Battles and clashes occurred between the revolution and government forces in Rawandiz and the surrounding areas in the summer of Year 1965 and lasted for several months. The Iraqi regime intensified its attacks and raids on the Peshmerga forces continuously to reduce the risks to Rawandiz, Mount Korek, and the public roads. The regime sought to control the Zozik and Handren mountains, the Akoyan Valley, and the Alana Valley, and to impose its authority on the entire Diana Plain. There was an effort on the part of the revolution to maintain strategic positions such as high mountains under the control of the Peshmerga forces. As mentioned in one reference, the revolution's leadership was planning to control Mount Korek, where the Commander of the revolution Mustafa Barzani for this purpose visited Mount Handren and the Akoyan Valley, met with the officials of the Peshmerga forces in the Balakayati region, and discussed with them the attack on Mount Korek. Both Fakher Mergasori and Mullah Amin promised him to carry out this mission.
Preparations and the attack plan
First: Bombing all military positions of the army in Khalifan, Miltokari Rawandiz, and the Kawlokan and Diana garrisons at the same time, where one 120 mm mortar and 200 artillery shells were allocated for each military position.
Second: Launching a comprehensive attack on Mount Korek with the aim of controlling the mountain and the Ali Beg Valley and besieging Rawandiz. The Akoyan battalion led by Mullah Amin and Hama Ziad and a battalion of the Communist Party led by Lieutenant Riad Barzanji were assigned to this mission, and Fakher Muhammad Mergasori was assigned the general responsibility for the battle.
Third: A battalion of the Balak forces was assigned to attack the Miltokari military position led by Izzat Suleiman Beg Dargali and Mam Sadiq.
Fourth: The Betwata battalion was assigned to attack the Khalifan military position led by Hali Dolmari and Tango Yunis.
Fifth: Two battalions of the Balak forces were assigned to attack the Diana military position led by Haji Birokhi and Hadi Hasko.
Sixth: The Commander-in-Chief of the combat front was Abdullah Agha Bashdari, the commander of the Balak forces, and his deputy was Kamal Numan Thabit. The general supervisors of the artillery were Captain Bakr, Lieutenant Khadr, Omar Agha Dolmari, Khadr Dabbagh, Nawzad Khoshnaw, and Khalid Shams al-Din.
At 5:30 in the evening of August 6, Year 1965, the shelling of Artillery of the Revolution began on the military camps and outposts belonging to the Iraqi Army. Masoud Barzani says in his book "Barzani and the Kurdish Liberation Movement" that we were on Mount Rabnok and watching the military positions on which the shells of the Artillery of the Revolution were falling. Chaos prevailed in the camps, the soldiers felt fear and panic, and the Khalifan and Miltokari camps in Rawandiz were completely destroyed and caught fire, while the Kawlokan garrison camp was not significantly damaged due to the fortification of the position. The Diana camp also caught fire and most of its facilities were destroyed.
In another reference, it was stated that the Artillery of the Revolution was able to hit the targets accurately, which led to the destruction of the observation posts and military outposts belonging to the Iraqi Army and stopped their shelling. Two military outposts of the army were destroyed on Mount Korek, but the third outpost was not significantly affected by the shelling due to the presence of a rocky protrusion inside the outpost. The general attack began at nine in the evening of the same day, and in the first hour of the attack, two military outposts on Mount Korek were seized, but the third outpost, which is called "Kabka al-Samina Outpost," was not seized due to the difficulty of the location and the fierce resistance of the soldiers led by Lieutenant Qahtan. Although it was besieged for a week, it continued to resist, and this prevented the Peshmerga forces from controlling the Ali Beg Valley. Although the Iraqi Army suffered heavy losses, as they left the bodies of 40 dead on the battlefield.
On the Miltokari front, the soldiers evacuated the position and the Peshmerga forces took it over. Several positions in Diana were seized, but clashes broke out with mercenary gunmen, one of the Peshmerga members was martyred and another was wounded. The fighting continued between the two sides until dawn, but with the sunrise, the Peshmerga forces retreated. The government used all its power, heavy and light weapons, warplanes, and mercenary gunmen to repel the Peshmerga forces' attack.
As a result of the army's artillery shelling on the Korek front, the Peshmerga forces suffered heavy losses, and while they were in a rest period, several artillery shells fell among them and exploded, leading to the martyrdom of 27 Peshmerga members. This led to a decrease in morale and a slowdown in the attack on Korek. The government forces suffered heavy losses, but on the other hand, the Peshmerga losses were not small. Although the goal of the attack was not achieved and no noticeable change occurred on the military map, it was an important military experience. On this basis, the leader of the revolution, Barzani, ordered the protection and strengthening of the defense lines, not to lose vigilance and awareness, and to respond to any movement of the enemy.
Government reactions to the attack
The government bombed the village of Akoya intensively, which led to a massacre and heavy losses. At that time, the family of the revolution leader, Barzani, was staying in the Kodo summer resort near Haji Omaran, where there were a large number of nomadic tribes in the area during the summer. It is clear that the government intelligence agencies were aware of this, so four Hawker Hunter warplanes bombed the area, but they were unable to hit their targets accurately, and their bombs fell in the middle of a group of nomads, leading to the martyrdom of 4 people, including two children, and the injury of 14 others.
Sources:1- Ari Karim, Living Pages from the September Revolution, (Khabat Press - Duhok - Year 1999).
2- Zarar Suleiman Beg Dargali, My Memoirs in the Years 1943-1977.
3- Masoud Barzani, Barzani and the Kurdish Liberation Movement, September Revolution 1961-1975, Volume Three, Part One, First Edition, (Erbil - Year 2004).
4- Lieutenant Khadr Abdullah Dabbagh, Memoirs and the Artillery of the Great September Revolution - Iraqi Kurdistan, Third Edition, (Roşnbiri Press - Erbil - Year 2020).
5- Ghazi Adel Gardi, A Peshmerga in the Service of Barzani ... Haji Birokhi, Volume One, Second Edition, (Turkey - Year 2020).