"I don't know how many people will survive this operation. Send a report to General Felix Steinner to speed up and I must snatch the oil field completely."

Originally, Rommel's combat plan was to airborne both in Mosul and Basra at the same time. In addition to the Italian paratrooper brigade, he also had a German paratrooper brigade directly commanded by General Student. Then the two armored divisions bypassed Baghdad without fighting, marched north and south respectively, and then launched a centripetal attack on Baghdad after occupying the oil field. However, after careful consideration, Gauss opposed the operation because it was too difficult to fight. The reason was:

First, the number of aircraft is insufficient. If both places land at the same time, the number of people on the first wave of airborne is too small, and it may not be able to deal with the defenders;

Second, the distance between Basra is too far, and starting from Damascus is almost the limit of the transport aircraft after it is mounted with the secondary fuel tank. If there is any mistake, it will not be returned;

Third, the two armored divisions of the Canal Army are still more than 300 kilometers west of Baghdad. It takes at least 3 days to arrive in Mosul and at least 5 days to get to Basra. This is the premise that everything goes well, and the waiting time in the direction of Basra exceeds the combat capabilities of the paratroopers;

Fourth, according to Iraq's inside information, Mosul has a small number of enemy troops, and there is at least one division in Basra. If the oil field cannot be captured as soon as possible, when the enemy reacts, not only will the oil field not be able to be saved, but the entire airborne brigade will be brought in.

Rommel was very bold in his military use, but he knew that he could never act recklessly. Any mistake would cause a catastrophe to the army. This consequence was not only military, but also political: there was a circle of Middle Eastern countries around him paying attention to the war process. Those who had big fists and thick arms would listen to whoever had a fence. If the German army could not show its crushing strength, it would be very unfavorable to control the Middle East in the future. Taking a step back, these oil fields are really important to Germany. Instead of taking risks, they could not get both the north and south oil fields, it would be better to ensure one first.

The combat plan modified by Gauss finally became the paratrooper brigade first airborne in Mosul, and Steinner led the Vikings to intercept the diagonal connection, while the German division attacked Baghdad in front.

"Sir, Prime Minister Rashid Ali is here. He has something urgent to see you."

"Please quickly."

A year and a half ago, the political situation in Iraq changed dramatically. The anti-British Rashid Ali Gerani came to power as Iraqi Prime Minister and submitted a note to Berlin to form an alliance with Germany. Churchill immediately asked the British commander of the Middle East, Vevere, to land in Basra, to use force to overthrow the legal government of Iraq. Rashid believed that it would take time for the British army to fight from land to Baghdad, and planned to take action to force the Royal Habania Air Base near Baghdad, forcing the British army to dare not advance easily without air supremacy. As a result, with the cooperation of the base defense forces and aircraft, the British army not only defeated the Iraqi army's offensive attempt, but also defeated the Junker Special Air Force and Italian Air Force sent by Germany (taken off from Crete, with very few aircraft). Rashid himself was finally forced to go into exile to Germany.

Rashid is a typical intellectual, but his anti-British attitude has always been firm: "I contacted the supporters of Baghdad. They promised to cooperate with your army's actions and will find a way to send the British army's garrison tomorrow."

"Thank you very much." Rommel held his hand, "Mr. Prime Minister, let's drive away the British together."
Chapter completed!