Last Battles
Shortly after his return, Wingate received an order from Cunningham to stop the pursuit of retreating Italians and help other British forces elsewhere. He pretended that he could not decipher the message and continued on his course. The other part of the Gideon Force, led by the explorer Wilfred Thesiger, crossed to the north of the Debra Sinai plateau and attacked from the north. On May 18, the Italians found themselves blocked from the north and south. Thinking he faced superior numbers, the Italian commander agreed to surrender on May 24.
The Gideon Force was officially disbanded June 1, 1941. Wingate returned to Egypt. The last Italian troops surrendered in Begemder province in the north to British and Arbegnoch forces.
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Famous quotes containing the word battles:
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—Sun Tzu (6–5th century B.C.)
“To make life more bearable and pleasant for everybody, choose the issues that are significant enough to fight over, and ignore or use distraction for those you can let slide that day. Picking your battles will eliminate a number of conflicts, and yet will still leave you feeling in control.”
—Lawrence Balter (20th century)