The Urmia clashes (9–10 February 1918) or the Urmia revolt was a series of clashes in the city of Urmia between the Assyrian Volunteers led by Agha Petros and Malik Khoshaba against the city mayor Irshad Homayun and his supporters, including General Arshad el Moolk. This would be caused by the Russian withdrawal from their territories in Qajar Iran due to the Russian Revolution.
Background
On January 11, the first battle between the Assyrians and the Iranian Government occurred when 55 Assyian soldiers out the 100 stationed left Salamas for Julfa to get clothing for the army where ambushed and killed by the Iranian army, soon after the Iranians attacked the Assyrians stationed in Khoy but where pushed back and the Assyrians would only retain 42 out of the original 100 after these clashes. This incident was quickly delivered to the Patriarch Mar Benyamin Shimun who, after seeing Iranian cavalry leave Tabriz and go towards Urmia, sent delegates including Agha Petros to the mayor of Urmia Irshad Homayun who said the killings wouldn't stop which would leave the Assyrian delegates saddened. After hearing the news, Mar Benyamin arranged a meeting with the Central council of Assyrians and Armenians and there they came to the agreement to fight if the Iranians were to attempt to expel them.
On February 9, some Assyrians were entering the city through the western gate when they were shot upon and killed by the soldiers of Arshad el Mook. Soon after, a special force was sent by Arshad el Moolk to surround Agha Petros in his home which was located in the Christian quarter of Urmia. Agha Petros told his family to hide and proceeded to shoot a machine gun he had planted in a position within the building at them, while the walls and windows of his mansion were being riddled by their bullets. He thinned down so rapidly and so effectively the line of the attackers, that they left the heaps of their dead and wounded and fled leaving their dead.
Battle
Soon after an Assyrian force of 600 where sent to occupy the city's House of Customs, soon after Agha Petros rode of to a village called Hyperabat to bring weapons and cannons with Russian trainers left there and soon after arrived in Urmia. There they waited to see if the Iranians would attack first as the Assyrians didn't want to start hostilities, soon after the Iranian Army attacked a weapons depot while the Assyrian army was eating which forced the Assyrians to counterattack the Iranians.
The Assyrians entrenched themselves and began to engage. The Assyrians where ordered to hold there position no matter what. Soon after 150 fighters were sent to the weapons depot to free it in which they used grenades and bayonets they released the weapons depot and killed many from the Iranians.
Iranian advances into Assyrian held parts of the city where stopped by Agha Petros, Soon after Patriarch Mar Benyamin and General Agha Petros where contemplating what they would do the next day but shortly after both Arshad el Mook General the Iranian army and Irshad Homayun led another attempt to defeat the Assyrians but that also was put down by the Assyrians who remained in the same positions they had the entire day. On the first day of the battle the entire western part of the city had fallen into the hands of the Assyrians. During the night, additional troops were stationed in the city and at one of the western gates, it was decided to occupy by smaller units some other positions in the southern part of the city as the gate also was near an American mission. At the southern gate was stationed Malik Khoshaba with some two hundred of his own Tyari fighters. Their position faced directly the ancient parts of the city which the following morning would be held by very large forces of the Iranian troops. In the rear of the Tyari fighters and about half a mile away outside the city wall was another fort taken by Karadagh horsemen.