railway viaduct and tunnel in the Amman area while another 2,000 Ottoman soldiers defended the region towards Es Salt. The force defending Shunet Nimrin, Es Salt and Amman, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Asim, included the 3rd Assault Company with three infantry battalions, the German 703rd Infantry Battalion with some machine gun, cavalry and artillery units. These assault battalions which consisted of between 300 and 350 officers and men were well equipped. They were frequently used in counterattacks and as divisional and corps reserves. The 3rd Assault Company was formed from a divisional detachment in late February 1918. Defending Amman on 27 March the Ottoman and German garrison consisted of 2,150 rifles, 70 machine guns and ten guns. Jemal Kuchuk commander of the Fourth Army, arrived on 28 March to take command of the defence of Amman. Up to 30 March, approximately 2,000 reinforcements arrived with more to follow. In reserve at the Amman railway station were the 46th Assault Company from the infantry's 46th Division. German and Ottoman squadrons of aircraft in the area included single-seater Albatros D.V.a scouts and AEG two-seaters, Rumplers (260-h.p. Mercedes), LVGs (260-h.p. Benz) and Halberstadts all with similar flying-speeds to the British Bristol F.2 Fighters. Shea's force Shea's force consisted of the 60th (London) Division, the Anzac Mounted Division (Australian and New Zealand Mounted Division), the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade including their assigned artillery battery the Hong Kong and Singapore Mountain Battery, with four BL 2.75 inch Mountain Guns, (firing 12-pounder shells) the 10th Heavy Battery Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA), a Light Armoured Car Brigade, the Army Bridging Train, Desert Mounted Corps Bridging Train and pontoon units. On several occasions during the concentration of Shea's force before the attack, German and Ottoman aircraft had bombed their camps while British Empire aircraft had been absent. During these operations the remainder of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force continued to hold the front line, garrison the captured territories and supply the troops. Supplies The attacking forces lines of communication began at the Jerusalem railway station where supplies were offloaded on to lorries and driven to Jericho and later to the Jordan River away. The divisional trains of horse-drawn or mule-drawn wagons transported to Shunet Nimrin and Es Salt. Three echelons 550 camels of the Egyptian Camel Transport Corps were employed to supply the Anzac Mounted Division; one worked between Shunet Nimrin and Es Salt while the other two alternated carried one day's supplies to Amman. Two echelons of 805 camels each alternated to carry one day's supplies for the 60th (London) Division between Shunet Nimrin and Es Salt. A dump was established with five days reserve supply at Junction Dump east of Talaat ed Dumm along with a reserve of camels. Passage of the Jordan 21–23 March Two possible crossing places were identified by the Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment during the month they patrolled the Jordan Valley after the capture of Jericho. These were at Ghoraniyeh and at Makhadet Hajlah (also known as Joshua's Crossing and the site of the baptism of Christ); these crossings were thought to be the only places bridges could be constructed at the time of year. Several days of heavy rain caused the river to rise and become many feet deep, filling from bank to bank in a swiftly flowing torrent with strong currents. Lieutenant General Philip Chetwode, commander of XX Corps, expressed his concerns regarding the state of the Jordan River in a letter to Allenby on 18 March 1918, when he described the heavy rain and the resulting rise in the river's height and his concerns that these may threaten the viability of Transjordan operations. The unusually heavy March rains caused the Jordan River to flood forcing a postponement of operations for two days during which the weather improved slightly and the river dropped back to within its banks. 