Battle of Kasserine Pass

The Battle of Kasserine Pass was a military confrontation that took place during the Tunisian Campaign during World War II. The battle took place at Kasserine Pass in the Atlas Mountains in Tunisia involving Italo-German forces under Rommel that attacked American forces under General Lloyd Fredendall. It was the first major American combat experience in North Africa.

The Anglo-American forces that had landed in Algeria as part of Operation Torch had crossed into Tunisia and after their failure to capture the north half of the country before the arrival of Axis reinforcements from Sicily, were now ordered to attack Rommel's forces that had retreated from Egypt after the Axis defeat in the Second Battle of El Alamein, pursued at the same time by General Bernard Montgomery's 8th British Army.

Kasserine Pass would prove to be Rommel's last victory in North Africa. During the battle, the German officer Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, future chief conspirator against Hitler, was seriously wounded when British fighter plane attacked his vehicle.

Given the scarcity of fuel available to Rommel, the Allies did not expect Rommel would make any significant move towards the west and cross the mountain range that extends from north to south and separates Tunisia from Algeria, and cut in two the allied armies deployed in Algeria and Tunisia. The Allied commanders instead, expected Rommel to continue his retreat northwards to shorten the Axis supply line from thes ports of Tunis and Bizerta. The Allies, therefore left the Kasserine Pass undermanned, accumulating troops from the US 34th Division and British Guards Brigade north of the Kasserine, on Sbiba Pass.

Sidi Bou Zid

on 14 February, elements of the 10th and 21st Panzer divisions (under the overall command of General Heinz Ziegler) launched an attack through Faid and Maizila passes. The German attack overran the American defenders and reached the Djebel Lessouda hill. While half the German force reached Djebel Lessouda, the other half headed for Djebel Ksaira and Bir el Hafey. By the end of the day, most of the American fighting vehicles had been driven west or destroyed, leaving isolated pockets of US infantrymen in the hills of Djebel Lessouda, Djebel Ksaira, and Djebel Garet Hadid with no support.

Sbiba and Kasserine Pass

Upon confirming the enemy weak spots, Rommel realized there was an opportunity to also make an attack and a quick advance through kasserine Pass to Tebessa and capture the Allied supply deposits. He began deploying troops to contain the Allied forces located east of the mountains. DAK Kampfgruppe and 21st Panzer Division (General Fritz von Broich) fail in their attacks through Sbiba and Kasserine Pass, but the Italians in the form of the 131st Armored Division Centauro are successful with the Bersaglieri Corps overrunning the US 19th Combat Engineers Regiment (Colonel Anderson Moore). When an attacking tank battalion of the Centauro gains more ground in the fighting, a column of panzers of General von Broich follows up through the pass before turning north towards Thala.

Thala and Tebessa

While advancing along Highway 17, the panzers of von Broitch soon encounter strong British defensive positions from the 2nd Leicesters Battalion of the 6th Armored Division deployed outside Thala to halt 10th Panzer. Meanwhile, more units of the 6th Armored Division are sent to reinforce Thala, including three full artillery battalions of the US 9th Division and an anti-tank company.

Meanwhile, the American situation was still very worrying. In Tebessa they were plans in progress for the evacuating of the headquarters of General Fredendall and the destruction of fuel and ammunition depots and other supplies in the base area called Speedy Valley. Morale was collapsing, including that of Fredendall.

Despite the confusion, a new American defense line was taking shape. Combat Command B (CCB) was now blocking the road to Tebessa. Elements of the Centauro Division reached a US outpost in the early morning of 21 February, and after a brief struggle, the outpost was cleared. Assault Group Afrika Korps continued advancing along Highway 13 but the defenders held firm with CCB fighting all day long against repeated German attacks. That night the Africa Panzergrenadier Regiment tried to outlflank CCB, but in the dark attacked an abandoned hill.

The British defenders were still resisting the advance of the 10th Panzer to Thala, but had lost two positions. The Germans had to resort to using captured British Valentine tanks, which worked and the British 26th Armored Brigade (under General Charles Dunphy) had to abandon its third line of defense outside Thala.

Final fighting

On 22 February, the Germans continued their efforts to break the last British line of defense outside Thala. The commander of the British force (called Nickforce) defending Thala, was General Cameron Nicholson who managed to convince that day the US commanders present at Thala not abandon the town in favour of Le Kef, 50 miles away. Two battalions of Bersaglieri tried to outflank the defenses of Thala, but the Italian attack was broken by the heavy fire from British artillery. Assault Group Afrika Korps spent much of the day attacking and bombarding CCB, which still defended the road to Tebessa. On the afternoon of 22 March, the 10th Panzer Division was ordered to retreat, but the American and British fire was so fierce that the order could not be fulfilled until nightfall. On Highway 13, attacks from Assault Group Afrika Korps against Combat Command B also ceased, and in the afternoon the Germans in this sector began their retreat.

By the evening of 24 February, Kasserine Pass was once more in Allied hands, as, shortly after, were Sbeitla and Sidi Bou Zid.

Losses

North Africa was steep learning curve for American forces, the Battle of Kasserine Pass being the near-distasterous defeat that lead to vital restructure, and change in tactics. Close to 30,000 American soldiers took part in the fighting for Kasserine Pass. Around 300 were killed, 3,000 wounded and close to 4,000 American soldiers were captured.

Recorded Axis losses include 989 personnel casualties, 20 tanks and five more armored vehicles, 20 guns, 5 anti-tank guns and 60 transport vehicles.

On 24 February, US war correspondent Harold Boyle confirmed that Rommel had sacrificed a good part of the Bersaglieri in order to cover his retreat:

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The German material was scarcer because the Nazis pulled out when they saw the couldn't slug their way through the joint American and British defense and left the Italians to bear the full weight of the counterattack alone.

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