Russian Empire Ottoman Empire The Battle of Bitlis refers to a series of engagements in the summer of 1916 for the town of Bitlis and to a lesser extent nearby Muş, between Russian Imperial forces and their Ottoman counterparts.

The second confrontation began in February 1916 and ended with the capture of Bitlis by new Russian corps, which largely consisted of the 1st Battalion of the Armenian volunteer units under the command of Andranik Ozanian.

The Allied withdrawal from Gallipoli gave opportunity for Turkish forces to redeploy to the Caucasus region.

[4] After a series of clashes in Koprukoy, Erzurum, Muş, the Russian IV Caucasian Corps captured Bitlis on 2-3 March,[5] 1,000 more prisoners were taken in the city.

The Turkish Second Army's (belated) offensive began on 2 August 1916 and successfully took back Bitlis (and Muş) but lost other territories in the Euphrates region to the Russians.