THE EUPHRATES VICTORY

Evening Star, Issue 16550, 9 October 1917, Page 3

THE EUPHRATES VICTORY

65 MILES WEST OF BAGDAD. THE TURKS SICKLY TRAPPED. " ; -rra- 'The Times.' LONDON, October 7. Mr Ednuuid Gaaidlor, official correspondent at Mesopotamian Headquarters, doscribing General Maude's victory at Ramud,ie on September 29, says: The British, moved in two columns, right aid left, from the Euphrates camp, attacking the Mishaan Ridge at dawn. The first objective was to clear the ridge across the Habbaniyeli Canal. The first knolls were quickly occupied, the canal dam affording a crossing. When the ridge waa bombarded we found that the Turks had evacuated it. As soon as the infantry carried tho ridge, the cavalry made a wide detour till they were astride the Aleppo road, cornering the Turks, who had no bridge and; were out off from reinforcements and supplies. Tho Turks counter- at tacked at dawn on September 30, and tried to escape between our cavalry and tho river. Tli* action continued for two hours, and a small detachment of Turkish cavalry swain tho river. Meanwhile our infantry stormed the ridge, exposed to machine-gun and lifle fire from the ifront and right and enfiladed bv artillery fire from tho left. The Britisn and )f >iaEa bung on, dijunnj; in.

Our second infantry column seized the Agiziya bridge, trapping the Turks be-, tween two canals, the cavalry preventing their retreat. Guns' and pom-poms from river barges attacked our infantry'until' the reply fire from our guns sank them. An intense bombardment of the enemy was maintained until the Turks walked forward with white flags hung' out, and the whole force surrendered in a body. [As before stated, Ramadio is on the south bank of the Euphrates, lying 65 miles due west of Bagdad. Lake Habbania (or Habbaniyeh) lies about 12 miles S.E. of Ramadie, on the same side" of the Euphrates, its northern shore being about five miles from the southern bank of that river. It is connected with that river by a canal. The lake lies in a hollow half onoiroled by the ridges mentioned in the cable. The road from Aleppo to Bagdad strikes the Euphrates 50 miles east 6f Aleppo, and follows that river down to Feluia, some 20 miles below Ramadio, and it_ then strikes across the remaining 35 miles to the Tigris at Bagdad. This road is also the route of the Berlin-Bagdad railway, as originally surveyed, and now apparently constructed at that end.]