Umar strikes again in the summer of 863, joining forces with the Abbasid general Ja'far ibn Dinar al-Khayyat (probably the governor of Tarsus) for a successful raid into Cappadocia.

The Arabs cross he Cilician Gates into imperial territory, plundering as they go, until they reach a place near Tyana.

Here, the Tarsian army returns home, but Umar obtains Ja'far's leave to press on into Asia Minor.

Umar's forces represen the bulk of his emirate's strength, but their size is unknown: the contemporary Muslim historian Ya'qubi claims that Umar had eight thousand men at his disposal, while the Byzantine historians Genesius and Theophanes Continuatus inflate the numbers of the Arab army to forty thousand men.

The Byzantinist John Haldon considers the former number to be closer to reality, and estimates the size of the combined Arab force at fifteen to twenty thousand men.

It is likely that a Paulician contingent under Karbeas was present as well.