But before the confederates were ready to move, Sargon had fallen upon them separately.

Ashdod, the centre of the revolt in the west, was invested and taken by the Turtannu or commander-in-chief; its ruler, a certain "Greek," who had been raised to power by the anti-Assyrian party, fled to the Arabian desert in the vain hope of saving his life, and Judah, Moab, and Edom were forced to renew their tribute.

The Egyptians, who had promised to assist the rebels in Palestine, prudently retired, and the Assyrian yoke was fixed more firmly than ever upon the nations of Syria.

Merodach-baladan was left to face his foe alone.

In B.C.709 he was driven out of Babylon, and forced to take refuge in his ancestral kingdom in the marshes.