Ahmed Ali al-Mwawi


Ahmed Abdullah Al-Mwawi, also Mawawi or Muwawi, was a major general in the Egyptian Army. He served as the General Commander of the Egyptian expeditionary force during 1948 Arab–Israeli War.

Personal life

He was born in Sohag in 1897. He was married and had four children.

Military career

Warning discussion

On the evening of Tuesday, May 11, 1948, al-Mwawi attended a secret meeting of the Egyptian parliament to discuss the declaration of war. Before the voting of the parliament, he warned that the Egyptian Army was not prepared, opining that there would be little real fighting. The battle plan was unclear and war aims were vague, making al-Mwawi uncertain of his objectives. On May 15 he led the Egyptian Expeditionary Forces into Palestine. The Egyptians numbered between 7,000 and 10,000 troops, divided into two brigades.
The Egyptian Expeditionary Forces comprised the 1st Infantry Battalion, the 6th Infantry Battalion, the 9th Infantry Battalion, an armoured reconnaissance battalion, a light tank battalion, three 25 pound cannon batteries, one 18 pound cannon battery and one six pound anti-tank cannon battery.
With the intensification of clashes in Palestine he moved his headquarters to el-Arish where he was stationed along with an infantry force.

War efforts

On May 14, Mwawi was promoted by Royal decree to the rank of major general and appointed commander of the southern sector of the Palestine theater of the Egyptian army operations. He commanded an expeditionary force of about 10,000 men consisting of five infantry battalions, an armored battalion with British Mark VI and Matilda tanks, a battalion of sixteen 25-pounder guns, a battalion of eight 6-pounder guns and a medium machine-gun battalion with supporting troops.

Alarming report

He sent a report to Cairo headquarters, on July 18, 1948, during the second truce of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, describing the shortages in armaments and supplies. He also reported that the Arab forces were divided by mistrust.

Relief from command

On October 20, King Farouk I relieved al-Mwawi of his command.

Legacy

A village was named after him near Kafr el-Dawwar, Buhayrah, Egypt.