Months after the Battle of Endor, the Battle of Nag Ubdur took place when New Republic forces attempted to liberate the Imperial-held world of Nag Ubdur. The Imperial forces in the Ubdur system were cut off from the rest of the Empire, and thus would fight with an increased desperation. The Imperials were initially able to inflict heavy casualties on the Republic forces, including a bloody ambush at Govneh Ridge, but eventually would be forced to retreat to defensive entrenchments ten kilometers away from the Ubdurian merchant city of Binjai-Tin. In the process, they razed the city and massacred its inhabitants. During the campaign, the Imperials were desperate enough to use their starfighters in suicide attacks against New Republic positions.
During the Age of the Empire, the Outer Rim planet of Nag Ubdur came under Imperial rule. The planet was home to the native Ubdurians along with Keldar and Artiodac refugees. Under Imperial rule Nag Ubdur was exploited by the Empire since its bedrock was flecked with zersium, an ore used in the manufacture of durasteel. The Empire strip-mined the planet and regarded it as a valuable asset during the Galactic Civil War.
Imperial rule on Nag Ubdur was harsh and exploitative. The residents of the Ubdurian merchant city of Binjai-Tin were not allowed to carry blasters and had to give a percentage of their income to the Empire. Following the Battle of Endor, the planet became a battleground between the Empire and the New Republic, the successor government to the Rebel Alliance. In 5 ABY, Imperial forces launched a brutal counterattack in order to secure Nag Ubdur's supply of zersium. This coincided with the decline of Imperial rule throughout the galaxy.
As the Empire and New Republic battled for control of the planet, the Empire massacred the inhabitants of Binjai-Tin as part of a scorched earth policy. Members of the New Republic Thirty-First, a unit of the New Republic Defense Force, were ambushed by Imperial forces on the Govneh Ridge; a plate shift where tall crystals grew. The unit's squad leader Hachinka was shot in the neck during the fighting. Her comrades including the Kupohan Private Rorith Khadur managed to evacuate her to the New Republic lines. Despite losing many men, the Thirty-First managed to secure the ridge.
The following day, the New Republic Thirty-First arrived at the city of Binjai-Tin to discover that its inhabitants had been massacred by the retreating Imperial forces. Private Khadur later recounted his story to the Queen of the Core Network journalist Tracene Kane and the Trandoshan camera operator Lug. Sensing Khadur's distress, Lug gave him the tooth of a zlagfiend as a good-luck token. Having finished recording Khadur's story, Tracene and Lug attempted to find a guild tower to broadcast their recording.
Before Tracene and Lug could reach the guild tower, a wave of Imperial TIE fighters and TIE Interceptors launched a suicide attack on the New Republic positions in Binjai-Tin. Numerous New Republic personnel were killed and maimed during the attack. Despite losing an arm, Khadur managed to hold on to Lug's gift. However, Lug was crushed to death beneath the solar collector of a TIE fighter. Tracene survived the attack but was greatly affected by the loss of her friend Lug. In Lug's honor, she began recording a transmission dedicated to his memory.
The Battle of Nag Ubdur was part of the New Republic's galactic-wide rebellion against the remnants of the Empire. By 5 ABY, the Imperial presence in the Outer Rim had been reduced to the remote Exterior sector and the worlds of Belladoon, Korrus, and Zhadalene. Imperial losses on Arkanis and Kuat convinced Grand Admiral Rae Sloane to secretly contact Chancellor Mon Mothma, Admiral Ackbar, Princess Leia Organa, and Commodore Kyrsta Agate to propose peace talks between the two rival governments. These peace talks were however a ruse by Fleet Admiral Gallius Rax to assassinate the New Republic leadership on Chandrila. Following the Liberation Day attacks, New Republic and Imperial forces clashed at Jakku.
The Battle of Nag Ubdur and the Massacre at Binjai-Tin first appeared in Chuck Wendig's 2016 novel Aftermath: Life Debt, the second installment in The Aftermath Trilogy. The battle is told through the point of view of Tracene Kane, a minor character.
- Star Wars: Timelines