First sea battle in the Gulf of Syrte

The first naval battle in the Gulf of Syrte took place on December 17, 1941 north of Libya .

Participated on the British side under Admiral Vian six light cruisers and ten destroyers , on the Italian side under Admiral Iachino four battleships , five cruisers , 19 destroyers and one torpedo boat . The skirmish developed when the respective convoy escort organizations embarked on a fight. When the Italian battleship RN Littorio opened fire from a distance of 32,000 meters, the British withdrew. Some of their ships were later hit, the cruiser HMS Neptune and the destroyer HMS Kandahar sank in an Italian minefield. The cruisers HMS Aurora and HMS Penelope were badly damaged. Both convoys reached their destination ports without further incident.

Another naval battle in the Gulf of Syrte took place on March 22, 1942 north of Libya.