After careful study of the battle map and careful analysis of the situation of the enemy in front of him, Steiner was convinced that Rommel's strategy and temporary change were very correct: to fight quickly and destroy the enemy before they were fully conscious.

"Calling back to the marshal, our division resolutely carries out the order and will complete the occupation of Baghdad and Mosul on January 1, 1943."

In the afternoon, the British troops in Baghdad were stunned by the sudden appearance of German planes and airborne troops, they thought that the Germans were still 300 kilometers away, and they still had enough time, but while they were busy gathering troops, building defensive lines, and replenishing ammunition and supplies, the Luftwaffe was already flying like locusts in the sky.

Now they are no longer competing with the bulky Bf-110 or the Italian Fiat C.R.42 of a year and a half ago, nor are they a small number of German-Italian aircraft flying thousands of miles from Crete, but a brand new large group of Fw-190A or Bf-219, especially the Bf-219, with its long range, outstanding circling ability, and flexible maneuverability, it is simply the best killer against old British aircraft, and often two circles or rolls can shoot down a British plane. Its killing efficiency is not much better than that of the Fw-190 with BZ tactics.

The Iraqi troops in Baghdad watched in amazement as the British planes that had brought them tremendous psychological pressure fell from the sky like rain, and they had to thank Lieutenant General Ted of the Royal Air Force for desperately scavenging planes from the Middle East to support the direction of Egypt, so that the British planes left behind by Iraq were vulnerable, and the old biplane trainer plane, which was only 300 kilometers away at that time and trembling, was forced to load its bullets and take off to meet the German planes. The ending was predestined a long time ago.

After the planes cleared the scene, the group of transport planes that had completed the parachute in Mosul in the early morning began to be airdropped again, although the British troops on the ground resisted with all their might. But as soon as all anti-aircraft fire comes up, it will inevitably provoke a fierce attack from the Ju-87s and fighters.

When Chancellor Rashid appeared in front of the Iraqi army under the protection of a platoon of German soldiers, all the Iraqi soldiers refused the British officer's order to let them open fire and immediately cheered: "Rashid...... Rashid ......"

"Now, in my capacity as the Prime Minister of Iraq, I order you to turn your guns and avenge your comrades who died in battle last year!"

"Revenge! Avenge! ”

Last year's Iraqi army was badly beaten by the British. More than 1,000 people died, more than 3,000 were wounded, and most of Iraqi officers were dismissed. Dozens of spontaneously organized Arab tribal forces were forcibly disbanded by the British, and although the Iraqi forces had changed a number of men and horses from top to bottom, as long as the British were still riding on the heads of the Iraqis, this hidden resistance would not stop. Under the leadership of the defective Iraqi army. The paratroopers soon occupied the Rushdie airfield on the outskirts of Baghdad. Not only did the country's transport planes and fighter planes have a foothold, but it has also obtained a large amount of fuel under the coordination of Rashid - all from the Iraqi Air Force's own stockpiles.

At about 4 o'clock, 24 British Wellington bombers flew in from the southern Basra area to try to support, but the Fw-190 and Bf-219, who had been prepared, fiercely educated these enemy planes with almost no fighter protection, and this time the Fw-190 finally surpassed the Bf-219 in killing efficiency, defending its reputation as a bomber terminator.

In the evening, Brigadier General Roberts, commander of the 13th Infantry Brigade of the 5th Infantry Division of the British Army, attacked the Germans at the airport with all his might, despite the threat of the Iraqi army's counterattack. An attempt was made to take advantage of the fact that German planes could not take off to support at night to recapture the airfield, for which all tanks were dispatched. However, the German Me-323 transport planes had already brought two 88mm anti-aircraft guns, and with the iron fist in the hands of the paratroopers, the British tanks were on fire and smoking, and the Matilda were defeated in front of the 88mm guns again after the Battle of Arras.

The development of the war situation greatly exceeded the expectations of General Wilson, the commander of the British 10th Army, who had planned to rely on the city defense of Baghdad and cooperate with the Iraqi troops to resolutely resist and buy enough time for the follow-up troops to launch and support operations across the Iraqi-Persian border, but by the morning of December 30, not only had the troops that were intended to be used to support the Iraqi defensive line not yet departed, the defenders of Mosul and Baghdad reported to him that the German armored division had appeared in front of them.

The Iraqi army in Mosul cooperated with the Italian paratrooper brigade to desperately prevent the sappers from destroying the oil fields, and even the Iraqi workers, who were usually very obedient and docile, would pick up wrenches and iron pipes to resist when the British soldiers were not paying attention, and many sappers who planted explosives and prepared to detonate died quietly in the long yellow sand; While the Iraqi troops in Baghdad took advantage of the exchange of fire between the British and German armies, they simply raided the British embassy and the officers' residences, and looted the British expatriates while they were on fire, and the screams of women and children were everywhere - although Rashid tried his best to control the situation, it was clear that the chaos in Baghdad was not so easily quelled.

