Having joined the colonial race in the century, Italy set its sights on Tripoli, the last Ottoman territory in North Africa. When Italy received a negative response to the ultimatum it gave to the Sublime Porte in 1911 demanding the handover of Tripoli, it declared war on the Ottoman Empire that same year. The distance of Tripoli from the capital, Istanbul, the British occupation of Egypt, and the Ottoman Empire's lack of naval power were factors that made the defense of this last piece of homeland in Africa difficult. Despite these challenging conditions, many officers belonging to the Committee of Union and Progress, most notably Staff Major Enver Bey, Kuşçubaşı Eşref Bey, Mümtaz Bey, Staff Major Mustafa Kemal Bey, and Ali Fethi Bey, secretly went to Tripoli and organized the local population against the Italians. As a result, local Arab militias, primarily the Senussi, together with a handful of Ottoman officers, heroically defended their homeland against the Italians and confined the Italian forces to the coast. One of the officers who organized the local militia forces and fought alongside them against the Italians in this war was Naval Captain Muhyiddin Hasan Bey, a member of the Committee of Union and Progress. The work titled War Letters, written by Muhyiddin Hasan Bey, consists of this soldier's observations and memories regarding Tripoli, as well as the letters he wrote to the Tercümân-ı Hakîkat newspaper.
The work consists of fourteen chapters. In his work, the author successfully describes the Italians, the local people, the remarkable memories he experienced with them, and the battles that took place, thanks to his strong pen and style. He uses a poetic style, especially when describing the Green Mountain (Jebel Akhdar) region. He considers the Italians cowardly and mocks them. He does not neglect to provide information about the lifestyle of the local people and clearly states his admiration for the militias who fought heroically. Between the lines, he speaks of Staff Major Enver Bey with praise and cannot hide his affection for him. At the same time, he does not fail to engage in self-criticism by stating that Tripoli and its local people were neglected. Probably due to being a naval officer, he complains about the lack of a navy and the former Sultan Abdulhamid. He also personally examines the historical artifacts in the region and informs his readers about them.