I've
elsewhere, extensively, about my dissertation on the Dhofar Rebellion. A few weeks ago, I wrote about how I'd
found a bunch of new sources by using some variable search strings. Most of my research in 2012 and 2013 dealt with sources specifically focused on the Dhofar Rebellion. As my follow-on research won't confine me to fifteen thousand words (including sources), I'm in a position to expand my sources and coverage to other topics.
As such, I was very interested to find Dhofar discussed (usually just mentioned) in relation to other conflicts, countries, and such. Most accounts of the conflict (at least those written in English) are written by British nationals, many of whom served in the conflict. Consequently, they focus on the British perspective, and to a slightly lesser extent the Omani perspective. The Iranians and Jordanians typically get mentioned, primarily the Iranians because they did some of the heaviest fighting from their positions in western Dhofar in the later stages of the war. Jordan's participation is mentioned, but seldom in any detail. On the opposing side, many sources mention South Yemen, the Soviet Union, and China in passing, but that's essentially it. So, I've been pleased to find some sources that discuss how the conflict fits into the greater regional and international history of the time.
In doing the recent research, I've learned that in addition to those countries already listed, a number of other states played one role or another. The rebels received support at various times, and in varying degrees, from Cuba, Iraq, and Libya, in addition to various Palestinian organizations. By contrast, Sultan Qaboos received either active or tacit support from the United Arab Emirates and the United States. Saudi Arabia supported the rebels in the early sixties, but eventually reversed itself to support the Sultan. One source cites Kuwait as the source of some weapons bound for Dhofar that were intercepted in 1965, but whether these were dispatched by the Kuwaiti government is left unclear; regardless, the Kuwaitis supported the Sultan during the major combat phase of the conflict.
Last weekend, I decided to go through my collected sources and write a synopsis of Jordanian involvement as the first step in a future chapter on participation in the Dhofar Rebellion, and its international ramifications. Here's the final (draft) product:
Jordan
The Jordanian role in Dhofar is frequently mentioned, but seldom in great detail. In fact, Jordan's contribution was significant. Perhaps most significant was King Hussein's overt support of Sultan Qaboos, which carried significant political weight. While the Hashemite Kingdom's military contribution was smaller than that of Iran, the Jordanians provided a number of force multiplying capabilities, without which the counterinsurgents may not have been able to win the war.
The first of these contributions was a trio of intelligence officers, who arrived shortly after the SAF took the Simba plateau overlooking Sarfait in 1972.[1] The was followed shortly thereafter by an infantry regiment[2] and a special forces battalion in 1972, the latter of which was led by the formidable Major Tahseen.[3] The Jordanian special forces played a pivotal role in Operation Himaar, among other actions.[4][5]
In December of 1973, Jordanian combat engineers joined Royal Engineers and SAF pioneer platoons to construct the Hornbeam Line.[6] The Jordanian engineer battalion was stationed at the new air base at Midway/Thamarit.[7]
In 1975, King Hussein provided the Sultan with a gift of thirty Hawker Siddeley Hunter aircraft. The Hunter's capabilities, superior relative to those of the Strikemaster, allowed for cross-border strikes.[8] In addition to these duties in Dhofar, Jordan also hosted Omani personnel at its military training facilities, and Jordanian troops occasionally joined the Emirates to provide static guard services in Northern Oman. The latter provision allowed more Omani units to serve in the active theater.[9]
Sources:
[1] McKeown, John; Britain and Oman: The Dhofar War and its Significance; University of Cambridge; Cambridge; 1981; pp. 70; (link)
[2] Zimmerman, Frank H.; Why insurgents fail examining post-World War II failed insurgencies utilizing the prerequisites of successful insurgencies as a framework; Naval Postgraduate School; Monterey, CA; March 2007; pp. 111-112; (link)
[3] Akehurst, John; We Won a War: The Campaign in Oman 1965-1975; M. Russell; Salisbury, Wiltshire; 1982; pp. 120
[4] Akehurst, John; We Won a War: The Campaign in Oman 1965-1975; M. Russell; Salisbury, Wiltshire; 1982; pp. 147
[5] McKeown, John; Britain and Oman: The Dhofar War and its Significance; University of Cambridge; Cambridge; 1981; pp. 89; (link)
[6] McKeown, John; Britain and Oman: The Dhofar War and its Significance; University of Cambridge; Cambridge; 1981; pp. 80; (link)
[7] Worrall, James J.; State Building and Counterinsurgency in Oman: Political, Military and Diplomatic Relations at the End of Empire; I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd.; London; 2014; pp. 285; (link)
[8] McKeown, John; Britain and Oman: The Dhofar War and its Significance; University of Cambridge; Cambridge; 1981; pp. 90; (link)
[9] Metz, Helem Chapin; Persian Gulf States: A Country Study; Library of Congress; Washington, D.C.; 1993; (link)
A few notes:
1) That part about the Jordanian infantry regiment? I spent half of my Saturday trying to find the source where I had found that. I'd read it on Saturday, then lost track of it despite reviewing literally every source I had gone through. Repeated, slightly altered Google searches failed to produce any results, and it was driving me crazy. I
finally found it. Part of the problem was that I was searching for "infantry
battalion", not "infantry
regiment", but several of my searches should have alleviated that. When I eventually copied the string of text and plugged it into Google, it
still didn't produce the correct search results.
2) On that same topic of being unable to successfully search, I spent at least as much time trying to find a picture and a tidbit of data on King Hussein's gift of thirty-plus Hawker Siddeley Hunter aircraft to the Sultanate. I had originally found it on my work computer, then went home for the weekend, and couldn't find it. It was driving me
absolutely crazy. I was able to find it again,
here, at one of the Internet's most prominent Dhofar Rebellion websites, by going through my browser history on the following Monday. There is no earthly reason why my search strings at home failed to produce this link.
3) I need to go through Akehurst's seminal tome on the Dhofar War with a fine-toothed comb to gather more information about the Jordanians, but the paragraphs above are close to being comprehensive. There may be a few details yet to be covered.
While I was still back in Aberdeen, I spent a few minutes in the
Waterstones location on Union Street, and found two books that I'd like to get my hands on:
The War that Never Was: The True Story of the Men who Fought Britain's Most Secret Battle by Duff Hart-Davis, and
Buraimi: The Struggle for Power, Influence, and Oil in Arabia by Michael Quentin Morton. One gives background on the
Buraimi Incident, which contributed to the Dhofar Rebellion, while the other gives background to other regional developments that contributed to the conflict. Unfortunately, both books are outside my budget at the moment. But, soon... Soon...
