Latakia is the second largest port in Greater Syria, but because trade activities are mainly concentrated in Beirut, Latakia does not have the momentum of the second largest port at all.
But today is a bit unusual. A large number of soldiers in military uniforms appeared at the port. These were Romanian officers and soldiers who landed. They quickly occupied the city under the leadership of local Arabs.
Why is there no defender in this city? In fact, as soon as Beirut fell, the defenders stationed here packed their backpacks and left. Because Beirut fell, Latakia became no longer important, and this city is located in Syria
In the north, under the current circumstances, the only contact with it is Damascus.
The defenders received orders when the Romanian army landed in Beirut. As long as Beirut fell, they would immediately withdraw their troops to Damascus, because if Damascus also fell, the French Czech army in other areas would be semi-surrounded. Only along the Euphrates River
The evacuation to Iraq certainly did not meet the expectations of the French army.
That's why the defenders of Latakia withdrew as soon as Beirut fell.
And it's not just the Latakia defenders who are doing this.
In Aleppo, the hundreds of French officers and soldiers who stayed behind had already packed up and set off. They took the collected horses and rushed towards Damascus.
The only area still left behind is the area south of Damascus. However, since Damascus is in southern Syria, it can be said that the French army has given up most of the area and concentrated its limited forces in Damascus.
Of course, as the commander of the French army, General Hinley would not think that the French army alone could withstand the Romanian offensive. Especially after Hoffman took the risk of deploying troops to organize troops to attack eastward, the defending French army felt even more
to pressure.
But now General Hinley has no troops, and those who can go to the front line have basically been transferred to the front line. Even a British-Indian brigade that came for reinforcements was transferred to the front line without even taking a breath. Now he only has to withdraw from Beirut.
The two remnant divisions that came, plus one and a half French divisions gathered from various places, but most of this one and a half divisions can't be counted on, they are still on their way here.
So now General Hinley has only two options, one is to continue to ask for help from the British army commanded by General Wavell, and the other is to train the defeated French army as soon as possible and bring it to the battlefield.
Some people may ask, why didn’t the French troops, who were gathering from all over the country, say anything?
It sounds depressing. Now that the French troops have withdrawn from various places, they will not be able to reach Damascus for a while. Because the French Air Force in Syria has suffered huge losses one after another, and the number of usable aircraft it currently has can be counted on two hands. Therefore, the sky in Syria is currently
It has been completely dominated by the Romanian Air Force. Although its air force is currently focusing on the British army, it still will not let go of the French army.
Not to mention the French army withdrawing from Latakia, one division of this army has become the focus of care. Therefore, this has also caused the army to move slowly. According to the report of the division commander Arsco, they are expected to rush forward.
It will take about a week to get to Damascus.
In another week, it will be time for Romanians to celebrate in the city.
Therefore, for General Xinlai, it is more realistic to ask for reinforcements and organize the defeated troops.
Of course, in order to defend the Hermon Mountains, Hinley needs to do both at the same time. Of course, the first thing to do is to ask for help. In the telegram to Wavell, Hinley completely placed his position as a subordinate and begged the British army.
The reinforcements are completely the foreign version of helping brothers.
Of course, he also knew that relying on the British army was not safe. For this reason, he specially found General Mendelek, the former commander of Beirut, and asked him to integrate the defeated troops who had retreated to Damascus, and reinforce the previous regiment after forming a regiment.
Xinlai also took a risk in order to defend Damascus. Of course, he would not put all his hopes on this. In private, he was also secretly hoarding transportation vehicles to prepare for the worst outcome. In addition, after Damascus,
On the main road in the south, the garrison troops were not mobilized at all, and were even secretly strengthened.
On the other side, Wavell, who is the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in the Middle East, also has a headache. Of course, it is not just General Hinley's request for help that gives him a headache.
"Damn it, what do you think I am doing here? This is also asking for help, that is also asking for help. Isn't there some good news?"
Admiral Wavell, who had just seen a telegram from London, couldn't help but complain.
"let me see."
As the chief of staff, General Smith pushed open the door after hearing his partner's complaints, took the telegram and read it.
"There is no need to be angry. London is also acting from a strategic perspective."
Smith's words of comfort did not make Wavell feel any lower. He continued to complain. "What's this all about? I made a proposal to integrate the two armies before, but the French didn't agree and they were still doing it for that little benefit. I've long ago
I have said that Beirut needs to be heavily defended, and the Romanians are absolutely eyeing it. Now that they have lost it, they are calling for help. How many troops should I use to rescue them now? It is completely nonsense."
Facing Wavell's complaints about the French army, only his partner Smith knew that his dissatisfaction with London was also vented here. It was just difficult to say it out, otherwise he, the commander-in-chief of the British army in the Middle East, would be in danger.
