Battle of the Admin Box

Battle of the Admin Box
Part of the Burma campaign in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II
Sikh troops of the 7th Indian Infantry Division man an observation post in the Ngakyedauk Pass area of the Arakan, Burma, February 1944
Date 5–23 February 1944 Location Arakan, Burma 20°55′55″N 92°26′58″E / 20.932080°N 92.449349°E / 20.932080; 92.449349 Result Allied victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom British Raj	Japan  Azad Hind
Commanders and leaders
Philip Christison	Tokutaro Sakurai
Strength
At start: 2 infantry divisions 1 armoured regiment Reinforcements: 2 infantry divisions	1 infantry division
Casualties and losses
3,506 total[1] 3 Fighter aircraft[2]	3,106 killed 2,229 wounded[3] 65 Fighter aircraft[2]
Sinzweya class=notpageimage| Sinzweya, Myanmar

The Battle of the Admin Box (sometimes referred to as the Battle of Ngakyedauk or the Battle of Sinzweya) took place on the southern front of the Burma campaign from 5 to 23 February 1944, in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II.

Japanese forces attempted a local counter-attack against an Allied offensive with the aim of drawing Allied reserves from the Central Front in Assam, where the Japanese were preparing their own major offensive. After initial setbacks, the Allies recovered to thwart the Japanese attack, pioneering the methods which would lead to further Allied victories over the following year.

The battle takes its name from the "administration area" of the Indian Army's 7th Division, which became a makeshift, rectangular defensive position for Major-General Frank Messervy and his staff after their divisional headquarters was overrun on 7 February.^[4]