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It has been alleged that the British used chemical weapons in Mesopotamia in 1920, during the Iraqi revolt (Ath Thawra al Iraqiyya al Kubra), in the period of the British Mandate over Mesopotamia. Use of tear gas and lethal poison gas against Iraqi rebels was considered, and the use of gas was promoted by Winston Churchill , head of the War ...
British Empire forces suffered 85,197 battle casualties in Mesopotamia. There were also 820,418 hospitalisations for non-battle causes, mostly sickness. Of those, 16,712 died, 634,889 were treated and put back on duty in-theater, and 154,343 were permanently evacuated from the theatre.
Following their unexpected success in the Mesopotamia Campaign, the British command decided on more aggressive operations. In April 1915, general Sir John Nixon was sent to take command. He ordered Major General Charles Vere Ferrers Townshend to advance to Kut or even to Baghdad if possible.
British reprisals after the murder of a British officer in Najaf failed to restore order. British administration had yet to be established in the mountains of northern Iraq. The most striking problem facing the British was the growing anger of the nationalists, who felt betrayed at being accorded mandate status. [citation needed]
Iraq Command was the Royal Air Force (RAF) commanded inter-service command in charge of British forces in Iraq in the 1920s and early 1930s, during the period of the British Mandate of Mesopotamia. It continued as British Forces in Iraq until 1941 when it was replaced by AHQ Iraq. It consisted of Royal Air Force, Royal Navy, British Army ...
The result was a decisive victory for the British and yet another defeat for the Ottoman government. The humiliation for the British due to the loss of Kut had been partially rectified. The Ottoman government was forced to end its military operations in Persia and try to build up a new army to prevent the British from moving on to capture Mosul.
The British prime minister, H. H. Asquith, therefore initially proposed a select committee to inquire into the disasters at the Dardanelles (the Gallipoli Bridgeheads were finally evacuated in the winter of 1915-16) and in Mesopotamia (where the British and Indian force at Kut surrendered in April 1916). Instead, he was persuaded to agree to ...
Finally, there were the British troops, whose diet was decided by Whitehall. Along the North-West Frontier, where Indian Army units traditionally were assigned, the mixed dietary needs were manageable. But in Mesopotamia, at the end of a long and poorly developed supply line, the problem was significantly more difficult.