Following the devastating success of the opening stages of Operation Eagle claw, the US 2nd Front was ordered to continue its drive westwards and cross the pre-war border into Iran. Although exhausted by its relentless defeats, the 3rd Corps Islamic liberation Army - under General Rouen Al Mashdi - managed to encircle Al-Mashoug (Americanised as the SHOG), the capital of Hamadan province, in early August. Reagan had declared the city a Festering nest, committing the large garrison to a static and ultimately hopeless defence, giving the exhausted Iranians a chance to rest and re-supply.
After three days under siege, the President eventually relented and allowed the garrison to attempt a breakout. However, by this stage they were fighting a pitched battle for the city centre against the infantry of Al Mashdi`s 3rd Corps and an attempt to break through the Iranian lines from the outside, using a collection of low-grade UN battalions, was stopped well short of its goal.
When it was realised that the garrison was doomed unless a more powerful force was launched against the cordon, 7th Armoured Brigade was moved to the west of Kunduz. Under 7th Armoured`s commander, Lieutenant General Huntington-Smith, elements of the brigade were formed into two groups. The Assault Group was to pierce the Iranian lines and make contact with the garrison, followed by the covering force, whose task was to support the Assault Group and hold the road back to Kunduz for the return journey. These fighting units would shepherd two columns of HMMWV`s to carry the survivors of the garrison to safety.
On 12th August, the 7th armoured brigade left Kermanshah (just east of Kunduz) and headed towards the beleaguered city.
The first line of the Iranian cordon was speedily broken by the firepower of the Challengers, knocking out a handful of T72s in the process. Further on, a bridge over a stream provided a focus for more determined resistance and the 1st battalion Staffordshire Regiment of the assault group was forced to dismount, encountering infantry and anti-tank fire that hit several vehicles, including the brigade commander's Ferret scout car.
The advance continued, now under fire from Iranian artillery on the far bank of the River Tigris, but only resisted on the ground by Pasdaran infantry operating in the area west of Ram-Hormuz. At ll00hrs contact was made with 1st battalion 10th Mountain, the formation that had been itself surrounded during the earlier relief attempt. As the covering group deployed to secure the road, troops from the beleaguered garrison of Al-Mashoug made contact with 1st /10th Mountain. By l400hrs the first hummer column had been loaded with survivors and sent back towards Kunduz.
Initial Iranian attempts to prevent the evacuation met with strong opposition from the Challengers, but by the evening stronger pressure was exerted on the covering group by units (probably elements of the 10th Operational Manoeuvre Group) moving up from the south. By l900hrs the second truck column was loaded and despatched, followed by at 2200hrs, the tanks and APC`s of the assault group.
The return journey saw increasing pressure from Soviet units homing in on the Kunduz road. Counter-attacks and the cover of darkness aided the rearguard in its drive west. Finally, the bridge that had caused the first delay on the outward journey was crossed and then blown by British engineers, effectively ending the Soviet pursuit. It was claimed that up to 3,000 troops were spirited out of Al-Mashoug, but the vast bulk of the garrison was killed or captured. Despite the efforts of 7th armoured, this local success pales into insignificance when compared to the huge Soviet advances that eventually expelled all UN troops from Iran.
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© Copyright 2002 by Rolfe Hedges
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