Air Force Work in Somaliland The War Office published, on November 2, a Colonial Office Despatch giving details of the operations in Somaliland, January and February, 190. The despatch is dated May 15, Somaliland.
These operations in Somaliland were of great military interest, although they constituted only a very litle war, because of the fact that to the Royal Air Force was entrusted the chief part of the task. Some fallacious conclusions were; at first drawn, after the success of the operations, as to the supreme value of aircraft in such warfare as that waged on the Indian Frontier. The fact was that in Somaliland especial circumstances gave to aircraft a special opportunity and it was well used.
The Dervish Mullah had concentrated most of his force and his herds within a small area at Medishe (lat. 10deg. 4Smin., long, idea. 33min.). The plan was to attack him in his stronghold from the air, at the same time: pushing up Camelry and tribal levies to cut off his lines of retreat. The plan was very carefully prepared, and the pretext that the preparations were being made not for a military expedition but for oil prospecting seems to have deceived the Somali.
Exp or DervisuisM.
On December 12, 1919, the Air Force ("Z" unit) was ordered from Egypt. Between then and the end of the year step by step the scheme was pushed on until on Jan 1 the "friendly" natives were taken into confidence and assigned their part. On January 21 bombing operations began. After that all went fairly well according to plan. The Dervish stronghold was broken up and his following dispersed. The Mullah himself escaped south to Tale and again from there to Abyssinia, but, as the despatch states, he is "a discredited refugee without possessions and without power. Adherents, at all events, he will never get again, for Dervishism as a cause in Somaliland 1s ended."
Thus, at long last, something was done to retrieve the humiliation to our arms and prestige, caused by political and administrative weakness in Somaliland after the death of gallant Richard Corfield.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.