The Battle of Adal took place on 1 September 1961, and was the first battle in the

Eritrean War of Independence The Eritrean War of Independence was a war for independence which Eritrean independence fighters waged against successive Ethiopian governments from 1 September 1961 to 24 May 1991. Eritrea was an Italian colony from the 1880s until the d ...

. In the battle, the

Eritrean Liberation Front ar, جبهة التحرير الإريترية it, Fronte di Liberazione Eritreo , war = the Ethiopian Civil War, Eritrean War of Independence and the Eritrean Civil Wars , image = , caption = Flag of the ELF ...

, which numbered at only 14, was able to overcome the local Ethiopian forces. Rebel weaponry included 1 British and 3 old Italian guns, while the majority of Rebels were unarmed. The battle begun at 9:00 AM, and lasted about six hours, and is commemorated in Eritrea as

Revolution Day Revolution Day or the Day of the Revolution refers to public holidays or remembrance days in various country held in commemoration of an important event in the country's history, usually the starting point or a turning point in a revolution that led ...

. The rebels who participated were: *

Hamid Idris Awate Hamid Idris Awate (10 April 1910 – 28 May 1962) was the founder of the Eritrean Army (the armed wing of the Eritrean Liberation Front), and a symbol of the Eritrean struggle for independence. Early life in Italian Eritrea Awate was born in 19 ...

(ELF leader) * Abdu M. Fayd * Ibrahim M. Ali * Humed Qadif * Awate M. Fayd * Mohammed Bayraq (taken prisoner, later died in 1975 in an Ethiopian prison) * Mohammed Adem Hisan * Saleh Qaruj * Ahmed Fikak * Mohammed Hassen Duhe * Adem Faqurai * Ali Bakhit * Idris Mohamoud * Omar Karay

References

1961 in Eritrea 1961 in Ethiopia Eritrean War of Independence Battles involving Ethiopia Battles involving Eritrea {{Battle-stub