The ground here was strewn with boulders, and very rugged, which made it impractical for the Scimitars. But the Gurkhas were right in their element, accustomed to the high peaks of Nepal, and found the hill no obstacle. It was therefore decided that two companies of Gurkhas would advance under cover of darkness to take Jebel Madani, while the third company and the Scimitars would take the road further north to attack the village of Aartouz. Holding the extreme left flank of Centerforce were the Argonauts and Popski with the Russian Marines. They found themselves on rising ground, and approaching the village of Qatana.
It seemed a good plan, putting the strong, modern troops on the left to outflank the French river defense at Kiswah, but this vulnerability had not escaped the Vichy French planners either. Jebel Madani was therefore garrisoned by 2/6th Battalion of the French Foreign Legion, and a second battalion of these hardened troops, the 4/6th had come down on the train from Homs the previous day. It was positioned in the key town of Aartouz. Legendary for their tenacity on defense, the Legionnaires were in good positions, with mortars, Browning Automatic Rifles, and the whole defense was to be supported by a full regiment of artillery.
Yet this was not the worst of it. Unbeknownst to the allies, the German mountain troops that had debarked at Tartus had quickly boarded French trucks waiting for them there, and raced south to Tripoli. There they boarded the trains to make their way south along the coast to Beirut, then east through the mountain passes to the principal Vichy French Aerodrome in Syria at Rayak. There they met up with two battalions of the Luftland Sturm Brigade that had been airlifted the previous day. The third battalion of that force had been forced to abort when the transports were jumped by Hurricanes just off the Lebanese coast, and a swirling dogfight ensued with the escorting Bf-109s.
Yet these two battalions of tough paratroopers were now added to the whole of the 85th Mountain Regiment of the 5th Giebergs Division, making what now amounted to a heavy brigade of veteran German infantry coming through the pass at Jebel Mazar to defend Damascus. It would bring them into direct confrontation with the warriors from 2021, and the battle that ensued would be one for the new history books these events were now about to write— with blood and fire.
For a map of these dispositions and other battles in this novel, please visit:
http://www.writingshop.ws/html/k-14-maps.html
Chapter 12
News of the swift German counterstroke against Cyprus was troubling, to say the least. General Wavell had barely been able to muster an adequate force for the enterprising Operation Scimitar, and now the words of warning Fedorov had tried to convey about the campaign returned to haunt him.
Things on the Litani had gone well enough after that first day. Forewarned about the difficulties the 11th Commando had experience, Wavell had the three section officers well briefed, and this time Pedder, More and Keyes made much better landings. The Aussies pushed over the Litani, brought up engineers to get to work on the bridge, and slowly unhinged the French defense when the Royal Scotts Greys and Stafford Yeomanry attached to support this attack were able to cross.
The French decided to play for time, swinging their defense back like a gate to reform along the Zahrani River south of Sidon. They were encouraged by the stubborn defense they had mounted in the center near Merdjayoun, which they still held, along with the old fort that defended that road. The Aussies eventually took the redoubt, but now the operation was days old, and their mission to swiftly break through here and race up the valley to cut communications between Damascus and Beirut had been foiled.
“Rayak,” said Wavell despondently to O’Connor when the two men met to discuss the situation. “Given the hindsight of what has happened, I can see that was the key axis of attack now. If we could have pushed on through Merdjayoun to take that place, we would have the enemy’s principle airfield, while also cutting the road and rail connections between Beirut and Damascus. Now that the Germans are in it, they’ll use those lines of communication to move troops to either flank. We should have put our main thrust up that valley, with at least two full brigades.”
“It’s a pity the Russian Captain couldn’t clue us in,” said O’Connor.
“That’s just the thing, this may not have even happened insofar as they know the history. This Captain Fedorov seemed well bothered about the changes being made. In time the war will look like nothing he’s ever read about, so we’ll have to feel our way forward on our own. The only question now is, what to do about this mess? It’s looking to be the long slog this Fedorov warned us about.”