21 March While the Anzac Mounted Division concentrated in the Talaat ed Dumm area the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade arrived in the area from Bethlehem and the 60th (London) was near the Wadi Nueiame at Ghoraniyeh with one battalion in the Wadi Kelt further south at Makhadet Hijla. The 53rd Division garrisoned the Wadi el Auja. Shea planned to put three bridges across at Ghoraniyeh; a standard pontoon, a barrel pier and a footbridge and at Makhadet Hijla a cavalry steel pontoon bridge. The 180th Brigade was to force both crossings before advancing up the road to the foothills. The 179th Brigade was to move up the Wadi Abu Turra track on the left of the 180th Brigade while the 181st Brigade remained in reserve at Ghoraniyeh bridgehead. The mounted troops were to cross at Makhadet Hijla. Two swimmers were lost and at Ghoraniyeh and the 2/17th Battalion, London Regiment suffered severe casualties trying to get a line across the river. Later, repeated unsuccessful attempts were made to cross the river in punts and rafts. Many were drowned when Asim's German and Ottoman defenders opened fire on barges made of wood and tarpaulins stretched over framework which became waterlogged after being holed by gunfire. Bridgehead established By 07:45 the whole of the 2/19th Battalion London Regiment was across the Jordan River. The 2/18th Battalion London Regiment was across the Jordan by 10:00 using the cavalry pontoon bridge which the Anzac Mounted Division's field squadron had completed at 08:10 the remaining battalions of the 180th Brigade reached the right bank at Makhadet Hijla by about 13:30. Chetwode and H.R.H. the Duke of Connaught complimented the brigade on the passage. By nightfall on 22 March an infantry battalion had crossed the Jordan River and established a bridgehead on the eastern bank. Despite being hampered by dense jungle and Ottoman machine gun fire during the day together with artillery which bombarded the slopes, an infantry brigade crossed the river and during the night the bridgehead was pushed out. The 181st Brigade was ordered to make another attempt to cross the Jordan River at Ghoraniyeh during the night of 22/23 March which failed. At 04:00 on 23 March the Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment attached to the 180th Brigade, began to cross the river at Makhadet Hajlah. Two squadrons pushed Ottoman units back out of the country on the eastern bank as far north as Ghoraniyeh while one squadron was sent eastwards. This squadron, armed with their .303 rifles and bayonets, charged into the Ottoman cavalry and overran it. Lieutenant K. J. Tait and his lead troop of 20 men intercepted 60 sabre-carrying Ottoman cavalry on a track near Qabr Mujahid. Remaining mounted the New Zealanders galloped and shot as many as 20 Ottoman soldiers capturing 7 prisoners. Tait was killed in a hand to hand duel with the Ottoman cavalry officer. Meanwhile, the two squadrons which rode north towards Ghoraniyeh were not stopped by any of the Ottoman posts they attacked, before they reached the main road. Here they encountered a strongly held position; here the Ottoman infantry stood their ground while a troop of the Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment's 3rd Squadron galloped into them capturing a machine gun and turning it on the escaping Ottoman soldiers. Shea's force crosses the Jordan At Makhadet Hajlah mounted rifle, light horse and camels crossed by a pontoon bridge; a second was also constructed, while at Ghoraniyeh, a footbridge was constructed by 16:30 on 23 March, by which time the 2/21st Battalion London Regiment had crossed by rafts. A pontoon bridge and a heavy barrel-pier bridge were built by 21:30 providing altogether five bridges across the Jordan River. The 303rd Brigade R.F.A. crossed by the pontoon bridge at Ghorniyeh. At midnight the Anzac Mounted Division was concentrated near Kasr Hajlah; and at 01:00 on the morning of 24 March, the 1st Light Horse Brigade began to cross the Jordan River by the pontoon bridge at Makhadet Hajlah. The New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade followed to join the Auckland Mounted Rifle Regiment and by 05:00 the leading brigade of Shea's force was along the Es Salt road moving to the east of Hajlah, and the three infantry brigades of the 60th (London) Division were between Ghoraniyeh and Shunet Nimrin, the latter dominated by the hill of El Haud. In a telegram to the War Office of 25 March 1918, Allenby reported to the War Office, "Three bridges were thrown across Jordan during the night of 23rd–24th March, and by 8 a.m, LXth Division [60th Division], Anzac Division and Imperial Camel Corps Brigade were east of the river." Light horse defend the northern flank in the Jordan Valley The Anzac Mounted Division was split into three; divisional headquarters with the 2nd Light Horse Brigade and the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade advanced straight towards Amman by the Na'ur track, the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade with the Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment reattached advanced along the Ain es Sir track, while the 1st and 2nd Light Horse Regiments of the 1st Light