Anzac Massacre: the story of Surafend (Part 2)

"They ​went ​out ​to ​this ​village, ​and ​they ​went ​through ​it ​with ​the ​bayonet.” In the second of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend massacre of December 1918.

Read more about the story of Surafend on the RNZ website here.

These are the words of Edward O’Brien - a former member of the Anzac Mounted Division. His words were recorded on tape by an oral historian and now sit in the archives of the Australian War Memorial.

Edward was one of a handful of Anzac's to admit seeing the Surafend massacre first hand, but his testimony does little to explain what happened.

In the second of a three part series, RNZ's Black Sheep podcast unpicks the story of the massacre, and the events which followed it - including the Anzac's little known role in suppressing the 1919 Egyptian revolution.

William Ray speaks to military historian Terry Kinloch, author of Devils on Horses, Paul Daley, author of Beersheba and New Zealand Defence Force Historian John Crawford

Further sources:

• Interview with former Anzac Mounted Division soldier Edward O'Brien
• What Happened at Surafend by Terry Kinloch - WW100
• Australian Light Horse Studies Centre
• Transcript of John Crawford's lecture on the Senussi Campaign

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details