By 5 November 1917, the Ottoman XXII Corps commander in charge of the defence of Gaza, Colonel Refet Bele, was continuing to maintain the "integrity of the Gaza fortress", despite the Gaza garrison's artillery batteries having only about 300 shells left. These batteries had also been suffering from effective counter-battery fire from the EEF Heavy Artillery Groups. Refet had been warned the day before that evacuation may be necessary because of the loss of Beersheba, so plans were prepared for the complete withdrawal from the town during the night of 6/7 November, to a new defensive line on the Wadi Hesi. Falkenhayn commanding Yildirim Army Group realised that the Ottoman forces could not hold the EEF any longer, and he ordered the Eighth and Seventh Armies to withdraw about . The first indications of the withdrawal were seen by EEF aerial reconnaissance, which reported Ottoman hospitals being moved back towards Mejdel. At midnight on 6/7 November, XXI Corps infantry patrols found Gaza had been evacuated by the Ottoman defenders. Until 6 November, German aircraft had rarely been seen over the Gaza lines, but that afternoon two R.E.8s and two B.E.12.as from No. 1 Squadron AFC patrolling and taking photographs were attacked and badly damaged by four Albatros aircraft.