 The way in which Abu Ahmad ran the siege was not unquestionably accepted by al-Mu'tazz, who reportedly wrote him a letter in the middle of the war complaining of his lack of progress in forcing al-Musta'in's capitulation, but he remained in command of the main besieging force throughout the entire conflict.Abu Ahmad's army at the beginning of the siege numbered approximately 7,000 soldiers.Additional troops sent from Samarra a short time later increased its size to 11,000, though a large number of the reinforcements were killed soon after their arrival.