Horse Brigade took up a position with its left on the Jordan River near Umm esh Shert to cover the northern flank of the advance while the 3rd Light Horse Regiment advanced up the Umm esh Shert track towards Es Salt. Moving up the eastern bank of the river to the north of the infantry, the 1st Light Horse Brigade got about north of the El Mandesi ford; halfway between the Ghoraniyeh crossing and Umm esh Shert. Occupation of Es Salt 24–25 March Es Salt, was north east from the Ghoraniyeh crossing of the Jordan River and above the Jordan River. Before the war the city had a population of between 10,000 and 15,000 Arab, Christian, Ottoman and Cicassians living in stone buildings half of whom were Christian. At Tell el Mistah the 2/22nd Battalion London Regiment captured three guns while the 181st Brigade with a squadron of the Wellington Mounted Rifle Regiment attached captured the bridge across the Wadi Shu'eib at Huweij south of Es Salt, but was forced to halt when darkness ended operations for the day. By nightfall on 24 March infantry from the 60th (London) Division with the 6th Squadron, Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment attached, was beyond Shunet Nimrin, marching up the motor road from Ghoraniyeh bridge to Es Salt. From Shunet Nimrin the road winds along the side of the desolate hills bordering the Wady Shaib to begin an climb in a north easterly direction towards Es Salt above sea level. Aircraft which included an Australian Martinsyde, had bombed Shunet Nimrin ahead of the infantry attack. The 6th Squadron of the Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment (New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade) remained with the infantry to garrison and defend the town. Trek to Amman Amman, which is a further to the east southeast across the plateau from Es Salt is above sea level, higher than Es Salt. it clearly shows the Naaur and Ain es Sir tracks to Amman The divisional headquarters of the Anzac Mounted Division together with the 2nd Light Horse Brigade and the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade marched towards Amman on the number three road, a track well to the south of the main road which passed through the village of Naaur some to the south of Shunet Nimrin. As the road to Naaur dwindled away to a track all wheels had to be left behind including most of the reserve small arms ammunition (SAA). Only four small pack mountain guns, a little reserve ammunition (two boxes of SAA to a camel) and the explosives required to demolish the viaduct and tunnels, were put on camels and pack-horses to make the trek forward. Meanwhile, the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade took a path half a mile beyond Shunet Nimrin towards Rujm el Oshir, along the Wadi es Sir through Ain es Sir direct to Amman. Anzac Mounted Division at Ain es Sir After a second night's march in the cold and wet conditions moving over both bog and rock, the Anzac Mounted Division concentrated at Ain es Sir on the early morning of 26 March west of Amman. The weather was atrocious; sleet and heavy rain continued for almost the entire operation making the roads and tracks soft and boggy and all supplies of rations and forage had to be sent up to the advancing troops on camels and pack-horses. By this stage the advance had been on the march continuously for three days and nights and owing to the exhaustion of the men and horses, Chaytor, commander of the mounted division, postponed the attack on Amman until the next morning. During the day a patrol of six German infantry was captured, another German approaching the lines was shot and a cavalry patrol of three men were "accounted for." As soon as it was dark a special patrol of a troop of the Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment set out to cut the railway line to the south of Amman. They rode there and back in darkness and pouring rain, successfully blowing up a section of railway line south of Amman. A similar group from the 2nd Light Horse Brigade attempted to wreck the line north of Amman but was unsuccessful although a two-arched bridge on the railway north of Amman was destroyed. ==Battle for Amman 27–30 March==