“This news from Sabre Force is somewhat alarming,” said O’Connor. “It seems they’ve spotted German troops in the high passes near Jebel Mazar. They have to be staging from Cyprus and flying in under cover of darkness, or coming by convoy at night.”
“Yes, and we’d better have a word with Cunningham and Tovey about that. The Royal Navy has to do more to interdict any further movement of German troops by sea. The R.A.F. has its hands full trying to duel it out with the Luftwaffe. As it stands, they’re flying in troops from Cyprus and Rhodes—a battalion here, another there, and they all seem to be concentrating on Rayak.” He tapped the map to point out the airfield, some 50 kilometers east of Beirut. “If we had rolled everything up that valley we might have Beirut outflanked by now.”
“If wishes were horses,” said O’Connor. “We’ll need more than the two divisions we have there now if the Germans build up any strength.”
“I’ve already sent for the other two brigades of the 4th Indian Division,” said Wavell. Things went off without a hitch after Habbaniyah, and the Golden Square is on the run in Iraq. So that will give us the troops General Slim has there in the 10th Indian division, but they’re a long way from Damascus as it sits now.”
“Don’t send them there,” said O’Connor. “You’ll want them to run right up the Euphrates into Syria. We’ll have to take the north as well before this ends, so we might as well get started. Once Habforce can pull itself back together, get them back to Habbaniyah. Then I’d have them backtrack and turn north to Palmyra. We’ll need to secure the pumping stations and oil pipelines. Send Slim and the 10th Indian Division right up the Euphrates an on to Aleppo. If nothing else it will force the French to send more troops there, and might take the pressure off down south at Damascus.”
“Yes? Well it might also prompt a further reaction from the Germans.” Wavell had a worried expression on his face. “This bloody operation is becoming much more than we realized. It could develop into the major theater of the war effort here. Thank god Rommel is playing a game of sitskrieg for the moment. He hasn’t moved from his positions near Mersa Brega, but the Germans are building up there as well, and we’re still fighting for Benghazi.”
“Damn unsporting of the Italians to finally put up a good fight,” said O’Connor. He was restless, being assigned to the Western Desert in Libya with no clear operation beyond consolidating and taking that port.
“Well, what about Kinlan’s troops? They’ve taken Giarabub as planned, and we’ve got a good supply run down to Siwa as agreed. Yet to leave those marvelous tanks just sitting there on the flank when they could do so much good elsewhere…”
“What are you proposing?”
“Why should we just sit here watching Rommel build up strength? He has us at a disadvantage. With both Australian divisions at Benghazi, that leaves us only the New Zealand Division and Kinlan’s force watching Rommel. We can’t go on the offensive, and we have to truck supplies, food and water all the way from Tobruk. Meanwhile Rommel sits at Mersa Brega getting fatter every day with a steady stream of trucks coming down from Tripoli. We might reverse that situation.”
“How so? The Royal Navy is in no shape to try and interdict that coastal road. I’ve spoken to Cunningham. Churchill wanted him to bombard Tripoli, but it would only be a temporary stay, and any disruption along the coast road would be equally short lived.”
“You mistake my meaning,” said O’Connor.
“We have Tobruk, and Rommel couldn’t take it earlier. Why stand out west? We could pull back the 6th Australians into the Jebel country between Marahwah and Derna, and post the 9th Division centered on Machili.”
“But we give Jerry the airfields at Benghazi, Musus and Soluq.”
“True, but we’ll still have good fields at Marawah, Al Baydah, Cyrene, Derna and Machili. I’ll pull together 2nd Armored now that we’ve fleshed it out with the 22nd Guards Brigade, and I’ll screen the approach to Tobruk south of Michili. 2nd New Zealand Division can back me up at Bir Hacheim southwest of Tobruk. Then we put Kinlan’s brigade here, south of the airfield at El Adem, or anywhere to the east for that matter. Let it stand in reserve—a fire brigade behind our three infantry divisions.”
“So we give up Benghazi?”
