First Battle of Massawa

{{Short description|1977–1978 battle of the Eritrean War of Independence}}

{{Infobox military conflict

| conflict = First Battle of Massawa

| partof = the Eritrean War of Independence and Ethiopian Civil War

| image = EPLF fighters try to storm the city of Massawa port during first battle of Massawa, 1977-1978.png

| image_size = 300px

| caption = EPLF fighters try to storm the city of Massawa

| date = 1977–1978

| place = Massawa, Ethiopia

| territory =

| result = Ethiopian victory

| combatant1 = {{flagicon image|Flag of the EPLF.svg}} EPLF

| combatant2 = {{flag|Ethiopia|1975}}

| commander1 = {{flagicon image|Flag of the EPLF.svg}} Mesfin Hagos

| commander2 = {{flagdeco|Ethiopia|1975}} Merid Negussie

| units1 =

| units2 =

| strength1 =

| strength2 =

| casualties1 = At least 2,000 dead
400 wounded{{cite book|author=Dan Connell|title=Historical Dictionary of Eritrea|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WRWbDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA358|date=15 July 2019|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-1-5381-2066-8|pages=358–}}

| casualties2 = Unknown

| casualties3 =

| notes =

| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Eritrean War of Independence}}

}}

The First Battle of Massawa took place from 1977 to 1978 in and around the coastal city of Massawa. The port was besieged by the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) against the forces of Ethiopia and was one of two battles in and around the city.

The battle

On March 25, 1977, the EPLF overran the Ethiopian garrison at Nakfa. The fall of Nakfa highly demoralized other garrisons throughout the region.

In the next few months, the EPLF controlled Afabet, Keren, Elabored, and Dekemhare and captured many weapons. Similarly, the ELF seized Omhajar, Teseney, Adordat, Mendefera, and Adi Kuala. Though they remained in government hands, Asmara, Barentu, Adi Keyeh, and Massawa were now besieged by the insurgents. By October 1977, EPLF fighters had besieged the town of Massawa.{{cite web|last=Cooper |first=Tom |title=Ethiopia and Eritrea, 1950-1991 |date=2003-09-02 |url=http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/printer_179.shtml |access-date=2006-12-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061206175724/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/printer_179.shtml |archive-date=2006-12-06 |url-status=usurped }} This included the main road used by the garrison for the transport of supplies from Asmara. Essentially the garrison was cut off by land and under siege.{{cite book |last1=Fontanellaz |first1=Adrien |title=Ethiopian-Eritrean Wars Eritrean war of independence, 1961-1988 · Volume 1 |pages=38}}{{cite book |last1=Ayele |first1=Fantahun |title=The Ethiopian Army: From Victory to Collapse, 1977-1991 |date=2014 |publisher=Northwestern University Press |pages=133}}

On 9 December 1977, the Ethiopian garrison launched a strong counterattack against the EPLF positions on the coastal lowlands near Mai Antal, however this attack ended in failure and the Ethiopians were forced to retreat to Massawa, allowing the EPLF to take control of Dogali. On 21st December 1977, the EPLF managed to overrun the city's main defensive perimeter, forcing the Ethiopian defenders to pull back to the Abd-el Kader and Gherar peninsulas and the islands, where they were protected by naval support. On December 23rd, the EPLF launched a massive frontal assault on the final Ethiopian positions on the peninsulas. When the EPLF fighters attempted to march through the evaporation ponds of the Salina saltworks, the Ethiopian naval artillery initiated a devastating slaughter that killed over 2,000 EPLF fighters and wounded 400. The EPLF was forced to pull back for a long siege, before completely withdrawing to Semhar in July 1978.{{cite book |last1=Fontanellaz |first1=Adrien |title=Ethiopian-Eritrean Wars Eritrean war of independence, 1961-1988 · Volume 1 |pages=39}}