Topic: AIF - 3B - 8 LHR
The Jifjafa Raid
Sinai, 10 - 14 April 1916
Captain Thomas Sidney Austin produced a unit history called The history of the 8th Light Horse Regiment A.I.F. which included a section specifically related to the Jifjafa Raid and is extracted below.
Austin, TS, The history of the 8th Light Horse Regiment A.I.F. :
The morning of the 21st March saw a reconnaissance party of about 150 all ranks leave the Brigade and proceed on a road to Wadi Muksheib, a small Turkish post away out on the Desert about 30 miles east. The march was very arduous but ended most successfully, about 40 prisoners being brought in and the water reservoirs there were destroyed. Captain AE Wearne, a newly joined Officer, was in charge of the 8th Regiment personnel, consisting of about 6 Officers and 72 Other Ranks, and was subsequently awarded the Military Cross, and Sergeant PJ McGinnis the DCM. Corporal Monaghan was our only casualty, he being killed.
Editor's Note about the text.
This particular text is unfortunately a conflation of three events, each happening at different times. They include:
1. The Wearne led reconnaissance of 8th Light Horse Regiment men to Wadi um Muksheib from 21-22 March 1916.
2. The Jifjafa Raid led by the 9th Light Horse but also supported by members of the 8th Light Horse, 10 - 14 April 1916.
3. The draining of Wadi um Musheib by the 9th and 10th Light Horse Regiments, 10 - 18 June 1916.
Further Reading:
The Jifjafa Raid, Sinai, April 10 to 14
Battles where Australians fought, 1899-1920
Citation: The Jifjafa Raid, Sinai, April 10 to 14, 1916, 8th LHR, AIF, Unit History Account