The Egyptians blocked Israeli access to its Negev villages during the first truce of the war (June 11 – July 8), by taking up positions on the Majdal – Bayt Jibrin road, where most of the battles of Death to the Invaders were fought.

The operation started with a series of raids on Egyptian bases and Palestinian Arab villages on July 16–17, including Jilya, Qazaza, Idnibba, Mughallis, Zayta, Isdud and Bayt Jibrin.

Finally, on July 18, the Israelis captured Hatta and Karatiyya, successfully fending off a last-minute Egyptian counterattack before the second truce of the war went into effect.

The waist was overlooked by the Iraq Suwaydan police fort, which was handed over by the British to the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood forces also on May 12, even before Egypt officially entered the war.

[4] With the anticipated end to the first truce of the war on July 9, 1948, each side planned its own offensives in the Majdal – Fallujah – Bayt Jibrin area.

The Israeli plan was called Operation An-Far (short for Anti-Farouk), and its objective was to open up a permanent supply route to the Negev enclave.

Another objective was to sever Egypt's supply route from the main concentration along the coastal road to the secondary one in the area of Hebron and Bethlehem.

[5] The Egyptians, attacking at 06:00 on July 8, before the formal end of the ceasefire, managed to preempt Israel and quickly captured Kawkaba and Huleiqat.

[4] Hostilities resumed on July 10–11, when Givati raided Isdud, and the Egyptian army staged a failed counterattack on Tell es-Safi.

[4] Although exhausted from seven days of fighting and not accomplishing their objectives, IDF units in the area achieved a measure of success and started preparations to exploit it.

[8] The Negev Brigade's 9th Battalion meanwhile captured Bir Abu Jabir (a regional water well), south of Fallujah, which had been defended by a Muslim Brotherhood platoon.

On the night of July 17–18, Israel attacked in the strength of two companies: one from the 54th Battalion of Givati, and the other was Shayetet 11 from the navy, subordinated to the 54th's commander.

The naval unit advanced through a wadi from the north, hoping to surprise the Egyptians, but were in fact spotted while preparing to set up.

[8] The Negev Brigade for its part was meant to retake Kawkaba and Huleiqat, but had absolutely no intelligence on the Egyptian and Saudi units and their defenses in the area.

The company from the 52nd quickly overpowered the Egyptian defenses at Hatta by sending a small force to pin them down while circling the village from the south, competing the mission by midnight.

[13] The counterattack started at 08:30 on July 18; Egyptian forces at Iraq Suwaydan opened artillery fire on Karatiyya and armored vehicles closed in from Fallujah and Bayt 'Affa to block possible Israeli reinforcements.

After minor skirmishes in the morning that yielded no result, the Egyptians staged a major assault in the afternoon, in two prongs, each employing tanks and armored vehicles in front and infantry in the rear.

In that light, Tal asserts that the Egyptians succeeded more than the Israelis during the Ten Days, as they mostly achieved their aim of strengthening the wedge between the Negev and the rest of Israel, linking up their own forces in the Bethlehem–Hebron area to the coastal ones.