The Battle of Sidon (13–15 June 1941) was part of the Australian 7th Division's advance on

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

, which took place during the five-week-long Syria-Lebanon campaign fought between the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

and Vichy French forces in

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

and

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Sidon Sidon ( ) or better known as Saida ( ; ) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast in the South Governorate, Lebanon, South Governorate, of which it is the capital. Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, t ...

, a town of about 12,000 people at the time with a number of historic mosques and castles dating back to the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

, was positioned on the coast to the north of Tyre, about halfway between the Lebanese border with

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

and

. The fighting came several days after the Allied forces from the Australian 21st Brigade, under Brigadier Jack Stevens, crossed the

Litani River The Litani River (), the classical Leontes (), is an important water resource in southern Lebanon. The river rises in the fertile Beqaa Valley, west of Baalbek, and empties into the Mediterranean Sea north of Tyre. Exceeding in length, the ...

as part of Operation Exporter. After preliminary moves by the 2/27th Infantry Battalion around Adloun, the 2/14th Infantry Battalion had carried the advance north along the coast towards Sidon. On 13 June, the 2/16th Infantry Battalion, with artillery and cavalry support, was assigned the task of capturing the town itself, undertaking a daylight advance over of open ground to reach the town, before exploiting a further to the north. The presence of the historic buildings meant that the Australian artillery bombardment of the town was limited in an effort to prevent collateral damage, which slowed the Allied advance. On the periphery, the 2/27th was also active around Miyeoumiye to the south-east during the fighting. The town fell on 15 June, after the Australians completed a long approach march and overcame a determined French counterattack the included tanks. French aircraft were also active during the battle, attacking the 2/4th Field Regiment's positions and the headquarters of the 2/16th Infantry Battalion. The day after Sidon fell, further actions were fought to the east between Algerian

Tirailleur A tirailleur (), in the Napoleonic era, was a type of light infantry trained to skirmish ahead of the main columns. Later, the term "''tirailleur''" was used by the French Army as a designation for indigenous infantry recruited in the French c ...

s and the Australians around the high ground at Meidelyoum and Jabal Aababy, as the Australians cut the road between Sidon and

Jezzine Jezzine ( ''Jizzīn'') is a municipality in Lebanon, located from Sidon and south of Beirut. It is the capital of Jezzine District. Surrounded by mountain peaks, pine forests (like the Bkassine Pine Forest), and at an average altitude of 95 ...

, which had been captured on 13 June by troops from the Australian 25th Brigade. The next stage of the fighting saw the Australians advance towards Damour, which fell in early July. Following the war, a

battle honour A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or Military operation, operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In ...

was awarded to the 2/16th and 2/27th Infantry Battalions, the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion, and the 6th and 9th Divisional Cavalry Regiments.

References

Citations Bibliography * * {{cite book , last=Long , first=Gavin , author-link=Gavin Long , series=

Australia in the War of 1939–1945 ''Australia in the War of 1939–1945'' is a 22-volume official history series covering Australian involvement in the Second World War. The series was published by the Australian War Memorial between 1952 and 1977, most of the volumes being edi ...

, volume=II , title=Greece, Crete and Syria , publisher=

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial (AWM) is a national war memorial, war museum, museum and archive dedicated to all Australians who died as a result of war, including peacekeeping duties. The AWM is located in Campbell, Australian Capital Territory, C ...

, location=Canberra, Australian Capital Territory , year=1953 , edition=1st , url=https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1070201/ , oclc=3134080

1941 in Lebanon

Australia–France relations June 1941 in Asia