of the Support Group, were ordered to move to Msus to deal with the hostile force. However, the division was crippled by a breakdown in communication, resulting in conflicting, late, and missed orders. None of the division arrived at Msus during the day. It was established late in the afternoon that the RAF had mistakenly identified friendly vehicles in the area as the enemy. By the end of the day, the 3rd Armoured Brigade had been reduced to 18 light tanks, 26 M13s, and 12 cruisers. On 4 April, Axis forces entered Benghazi, which had been abandoned by the Allies. During the day, divisional artillery fire halted German reconnaissance forces near Charruba. At midday, Lieutenant-General Richard O'Connor (GOC British Troops in Egypt) arrived at the front and held a meeting with the senior commanders in Cyrenaica, including Gambier-Parry, who opined that the Axis forces would not attempt a further advance now that Benghazi had been taken. However, the decision was made to withdraw from the Jebel Achdar, and for the 2nd Armoured Division to concentrate at Mechili to protect the withdrawal of the Australian infantry. Brigadier Edward Vaughan's recently arrived 3rd Indian Motor Brigade was ordered to secure Mechili, an old Italian stone-and-mud colonial fort ringed by trenches, to ensure it was in Allied hands when the division arrived. Communication failures impeded the division's withdrawal during the day, and further tanks were lost from breakdowns. A supply convoy dispatched for the division was attacked by 18 Axis aircraft, and destroyed with the loss of of fuel. By the end of the day, the 5RTR had nine cruiser tanks, and the 6RTR had nine M13s. The following day, alarmist reports suggested Axis armoured forces had passed Msus; but the KDG, and other Allied units, verified that this was not the case. The tank sightings turned out to be the 2nd Armoured Division. In reality, the nearest Axis unit was from Msus. General withdrawal On 6 April, Axis forces moved towards Mechili, with the intention of advancing toward the coast, and thereby encircling the retreating Allied forces. This move was reported by the KDG and the RAF. The division started the day with 8 cruiser tanks, 14 light tanks, and 2 M13s. During the day, the 3rd Indian Motor Brigade was attached to the division. Mechili was subjected to Axis artillery fire, and Indian patrols took numerous Axis prisoners around the perminter