KUT, AL-

also called Kut Al-imarah, city, eastern Iraq. It lies along the Tigris River at the point where a distributary channel, the Sha tt al-Gharraf, branches southward. Al-Kut is a trade centre for agricultural produce grown in the surrounding area, where the Kut Barrage diverts river water into irrigation canals. Al-Kut's prosperity has always depended upon the Tigris River's course changes. Following a period of decline, the town revived when the present river system became established, making Al-Kut a river port. Al-Kut was the site of a notable British defeat in the Iraqi theatre of operations during World War I. Following a rapid advance from the south in 1915, British forces occupied Al-Kut and pursued retreating Ottoman (Turkish) forces about 60 miles (100 km) beyond, toward Baghdad. A Turkish victory at Ctesiphon soon halted this advance, however, and the British troops, under Major General Charles Townsend, retreated to Al-Kut, where they were invested by the Turks on December 8. After a siege of nearly five months, the British forces surrendered on April 29, 1916, and about 10,000 British and Indian soldiers went into captivity in eastern Turkey. Other British forces retook Al-Kut in February 1917. The fighting during the war leveled much of the town, but it was subsequently rebuilt. Pop. (1985 est.) 73,022.