Muscati victory The Jebel Akhdar War (Arabic: حرب الجبل الأخضر, romanized: Ḥarb al-Jebel el-ʾAkhḍar, lit.

Afterwards, a hereditary line of succession ruled by Al Busaidi Sultans started in Muscat during the 19th century, except for a short period of time when Azzan bin Qais became an elected Imam (1868–1871).

The only armed forces in Muscat were tribal levies and a palace guard recruited from Baluchistan in Pakistan (due to a historical quirk by which the sultan also owned the port of Gwadar).

The British government favored IPC's plan as it sought benefits from the expansion of the Sultanate's territory and considered oil discovery in Oman as a valuable insurance against the insecurity of other parts of the Middle East.

[1][8][11] Sultan Said, who had the backing of the British government, ruled with an iron fist and followed a non-development policy, while prohibiting anything that he considered "decadent" and any form of criticism.

In August 1953, Muscat forces were preparing to advance on Buraimi but the British government asked the sultan to withhold, pending negotiations for a peaceful settlement.

[38][39] In October 1957, under the order of the United Kingdom Prime Minister Eden, the British military entered Buraimi and declared the area as part of the Sultanate.

[9] The idea of having the oil company attempt to negotiate directly with the interior of Oman was not favored by the British Political Agent who resided in Muscat, providing the justification that it would mean recognizing the authority of the Imamate and, therefore, increase its prestige.

[42] Sultan Said believed that the old rivalry between the two main communities in the interior of Oman, Hinawis and Ghafiris, would reappear when it was time to elect a new Imam and worked towards achieving this end.

However, the Wali of Rustaq and the younger brother of the Imam, Talib al-Hinai, fled to Saudi Arabia and then to Cairo (Egypt) in order to seek Arab support in the war against the Sultanate.

[51][1][52][53] The rise of anti-imperialism and pro Arab-unity in the Arab world led by President Gamal Abdel Nasser prompted Egypt and Iraq to back the Imamate's cause in the Jebel Akhdar War.

[57][58] The US interest rested on both sides of the opposing parties as it had shares in Saudi Aramco Company, which was owned by Standard Oil Company of California (later renamed Chevron), and in IPC, which was partially owned by Near East Development Corporation (later renamed ExxonMobil), who were both competing for oil concessions in the Arabian peninsula, as well as, being an ally to both Saudi Arabia and Britain, who had a dispute over Buraimi Oasis.

[57][58][59] Talib bin Ali al-Hinai, the Imam's brother, who fled to Saudi Arabia then Egypt, returned to Oman in 1957 with 300 well-equipped Omani fighters landing at Albatinah coast.

Talib's forces cut off the lines of communication of the MOFF and fought on various fronts in the interior of Oman, which culminated in capturing Bahla Fort.

Suleiman bin Himyar, the Sheikh of one of the major tribes in the interior, openly proclaimed his defiance to the sultan, and began a general uprising.

The Imamate's forces freed Nizwa (capital), Firq, Izki, Tanuf, Bahla and Jabal Akhdar from the Sultunate's control, while Ibri was the only area that remained under the occupation of the Sultanate.

[1] The British Foreign Office in Bahrain agreed with the sultan to conduct air strikes on water supplies and date gardens, when the picking season was just about to start, that belonged to the locals in the interior of Oman using RAF jets in July 1957.

[16] On 25 July 1958, owing to the Imamate's continued strong resistance, the British government made the decision to reinforce the Sultanate's forces and increase its direct military support on a considerably larger scale.

After the buildup of forces and the development of a military strategy to attack the interior of Oman, the first offensive action came from the air when RAF de Havilland Venoms' 10 to 12 sorties of rockets targeted various locations of the Imamate.

The Cameronians, on the next day, succeeded in defeating the remaining resistance encountered at Firq, which opened a pathway for the Sultanate's forces to advance towards Nizwa.

The decisive factor was the direct support of soldiers from the British Special Air Service (SAS), 1st Battalion of the Cameronians, a troop of the 15/19 Hussars, RAF fighter jets and a squadron of Ferret armoured cars that the Sultanate received.

In another attempt, infantry launched a feint and then withdrew while Avro Shackleton bombers of the RAF bombarded the supposedly massed defenders but they inflicted no casualties.

For two years, rebel infiltrators continually mined the roads around the Jebel, and ambushed SAF and British detachments and oil company vehicles.

David Smiley and Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Deane-Drummond concurred that additional SAS troops were needed and that one squadron was not enough to defeat the Imamate.

[1] The RAF made 1,635 raids, dropping 1,094 tons and firing 900 rockets at the interior of Oman between July and December 1958 targeting insurgents, mountain top villages and water channels.

[1] Britain, France, Australia, Colombia and Cuba voted against considering the charge of "British aggression" against Oman led by Arab states on the basis that the conflict constituted a "civil war" and a revolt against government authority.

[67][20] On 1 October 1960, 10 Arab states requested to place the case of Oman on the United Nations General Assembly agenda items for debate.

Furthermore, these documents reveal that the British Foreign Secretary gave the approval on 4 August 1957 to carry out air strikes without prior warning to the locals residing in the interior of Oman.

[16] The ban on visas for the press by the Sultan and the ability of the British government to carry out air strikes discreetly using Masirah Airfield helped in sustaining the military operations under low profile.

[33] The British RAF made 2,080 sorties, dropped 1,750 tons of bombs and fired 3,843 rocket projectiles during the air campaign period against the interior of Oman.