“It’s not ours to give!” O’Connor smiled. “We haven’t taken it yet, but if we re-deploy as I suggest, we get back the 6th and 9th Australian Divisions, which gives us a full infantry Corps with Kinlan’s Brigade. Then the shoe is on the other foot. If Rommel wants all that desert between Mersa Brega and Tobruk, he’ll have to pay for it in gasoline, food and water. If he comes in strength, our prospects in a fight are much better near Tobruk than they would be if it comes to blows out west.”
“Interesting,” said Wavell. “But Churchill will see it as defeatism. He won’t like us leaving Benghazi to the enemy, as they’ll use it to improve their own supply situation.”
“Well it was no bloody good to us when we had the place,” O’Connor argued. “You can only get three or four ships in at any one time, and under a good steady pounding from the air that port was all but useless. If we can’t interdict Tripoli yet, we can damn well bottle up Benghazi. I say it’s a worthless asset. We don’t need it. We can’t use it, even if we do take it. So we shouldn’t spend our two best infantry divisions there trying to take the damn thing. Strategic withdrawal, General, not defeatism. This is a bit of a boxing match out here, and we’ve driven Jerry back to his own corner. Now he’ll cover up and wait out the round, resting on the ropes. Let’s get back in the center of the ring and see if he comes out after the bell. We can’t go on the offense yet, not against a position like Mersa Brega, and not while Operation Scimitar is likely to soak up any reinforcements we might receive. I say we get some breathing room by moving back a bit and freeing up those two Australian Divisions, then we might even be able to pick a few cherries off that tree for Palestine if need be.”
“You mean Kinlan’s troops?”
“I know we’ve the issue of secrecy and all, but a few of those tanks might make all the difference. Kinlan’s force shouldn’t be out on a limb at Giarabub, or heaven forbid as far west as Jalu. We won’t get anywhere near there unless we’ve already thrown Rommel out of Mersa Brega, and are prepared to move on Tripoli. You and I know that is simply not in the cards. So I believe we should move Kinlan’s boys up north, where they can get to the coast road if needed. It’s a fast, mobile force, and it could serve to reinforce either flank when necessary—the Western Desert, or Palestine.”
“Which would mean we’d be running them back and forth through Alexandria, for all those eyes to goggle.”
“We could manage it,” said O’Connor. “They could move up to the rail head at Mersa Matruh, and we could get them on the trains. The rail bridge over the Suez Canal at Kantara will take the weight easily enough, and that’s a good heavy gauge rail line all the way to Haifa. They’ll have to move at night, of course, and we could use the Military Police to clear the roads and rail stations. We could even use tarps to camouflage the tanks while in transit! We could pull it off. I’m sure of it.”
Wavell was quiet for some time. Then he said a single word that summed up the one real problem with this proposal. “Churchill. He’s thinking we’ve the Hammer of God in hand now, and I’m already getting suggestions about a new offensive he wants to call Battleaxe. He won’t take another backward step on our part well.”
“Yes, but he can be made to see reason. From the position I describe, Cyrenaica would become a vast no man’s land between the two camps. We’d be at Tobruk, and Rommel at Mersa Brega and Aghelia. Both sides would push out patrols. There might be a bit of thrust and parry there, and that’s a fight I think we can win. I’ll wager my hat that I can hold Rommel at bay, and if he does get up enough steam for an offensive, why, we’ll have Kinlan’s boys and those bloody tanks of his to stop him, just like they did at Bir el Khamsa. Given the resources we have, this is the better position, General. We should withdraw to the line I’ve detailed, and see what Rommel does. If he takes the bait, all the better. Then we get a mobile fight, with good flanks and an open desert. I’d prefer that any day to trying to slug it out through that badland country near Mersa Brega. It’s the best defensive position in Libya.”
It made perfect sense. The British would shorten their supply lines, and force the enemy to lengthen his if he wanted a fight. Everything O’Connor said about Benghazi was true, thought Wavell. And Kinlan’s force positioned up north, perhaps near Sidi Barani, could get to Tobruk in a flash, or see select units discretely peeled off for use in Operation Scimitar. O’Connor was right. Just sitting out west watching Rommel was no good.