In the afternoon, the main forces of the Viking Division arrived, and the British and Iraqi mercenaries at Baghdad and the Habbaniah air bases were forced to surrender, while the Indian brigade in Mosul fled into Persia in a hurry. The 10th Indian Division, which had left Basra and tried to support the Baghdad direction, was even more unlucky, as they ran headlong into the rapidly attacking Great German Division at Nasiriyah northwest of Basra, and there was no suspense in this kind of battle that was completely crushed in terms of equipment and combat effectiveness, and it took less than 3 hours for the Great German Division to simply crush the enemy forces neatly, driving them back to Basra like ducks, and then forcing them to flee in the direction of Persia. At this time, the Indian 6th Division, reinforced from Ahvaz, had just crossed the border between the two countries. Upon hearing of the fiasco ahead, the division retreated like a flair.

On the last day of 1942, at 10 o'clock in the evening on December 31, Rommel, who was stationed in Baghdad, sent a message to Hoffman with great ambition: "Honorable Führer, as the commander of the Canal Army, it is my duty to report to you that our army has taken control of Mosul and Baghdad and cleared the enemy, that the Mosul oil field group is more than 70% intact, that calm has returned to the whole city of Baghdad, that our army is marching towards Basra, and that it is expected to be occupied tomorrow, and that all enemy forces in Iraq are cleared at hand......"

"Very ......good," Hoffman excitedly put down the telegram and stood up, what pleased him most was not the occupation of Baghdad or Basra, under the onslaught of the Great German Division and the Viking Division, the place was like ripe fruit, with a slight effort, it would fall sooner or later, he was happy to keep the Mosul oil complex, 70% of the oil was good enough to get at least 3 million tons of oil a year, and if it was repaired more vigorously, it would mean that the oil gap in the second half of 1943 would be filled - of course, You also have to guard against bombing by the British and Russians.

"Führer, Marshal Kesselring is here."

"What difficulties did you encounter?" Seeing that Kesselring's interest was not particularly high when he came in, Hoffman asked suspiciously.

"The British forces in Cairo are adamantly refusing to surrender, and even though the situation in Iraq is before them today, they are still very stubborn. Today is the last day of the ceasefire agreement, and there are only two hours before the resumption of hostilities. ”

"What can Heinz do?"

"If the enemy refuses to surrender, then he can only attack, and his troops are ready to attack after so many days of replenishment and rest. However, he needs the cooperation and cover of the Air Force. ”

"What conditions does the enemy offer to surrender?"

"The enemy forces resolutely refused to surrender and only asked us to let them go to Aswan and Ethiopia. If we accept this ridiculous condition, they are willing to give up the exchange of fire and give us the city of Cairo in its entirety - but this is not possible. ”

Hearing that the British were so soft and hard, Hoffman also frowned: "How big is the siege loss?" How long will it take? ”

"About one week, if there is a street fight, we have to prepare nearly 10,000 casualties."

As soon as he heard that there was going to be a street battle, Hoffman felt a deep headache, and now the troops besieging the city were either armored divisions or motorized infantry divisions, which were good at long-distance raids and field assaults, and it was really a short attack to attack the city, not to mention tens of thousands of casualties -- these were the most elite troops under his command, and it was distressing to die 1,000.

"How long will the siege last?"

"A long siege is not an option, there are still 300,000 people in Cairo, the king of Egypt and most of the big men of the country are in the city, but they are afraid of ......," Kessellin said, "The siege is not a good way, in the end, the Egyptians died more than anyone else, and the British had no supplies to rob the Egyptians - they had guns in their hands." ”

"We really can't do that, there are too many dead and wounded for us to explain to the Egyptians." Hoffman sat back down, "Let me think about it. ”

Suddenly, a thought flashed through him, and Hoffman asked, "They asked to retreat to the south?" ”

"Yes. They plan to go to Aswan first and then to Ethiopia. ”

"Okay, give them a chance to retreat."

Kesselring was shocked: "Führer, don't ...... These two are relatively capable units in the British army, which have held out from Tobruk to this place, and now they have recovered their strength, and if we let them go, I am afraid that we will lose more when we meet them again in the future, and in this case I would rather die more Egyptians than ......."

Hoffman waved his hand: "Don't worry, I said that I was allowed to retreat, but I didn't say how to retreat." ”

Then he told Kesselring what he had just thought of, and the latter asked suspiciously, "Is that okay?" ”

"Of course, how do you know if you can't do it without trying?" Hoffman smiled slyly, "I'm sure smart people will know how to choose." (To be continued.) )