Ravelnik

(X4) الله أكبر 

Allahu Akbar / Allah is the greatest

On the evening of the 17th, the 1st, 4th and 5th companies received the order to occupy a position called Rovenick (Ravelnik), a position strongly held by the enemy and which dominated the entire extensive plain where our trenches were.

(X2)  أشهد أن لا اله إلا الله 

Ashadu an la ilaha illallah / I testify that there is no god but Allah

When the company arrived a short distance away, at around 4 o’clock, the enemy threw light signals which allowed them to see our entire operation. The first patrols with gelatin filled tubes arrived from underneath and placed the tubes under the barbed fence, setting fire to the fuse. The tubes exploded loudly, throwing part of the immense barbed muddle in the air. At this point the officers gave us the order to attack. With a formidable cry we climbed up. 

(X2) أشهد أن محمدا رسول الله

Ashadu anna Muhammadan Rasūlullah / I testify that Muhammad is the prophet of Allah 

But as soon as we got within a few meters of the enemy, who until then had shown no sign of life, firing only a few rifle shots, all of a sudden a tremendous round of machine guns blew up on us, forcing us to give up and seek shelter under those deadly rounds. With small spades and our nails we tried to dig holes for shelter. (...) Immediately at the first lights of dawn, our eyes met the desperate situation before us. The officers tried to encourage us, but they were the first to be discouraged.

  (X2) حي على الصلاة

Hayya 'ala aṣ-ṣalāh / Hasten to prayer 

When day breaks, a terrifying sight appears before our eyes. The wounded moaned, calling for help. We couldn't move to help them. We could see the Austrians in the trenches, and if one of us moved he was immediately hit by a round from so close that it was impossible to miss. A tragic and desperate situation for the 6th company which had known nothing but victories until then in four months on the front line. 

 (X2) حي على الفلاح

Hayya 'ala falāḥ /  Hasten to success

At around 6 in the morning on September 18th, an Austrian soldier shouted in Italian: Bersaglieri surrender! Our officers responded no. He repeated it once again. Since no one was about to give up, a tragedy began that will remain an everlasting memory in my mind today, as a survivor. The artillery fired harshly using machine guns. In a very short time the dead and the wounded grew to be an impressive number.  

(X2) الصلاة خير من النوم

Aṣ-ṣalātu khayru min al-nawm /  Prayer is better than sleep

The Austrians stopped firing again and yelled to us: Surrender, pick up your wounded and bring them here. Don't die like this. You can see for yourself that there is no escape for you. The wounded began to shout: Comrades surrender! Otherwise no one will survive. They were heartbreaking cries that a heart of stone would have pitied. And so the surrender began. We went up unarmed, taking the wounded with us. The Austrians came down with stretchers, helping us and assuring they wouldn't shoot. Once we arrived in the enemy lines, the soldiers and officers all shook our hands, treating us with courtesy and honorable ways.

 (X2) الله أكبر

Allahu Akbar / Allah is the greatest

A lieutenant with his guts wounded is carried on a stretcher past an Austrian officer. He asks that the stretcher be put on the ground and salutes him with noble words. They give us cigarettes, cigars and tobacco. And since we had nothing to give in return, we gave them the feathers from our hats, our military stars and some water bottles, which were important for them. On the evening of the 18th at around 9 we set off. After about 3 hours of marching we arrive in a town where bread and cans of preserved meat are distributed and then they take us to a nearby station where we go to sleep. 

 لا إله إلا الله

La ilaha illallah / There is no God but Allah 

I finish what I’m writing and recall. I am a prisoner with all my comrades in arms, sincerely hoping that in Europe the terrible plague which strikes so many poor mothers and wives etc. into mourning will cease. Let there be a peace that all people are satisfied with. Only in this way will there be a lasting and sincere peace that we all need, and may the world return to its civil institutions of work and progress.