Battle of Taif (1916)

The Battle of Taif was fought between Ottoman forces and Syed Hussien bin Ali Sharif of Mecca in 1916. The Ottoman Army was in Taif, with Syed's forces besieging the city and after many weeks siege and fiercest struggle Syed's forces were able to capture the Taif. After the fall of Mecca in July 1916 the fall of Taif was a major blow for Turks who were fighting in First World War against Britain. The British helped Syed Hussein's bin Ali's Forces by providing them with guns.

1916 Battle of Taif
Part of the Arab Revolt of the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I
Date 10 June – September 23, 1916 Location Ta’if, Hejaz Vilayet Result Arab victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of Hejaz	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Abdullah bin Hussein Faajir bin Sheliweh al-'Atawi	Ahmed Tevfik Pasha
Strength
~7,000+ supported by British-supplied artillery[1]	1,200[2]-3,000[1] (military and civilian inhabitants)[2]
Casualties and losses
	Most surrendered

Notes

1. Spencer C. Tucker, Arab Revolt (1916–1918), The Encyclopedia of World War I, ABC-CLIO, 2005, ISBN 1-85109-420-2, page 117.
2. Military Intelligence and the Arab Revolt: The first modern intelligence war, Polly a. Mohs, Routledge, ISBN 1-134-19254-1, page 41.

References

21°16′N 40°25′E