TUNISIA
THE S-MINE. This German antipersonnel mine was used profusely and very effectively in Tunisia. It was nicknamed the Bouncing Betty because when stepped on it would bounce a few feet in the air before a secondary fuze set off the main explosive charge scattering some three hundred steel balls in all directions. The suspected presence of these mines naturally retarded troop movements during an advance. When retreating, the enemy would frequently use this mine to booby-trap buildings, dugouts or equipment left behind.
TUNISIA
DJEBEL TAHENT IN NORTHERN TUNISIA, known as Hill 609. The British Eighth Army advancing northward along the coast replaced the U. S. II Corps in the Gafsa-Gabès area in April 1943. The corps then moved northward about 150 miles and went into position from Béja to Cap Serrat. French forces along this coast came under U. S. II Corps, which advanced in two groups, a northern wing astride the Sedjenane road and a southern wing along the Béja road, both converging on Mateur. The hill shown above was a natural fortress blocking the approach to the plains of Mateur. On 28 April 1943 artillery pounded enemy positions and on the next day the infantry attack started. After a three-day infantry fight, supported by tanks, the hill fell on 1 May.
TUNISIA
JEFNA AREA, LOOKING EAST TO THE PLAINS OF MATEUR. The Jefna position, on the Sedjenane-Mateur road, was one of the strongest German defenses in northern Tunisia and included two heavily fortified hills commanding the road to Mateur: Djebel Azag (Green Hill) on the north and Djebel el Ajred (Bald Hill) on the south. On 13 April 1943, U. S. forces relieved the British and took positions on both sides of the road and the mountains along the valley. The fight for the two hills lasted until 3 May when the Jefna positions were outflanked by U. S. and French forces advancing toward Bizerte and the Mateur plain north of Jefna.
TUNISIA