The delay in the advance of Shea's force on 26 March caused by the terrible conditions gave the Ottoman forces ample warning to consolidate their defences. Nevertheless, during the battle small gains were made which began to make an impact on the strongly entrenched German and Ottoman forces. The attack on Amman began on 27 March and continued until 30 March while German and Ottoman reinforcements continued to steadily arrive along the unharmed Hejaz Railway from the north. Ottoman counterattack in the Jordan Valley During the afternoon of 29 March, 1,800 rifles and sabres of the 145th Regiment (46th Division) from the Ottoman Seventh Army based at Nablus, crossed the Jordan River at Jisr ed Damieh and attacked the left (northern) flank which was defended by the 1st and 2nd Light Horse Regiments (1st Light Horse Brigade). This counterattack represented a very serious threat to the British lines of communication and supply to Es Salt and Amman and an infantry battalion was sent to reinforce the light horsemen. The Ottoman regiment eventually advanced up the road towards Es Salt capturing the heights at Kufr Huda north of Es Salt. The counterattack by German and Ottoman forces from the direction of Nahr ez Zerka to the north of Jisr ed Damieh on the eastern side of the Jordan Valley continued to threaten Shea's and Chaytor's northern flank. This flank, held by the 1st and 2nd Light Horse Regiments was reinforced, at the expense of the Amman attack. Ottoman counterattack on Es Salt By 30 March the 1,800 rifles and sabres of the 145th Regiment (46th Division) from the Ottoman Seventh Army based at Nablus, which had crossed the Jordan River at Jisr ed Damieh to attack Kufr Huda the day before, were arriving near Es Salt and threatening the occupation of the town by Shea's force. During the night of 30/31 March, these Ottoman reinforcements continued to push in on Es Salt. During this Transjordan operation, aircraft continuously flew over and reported progress; on 22 and 24 March Ottoman units in the Wady Fara region were seen to be active, as was the Nablus base camp, and infantry and transport were seen marching towards Khurbet Ferweh and the Jisr ed Damieh. On 24 March a large troop-train at Lubin station on the Hejaz Railway south of Amman was attacked by aircraft with machine-guns; 700 rounds were fired into the enemy troops. Medical support The total time taken to evacuate to Jericho from the front line was about 24 hours and the distance with a further three hours on to Jerusalem. Wounded were carried on light stretchers or blankets from the front line to regimental aid posts which were established about in the rear. Advanced dressing stations were established about behind these aid posts; sand carts making the journey in three to six hours. With their equipment carried on pack-horses and pack-camels, the mobile sections of the field ambulances along with 35 cacolet camels for each ambulance, followed the attacking force to Es Salt and Amman. Their motor ambulances, ambulance wagons and sand carts remained near Jericho ready to transport wounded from the receiving station at Ghoraniyeh to the main dressing station west of Jericho. Here the Desert Mounted Corps Operating Unit and consulting surgeon were attached. Wounded were then sent back to the two casualty clearing stations in Jerusalem. From the Jordan Valley it was a ride in a motor ambulance over the mountains of Judea to the hospital railway train, followed by train ride to hospital in Cairo, though some of the worst cases were accommodated in the hospitals in Jerusalem. Of the 2,000 camels used on convoy duties 100 were killed in action and 92 had to be destroyed because of injuries received during the operations. During the retreat from Amman many of the camels had been overloaded. ==Aftermath==

Retreat 31 March – 2 April By 30 March Chaytor's force had pushed infantry in the Ottoman 48th Division back into Amman and after desperate fighting the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade had entered the town west of the station, but German and Ottoman machine guns positioned on the hills beyond were too strong and all efforts to dislodge enemy forces from the Hejaz Railway's Amman station failed. Chaytor's force was therefore ordered to withdraw to Es Salt. Evacuation of wounded The retirement from Amman started on 30 March with the wounded beginning to be sent back to the Jordan Valley. The wounded moved along the main road via Es Salt, but Es Salt was under attack from German and Ottoman units from the north west (the direction of the road from Nablus via Jisr ed Damieh) and the only bridge across the Jordan River not destroyed by a flood was at Ghoraniyeh. By 31 March there were over 240 wounded in the divisional collecting stations such as Birket umm Amud from the front line. All available means including sand carts sent by infantry in the 60th (London) Division, were employed and these wounded were on their way by the evening; about 50 of them walking. The last convoy of wounded which left Amman at 23:00 found 20 camels carrying wounded which had begun their journey six hours earlier, bogged and exhausted