On 6 November, in coordination with the attacks on Hareira and Sheria, the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division, with the Imperial Camel Brigade covering their flanks, made another inconclusive assault with artillery support.

[32]During the battle on 31 October, the Ottoman III Corps headquarters had retreated from Beersheba to Tel es Sheria but, the next day (1 November), moved to support the defence of the Jerusalem road from Edh Dhahriye.

[d] Their advance pushed back the Ottoman forces into the Judean Hills to the north of Beersheba, creating sufficient space for the XX Corps to get into position for a flank attack on the centre at Hareira and Sheria.

They were attacked by two companies of the Ottoman 143rd Regiment advancing northwards from Edh Dhahriye, as well as 100 German soldiers moving south from Hebron and Bethlehem, which forced the remnants of the detachment to surrender, suffering 20 killed.

[49] Despite continuing fierce fighting for control of the high country around Khuweilfe being unresolved, Chauvel, commanding the EEF units in the area including the 53rd (Welsh) Division, had advanced to gain a "position of vantage from which to roll up the enemy's flank".

[39] Allenby had hoped that, if the hostile Ottoman forces could be held by the EEF units assigned the task, they could be "immobilised at the critical moment", and unable to reinforce the garrisons at Hareira and Sheria during the planned attack.

[17][56][57][58][f] However, when the Anzac Mounted Division advanced at about the same time to the east of the infantry position, to extend the line from Towal Abu Jerwal to the Beersheba-Jerusalem road (near Bir el Makruneh), they met strong opposition.

[64] On the left, the 7th Mounted Brigade advanced up the Khuweilfe track, to 1 mile (1.6 km) northwest of Khirbet el Ras, which had been captured the previous day by the New Zealanders.

[66] By 15:00, the South Notts Hussars had pushed back small groups of Ottoman defenders off Ras en Naqb, some 12 miles north of Beersheba, capturing 11 prisoners and two guns.

[67] However, strong opposition to the attacks on Tel el Khuweilfe by the 8th Light Horse Regiment and on Khirbet Abu Khuff by the Sherwood Rangers prevented their capture, and the isolated South Notts Hussars were forced to retreat at nightfall back from Ras en Naqb.

[67][h] They reinforced Tel el Khuweilfe to create a strong position,[58] and the headquarters of the Ottoman III Corps was moved to Edh Dhahriye on the road from Beersheba to Hebron and Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, the Ottoman 6th Cavalry Regiment's 4,000 rifles and sabres, moved eastwards to Yutta 4 miles (6.4 km) east of the Beersheba to Jerusalem road to the north of Edh Dhahriye, to guard against the possibility of EEF units repeating Newcombe's attack.

[63][65] Falkenhayn ordered a counterattack to be carried out on the morning of 3 November in a southeasterly direction to push the EEF off the Beersheba to Jerusalem road, and stop the threatened outflanking of the Ottoman left.

[72][i] EEF aerial reconnaissance had observed the Ottoman columns' movements, and Chauvel ordered the 53rd (Welsh) Division to advance to the track from Ain Kohle to Tel es Sheria in the direction of Khuweilfe, to connect with Desert Mounted Corps units holding the outpost line.

[52][70][j]At dawn, it was apparent the Ottoman defenders on Tel el Khuweilfe had been reinforced[66] and, on the right, Major General Edward Chaytor, commanding the Anzac Mounted Division, ordered the 1st Light Horse Brigade, supported by the Inverness Battery, forward to support the 7th Mounted Brigade while the 53rd (Welsh) Division advanced on their left, to establish a line stretching from Ras en Naqb towards Tel el Khuweilfe 2.5 miles (4.0 km) away.

[78] The 53rd (Welsh) Division was strongly resisted during their attack on Tel el Khuweilfe, although they managed to capture "a precarious footing on the southwestern spur of the hill", suffering heavy casualties in the process.

The 160th Brigade on the right succeeded in advancing up a slight valley east of the Abu Jerwal peak and, by 12:30, they were within range of Tel el Khuweilfe, and extending the Anzac Mounted Division's firing line.

[83] On the right of the Ras en Naqb position, the 2nd Light Horse Brigade continued fighting towards Edh Dhahriye on the main road north from Beersheba to Hebron and Jerusalem.

Whether it was our pace which put the Turkish marksmen off their aim or not I cannot say, but we managed to reach the comparative safety of the second valley with little loss.The wounded had to be transported a few miles back from the front line to dressing stations by camels and sand carts.

[71] A patrol to reconnoitre the high ground occupied by about half an Ottoman battalion, in the direction of the Beersheba to Jerusalem road by a troop of the Worcestershire Yeomanry (5th Mounted Brigade), came under heavy rifle fire at 06:00, forcing them to return to Ras en Naqb.

At about 16:00 a squadron of Ottoman cavalry rode into the valley between the ridge and Tel el Khuweilfe, held by the 3rd Battalion of the Imperial Camel Brigade, making the position of the Yeomanry, extremely critical.

Ordered to Rijm Abu Jerwan, the Canterbury Mounted Rifles Regiment took over a section of the line at 17:30, connecting with the 2nd Light Horse Brigade on the Beersheba to Jerusalem road on the right, and the 53rd (Welsh) Division attacking Tel Khuweilfe on the left.

[89] Meanwhile, fighting for Tel el Khuweilfe, continued day and night during 4 and 5 November, when Ottoman reserves strongly attacked the EEF units, but the results were inconclusive.

[95] To add to the confusion, the EEF Intelligence Department had lost track of the whereabouts of an Ottoman division that had been sent to reinforce Beersheba on 31 October, and it ultimately ended up strengthening the defences at Tel el Kuweilfeh.

By 10:15, the conference was over and Chetwode telegraphed to Allenby, "General Chauvel and myself, after closest consultation, have decided with great reluctance that, owing to water difficulties and thirst of men, postponement till 6th November is inevitable."

[95][l] Mott believed Allenby agreed to the participation of the 53rd (Welsh) Division in the main attack on 6 November as flank guard, because "he wanted to avoid any possibility of the Turks retreating on the whole front before his general scheme was launched.

[66][89][93] The New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade, holding the el Jabry to Ras en Naqb line to the east of Tel Khuweilfe, was opposed at the time by an estimated 300 infantry strongly supported by machine guns.

This was largely because at least seven Ottoman infantry regiments, including the 19th Division, had been drawn into the defence of the road from Beersheba to Jerusalem, and the fighting for Ras en Naqb and Tel el Khuweilfe.

At daylight, the 3rd Battalion Imperial Camel Brigade, sheltering behind the northern flank of a little valley running west to east, were strongly attacked before joining a group of Hereford infantry in pushing the "enemy back along the spur".

[130] In early December, during the Battle of Jerusalem, Mott's Detachment—consisting of the 53rd (Welsh) Division, the XX Corps Cavalry, the 91st Heavy Battery and the 11th Light Armoured Motor Battery—had advanced to near Edh Dhariye.