“I’ll take it under consideration,” said Wavell. “Which means I’ll spend the whole night drafting a note to Churchill about what we propose to do. Perhaps we could get the Russian Captain to weigh in on this with us. The Prime Minister seems to have taken quite a liking to the man.”
“Yes, I noticed that. Well it’s understandable. He has the answer to so many questions in his head that I would think Churchill would have him locked away in the tower by now, and having tea with him every afternoon. Letting on that we win this damn war was heartening, to say the least.”
“It was, but three more years, Richard. It’s going to be a long hard slog, and I don’t think this Fedorov told us but a thimbleful of all he knows. He was right about the Germans. If they get serious and find a way to supply a large force in the Middle East, we can’t match them. This is why these developments concerning Cyprus, and troops landing at Rayak, are so bedeviling. We’ve got to prevent them getting a firm hold in Syria. A stitch in time saves nine. We need to sweep them out of the Levant and link up with Turkey… before they do the same to us.”
“Agreed,” said O’Connor. “And we’ve just the tool we need in Kinlan’s force. Shall I have a chat with him about another deployment? He still has four battalions now, but each one has the fighting power of one of our brigades, if not more. Suppose I ask him for one good battalion, stiffened with a troop of those tanks.”
“They’ll have trouble on the inland roads through those mountains in Lebanon, and I doubt if any of the bridges along that coast road would handle them well.”
“He has engineers. Have you had a look at some of their other vehicles? He’s got a real monster called the Trojan. Damn thing looks like a crab out of hell, with a massive mine plow forward and three metal arms. Another is called the Titan AVLB—that’s for Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge. Looks like we did a few things right in the decades ahead. It can bridge a 60 meter obstacle in minutes!”
“Damn amazing. Well I’d put whatever force General Kinlan may part with on the coast road, or right in the center for the drive on Rayak. The resistance has been very tough there. Once we get Rayak, and cut the roads and rails between Damascus and Beirut, things might look a little better for us. Alright, let’s see what Kinlan thinks.”
“You could simply order the deployment,” O’Connor gave Wavell a look, curious as to his reaction to that.
“Yes, I could order it, but as things stand I think we’d best get his opinion on the matter first.”
“Well you might have asked for mine before you yanked on the leash during Operation Compass and shipped my 4th Indian Division off to East Africa!” O’Connor smiled.
“They’re back now. With the Germans thickening up here, I’m going to order both the 7th and 11th Indian
Brigades in with the 5th to support the attack on Syria.”
“That’s the ticket! Then with Kinlan’s troops on the coast road, or in the center going for Rayak, we have a good left hook to go with that right cross. Speaking of Kinlan’s troops—any word from the Gurkhas?”
“They’re going to put in an attack tonight,” said Wavell. “Now we’ll see if they’ve kept their backs straight all those years on. They’ll be up against the French Foreign Legion.”
Even as he said that, a runner came up in a huff, his cheeks red with haste. “Message from Sabre Force,” he said. “Major Popski reports German troops coming on the line west of Damascus, and they look to be in good strength!” he handed off the message, and Wavell looked it over with concern.
“Fallschirmjagers,” he said. “Get me that map over there, General. Where is Qatana?”
It was right on the road to the high pass at Jebel Mazar. “That’s the left flank of this business the Gurkhas are about with tonight. Who do we have there? Have the Free French come up on that flank?”
“No. They’re southeast at Kiswah. As far as I know that flank was just being screened by Popski and those Russian Marines, and the chaps off the Argos Fire—the mobile force we sent to Habbaniyah.”
“Well, they did a bang up job there,” said O’Connor. “Started a stampede and sent a full Iraqi brigade packing in less than an hour.
“If you could call that rabble a brigade,” said Wavell. “This time they’ll be facing down some of the best the Germans have. Popski has good eyes, and he seems to think they’re up against two full battalions.”
“I see,” said O’Connor. “Let’s hope they have those helicopters handy.”
Part V
Lap Of The Gods
“Whether and in what way it may be possible to wreck finally the English position between the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf, in conjunction with an offensive against Suez Canal, is still in the lap of the Gods…”
Hammer of God (Kirov Series Book 14) Page 11