at Suweileh. Nine of them were unable to move and ambulance personnel were left to attend to the wounded throughout the night. By daylight, light horse troopers warned them that the Ottoman cavalry was close. Five camels managed to continue but the remaining four were too exhausted. Of the eight wounded, six were placed on horses, but two who appeared to be mortally wounded were left behind when Ottoman cavalry got between the covering party and the ambulance men and began firing on the group. All escaped but the two seriously wounded and three men of the 2nd Light Horse Field Ambulance mounted on donkeys who were taken prisoner. Only one of these men survived to the end of the war; the other two dying in captivity. Refugees From Es Salt, thousands of Armenian and Bedouin refugees and others joined the withdrawing columns carrying their belongings on their backs or pushing them in carts, some of the aged and footsore given a lift in the horse-drawn limber wagons. Withdrawal The front lines were still engaged when the withdrawal began. It was necessary, firstly to move the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade back from Hill 3039, across the Wadi Amman. They received their orders at 18:00 to withdraw to the cross road at the western end of the plateau just above the village of Ain es Sir. By 23:00 all wounded had been started on their journey back to the Jordan Valley and the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade commenced to recross the Wadi Amman at midnight; reaching the cross roads at 04:00 on 31 March. At 07:45 on 1 April as the rearguard of Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment passed through the village the 2nd (Wellington West Coast) Squadron was attacked by Circassians who suddenly opened fire from a mill and adjacent caves, from houses and from behind rocks on the nearby hills. Firing at very close range with a variety of firearms they wounded men and horses; horses rearing up, bolted, screaming joined the numerous riderless horses galloping across the hillsides. Remnants of the 2nd Squadron galloped clear of the village, dismounted and counter-attacked with the other two squadrons attacking from the ridges above the village. They rushed the mill and its occupants were killed. No prisoners were taken; the 2nd Squadron suffered 18 casualties. The German and Ottoman forces abandoned two travelling field cookers, 26 motor lorries, five motor cars and many horse-drawn wagons on the Amman road and an Ottoman aircraft was captured on the Hejaz railway. Asim launched a pursuit of the British by the 24th Assault Company with the 8th and 9th Cavalry Regiment (3rd Cavalry Division) and on 4 April German and Ottoman counterattacks by the 24th Assault Company, infantry in the 24th Division's 3rd Battalion and the 145th Infantry Regiment, began. About this time the Ottoman Seventh Army formed a provisional cavalry regiment by combining the cavalry companies which had previously been attached to several infantry divisions; these were the 11th, 24th, 48th and 53rd Divisions. The strong incursion by Shea's and Chaytor's forces materially helped Feisal's force; the Ottoman 4th Army withdrew part of its garrison from Maan to help defend Amman just as Feisal began his attack there. These major troop movements; the recall of the Tafileh expedition and the partial withdrawal from Maan, helped strengthen the operations of Feisal's Arabs and the threat to the Ottoman lines of communication east of the Jordan, compelling the Ottoman army to make a permanent increase to their forces in this area. Large new Ottoman camps were established to support the growing lower Jordan defences which included a large garrison at Shunet Nimrin. These troops moved from Nablus by the Jenin railway and then by road down the Wady Fara to the Jisr ed Damieh, where the ford was replaced by a pontoon bridge. It remained an important line of communication between the 7th Army at Nablus in the west and the 4th Army in the eastern sector. For the first time since the Second Battle of Gaza in April 1917, the Egyptian Expeditionary Force had been defeated; both Shea and Chetwode had opposed the attack on Amman at that time of year, believing the attacking force to be too small. Nevertheless, a second unsuccessful assault by one infantry and two mounted divisions, into the hills of Moab to Es Salt followed just a few weeks later at the end of April. It has been suggested that these two unsuccessful operations convinced the Ottoman Army to expect more attacks to be made in the same area by the same troops, while the breakthrough attack in September 1918 occurred on the Mediterranean coast. ==Notes==