afghanistangarrison, concentrated all his forces in the main fort and decided to remain
behind its walls until a relief army could reach him. He then successfully
repulsed an attempt to take the fortress by storm, inflicting heavy loss
on the Afghans. Later Nadir Khan claimed he had taken Thal, but all he
managed to do was overrun an abandoned police post nearby. 14
Dyer’s Brigade was detached from Khyber operations and sent post-
haste to relieve Eustace. His force reached the railhead at Kohat two days
after the assault on Thal. The following day, following a forced march,
Dyer arrived at Thal, and despite his troops being exhausted, he sent
them to attack the Afghan front line. Nadir Khan, caught by surprise,
was forced back into northern Waziristan. On 3 June 1919 Dyer received
a telegraph informing him that the Amir had agreed to a ceasefire and
he suspended operations. However, since the Armistice did not include
tribes on the Indian side of the frontier who had aided the invaders, Dyer
The Pakistan–
Afghanistan frontier
in Waziristan. In 1994
this frontier post was
manned by a single
official and his son.
In 1919 the invasion
of Waziristan by
Sardar Nadir Khan
led to a major uprising
among the Waziris
which took months
to suppress.