In fact, Smith knew very well about Wavell's abilities. This general was definitely the most suitable general for this position at present. He was not only very good at training troops, but also had a keen insight into the battle situation.
He said after the attack in Alexandria that Romania's next target of attack must be the Suez Canal, and that Greece would not be able to stop the Romanians for much longer. For the British troops in the Middle East, the most important issue at the moment is not to allow the Romanians to disembark.
.Because it has superior navy and air force, as long as the opponent comes ashore, it is basically impossible to drive it away.
In addition, his attitude towards the Mediterranean islands is to defend them if they can, and delay them if they cannot, until the sea and air power changes.
But his idea did not get the support of London. From London's perspective, hundreds of years of glory did not allow them to easily declare certain places to be at a strategic disadvantage. They could also use the power of many allies to consume the power of the Romani people.
, to buy time for the Middle East.
Therefore, under the guidance of London, the British army sent troops and equipment to help Greece one after another, but the results were disappointing. Under the Romanian offensive, the Greeks did not even hold on for a month before the entire territory fell.
And he fully understood London's thoughts, and even took over the island of Cyprus without stopping, winning the victory at the outpost. Wavell was also surprised that the Romanians used large-scale paratroopers to airborne and cooperated with the landing force to seize the island.
.
He had never thought that paratroopers could be used in this way before. In his opinion, paratroopers could only conduct small-scale infiltration operations due to equipment problems.
Of course, this is also the most mainstream view in the world at present.
However, after seeing the actions of the Romanians on the island of Cyprus, other countries also began to try to form division-level paratrooper units. The United States began to test its own paratroopers, and the Soviet Union was also taking action. Its ally France was also urgently forming paratrooper units.
.The mainland is no exception. According to the information he received, a regiment-level paratrooper unit is already being formed.
Of course, this does not help the current situation he is facing, but he is dissatisfied with London's frequent interference in his own deployment. In his opinion, the current rescue of Damascus can only coordinate the French army's retreat, and he has no interest in helping the French army defend Damascus.
No.
If you look at the distance between Damascus and Beirut, you will know that even if it costs huge casualties to defend it, the cost of facing frequent attacks by the Romanian Air Force is still not something that the British army currently in Egypt can bear.
Now if you ask Wavell what he wants most, his answer must be a Spitfire. Because the current combat loss ratio of the Air Force in the Middle East is so poor, many experienced pilots fly old fighter planes, and their performance against the enemy far exceeds their own.
The new fighter planes are literally using their lives to support an air defense line.
Although you can calm down by yelling, things still have to be done.
After Wavell took out the telegram again and took a look at it, he called a telecommunications staff officer. "Now send a message to the Australian 3rd Division and the New Zealand 1st Division, asking them to prepare to leave and go to Damascus to reinforce the local French army."
After sending away the telegraph staff, Wavell said to the chief of staff beside him, "Smith, please send a secret telegram in person and ask the two divisions to be fully prepared before setting off."
Faced with what his partner meant, how could Smith, as the chief of staff, not understand? He immediately nodded and replied, "Okay, I understand, and I will convey the meaning."
This time Wavell planned to secretly resist the order from London.
The two divisions that received the secret order even performed extravagant work. First they asked for supplies to be replenished. After the supplies were slowly replenished, the marching speed was extremely fast. They could basically walk thirty kilometers but not fifty kilometers, and
As soon as there was any sign of trouble, they were immediately on alert. In this short journey of more than 200 kilometers, they were forced to walk for six days, and they arrived in Damascus just after the Montenegrin defense line was breached.
Facing the British reinforcements that had just arrived, General Hinley didn't know what to say. But now he still had to rely on the help of this new force to take away the retreating army.
Therefore, these British soldiers are still very welcome, even if it is in person.
After repelling the vanguard of the attacking troops on the outskirts of Damascus, the supporting army quickly left, leaving the Romanian troops who wanted to outflank them in vain.
The reinforcements of the British army, which got rid of the Romanian army, even trotted all the way back to Jordan with the defeated French army. The Syrian area, where all troops had been mobilized, even surrendered under the Romanian front.
At this point, the Romanian army has basically met Hoffmann's requirements, and the remnants of the French army have been preserved. However, the number of French troops that have withdrawn to Jordan is less than 20,000, and more than 40,000 are left on the land of Syria.
It is also worth mentioning that the leader of the Arab uprising, His Excellency Abdullah, appeared publicly in Damascus to welcome the arrival of the Romanians.
This made Britain and France gnash their teeth angrily, and their intelligence agencies in the Middle East received reprimands from their own countries for this.
