After four years of ceasefire under the shadow of the March 11, 1970 agreement between the leadership of the Aylul Revolution and the Ba'ath government, in April 1974, the discussions and negotiations reached a deadlock. The Ba'ath reneged on its promises and once again began its attacks and assaults on Kurdistan, because in April 1972 it had signed a treaty of friendship and cooperation with the Soviet Union. In the meantime, the forces were armed with the most advanced weapons of the era obtained from the Soviet Union, such as (TU22 aircraft and Sukhoi MiG, as well as 25 120mm and 152mm cannons, SAM missiles, and T62 tanks). In addition, the nationalization of oil in 1972, parallel to the military field, also boosted the economic field, and the desire to destroy the Kurdish revolution stirred within it.
When the Iraqi Army attacked Kurdistan, the Safin force was ordered to defend Mount Safin to prevent the army from advancing from that front. Although some army outposts existed on the mountain before the start of the war, the commander of the Erbil Plain force, to strengthen the Mount Safin defense line, ordered a battalion of his force under the command of Sayid Kaka and two platoons of the battalion, whose leaders were Mam Hamadamin and Sergeant Abu Zaid, to go up the mountain with a 107mm cannon and a DShK. They attacked one of the army's outposts three times but were unsuccessful due to the army's aerial bombardment and shelling, and the snow and cold that still remained in some parts of the mountain.
After a while of sending that Peshmerga battalion, Faris Bawa , the commander of the Erbil Plain force, realized that in the semi-plain area, he did not have the ability to confront the Iraqi Army's tanks and armored vehicles, so he decided to move his entire force to Mount Safin, given that there was information that the government intended to capture the mountain.
In June 1974, the Iraqi Army launched an intense and full-scale attack on Mount Safin. A platoon of the Peshmerga force under the command of Faris Bawa was sent to Mount Awagird. The task of the battalion of Sayid Kaka was to protect the defense line of Kani Smayli behind the Hiran sub-district. After several days of the army's attacks and assaults and the Peshmerga's defense, the Safin force broke and the mountain was captured. With the breaking of that wing of the defense line, the government's attack on Mount Awagird intensified. Nayif Bawa's platoon had 14 Martyrs and 20 wounded, yet they were in a strong defense. After the capture of Mount Safin, the Peshmerga force withdrew to the village of Kone Fluse behind Mount Hawre. In another indication, it is mentioned that the Peshmerga withdrew from the villages of Suse, Samaguli, Gartak, and Samaguli Gali of Mount Banabaw at the foot of Safin, which had been in battle for more than a month. From Mount Didewan to Mount Safin, which is more than 50 km apart, bloody battles were fought stage by stage, and the loss of life in terms of killed and wounded was high. The Peshmerga were very tired and their ability to defend was weak. Daily, the government's air force heavily bombarded the Peshmerga's positions, so the decision to withdraw was made.
After the Peshmerga force withdrew to Mount Hawre, the Iraqi Army continued its attacks and advances to occupy the area. Once again, near the mentioned mountain, the war started again. At first, some of the forces whose morale had completely collapsed due to the first retreat, abandoned their positions again, but a Peshmerga force under the command of Sayid Kaka blocked the Iraqi Army's advances and caused them heavy losses. Thus, Mount Hawre remained in the hands of the Peshmerga until the collapse of the revolution in 1975.
Sources:1- Omar Osman, Life of a Kurd, Volume One and Two, Mukryan Press, Second Edition, Erbil - 2008.
2- Masoud Barzani, Barzani and the Kurdish Liberation Movement, Volume Three, Part Two, Aylul Revolution 1961-1975, First Edition - Erbil, 2004.
3- Sayid Kaka, Memoirs of a Peshmerga, Ministry of Culture Press, First Edition, Erbil - 1997.
4- Sangar Ibrahim Khoshnaw, Military Events of the Aylul Revolution 1970-1975, First Edition, Erbil, 2022.
5- Khurshid Shera, Struggle and Blood, Memoirs of the Peshmerga Years, Haji Hashim Press, Third Edition, Erbil - 2015.
6- Karwan Jawhar Muhammad, Idris Barzani 1944-1987 Life and Political and Military Role in the Kurdish Liberation Movement, Hevi Press, Erbil - 2019.