German Plan of Attack
Major Keppler was ordered to oblique the right flank of Jassin with the 11. and 4. Feldkompagnien. Hauptmann Adler was to oblique the left flank of Jassin with the 15. and 17. Feldkompagnien. Hauptmann Otto was ordered to attack the town defenses frontally using the 9. Feldkompanie and Arabische Korps along the main road. The reserve, consisting of Command section, 7. Schuetzenkompanie (102 Europeans under the command of Hauptmann Demuth), the Battaillon Schultz, consisting of the 1., 6, and 13. Feldkompagnien, two C73 fieldguns under Hauptmann a. D. Hering, and one 4.7cm rapid fire gun and one revolver gun under Leutnant d. L. Fromme, was located behind the Abteilung Otto.

British Plan of Defense
Colonel Raghbir Singh (2/Jammu and Kashmir Rifle Battalion) had two British officers, Captain G. J. G. Hanson and Captain J. Turner, one company of the 101st Grenadiers (138 sepoys), two companies of the 2/Jammu and Kashmir Rifles (144 sepoys), a K.A.R. machinegun (9 askari), and a signaler section (6 sepoys) in the town. There were also 40 sepoys of the 2/Jammu and Kashmir Rifles defending the sisal factory. The garrison in the town had been provided with additional food and water. However, the climate had affected all of the British troops in the Umba area by this time. The B Company of the 1/K.A.R. arrived at the Umba Camp under Captain Gifford as General Wapshare began attempting to replace the 3 KAR companies with four fresh companies from the 1/K.A.R.. Sick and demoralized, the garrison could only offer a token defense against any attack.