Changes

On March 28, the US 47th Regiment captured Hill 369 from the Italian defenders, but its 2nd Battalion was soon overrun in the ensuing Italian counterattack and the battalion commander, two officers and 175 men from ''Echo'' Company were captured.<ref>''"At H-Hour, 6 A.M. March 28th, the 47th was in position to take the day's objective, Hill 369. It fell quickly, but the darkness and poor maps had led the 47th astray to El Hamra Ridge ... The 2nd Battalion 47th had been sent on a flanking movement that might have done the job. But it was caught in a murderous crossfire decimating Company E. The Battalion C.O. and the Communications Officer were captured as were the commander of Company E and 175 of his men."'' The 9th Infantry Division: Old Reliables, John Sperry, p.11, Turner Publishing Company, 2000</ref>

On March 28, the US 47th Regiment captured Hill 369 from the Italian defenders, but its 2nd Battalion was soon overrun in the ensuing Italian counterattack and the battalion commander, two officers and 175 men from ''Echo'' Company were captured.<ref>''"At H-Hour, 6 A.M. March 28th, the 47th was in position to take the day's objective, Hill 369. It fell quickly, but the darkness and poor maps had led the 47th astray to El Hamra Ridge ... The 2nd Battalion 47th had been sent on a flanking movement that might have done the job. But it was caught in a murderous crossfire decimating Company E. The Battalion C.O. and the Communications Officer were captured as were the commander of Company E and 175 of his men."'' The 9th Infantry Division: Old Reliables, John Sperry, p.11, Turner Publishing Company, 2000</ref>

On 28 March, the Free French Forces finally seized El Hamma Ridge from the Italian defenders with the Axis forces forced to abandon Gabès. The ''Raggruppamento Sahariano'' (under General Alberto Mannerini) had fought stubbornly for several days to hold the key ground only to lose the position when the Germans took over:{{cquote|The enemy positions seemed impregnable, and, in fact, the Italians manning them held out for three days ... Rommel, in a last desperate effort replaced the Italians with crack German troops. Hand-to-hand fighting followed, but the enemy, finally fell back into the ravine, leaving many dead behind.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19430401&id=zjRAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TVkMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2804,4830439&hl=en Fighting French Troops' Part Advance in Advance on Gabes]</ref>}}

On 28 March, the Free French Forces finally seized El Hamma Ridge from the Italian defenders with the Axis forces forced to abandon Gabès. The ''Raggruppamento Sahariano'' (under General Alberto Mannerini) had fought stubbornly for several days to hold the strongpoint only to lose the position when the Germans took over:{{cquote|The enemy positions seemed impregnable, and, in fact, the Italians manning them held out for three days ... Rommel, in a last desperate effort replaced the Italians with crack German troops. Hand-to-hand fighting followed, but the enemy, finally fell back into the ravine, leaving many dead behind.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19430401&id=zjRAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TVkMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2804,4830439&hl=en Fighting French Troops' Part Advance in Advance on Gabes]</ref>}}

By early April, the US 1st Armored Division's losses since the recapture of Sened Station would reach 304 killed, 1,265 wounded, 116 missing or captured, and forty tanks destroyed.

By early April, the US 1st Armored Division's losses since the recapture of Sened Station would reach 304 killed, 1,265 wounded, 116 missing or captured, and forty tanks destroyed.