'No one enjoyed killing Frenchmen'

11th June 1941: As British forces are forced to fight their former allies, a small but bitterly fought war reveals the dynamic forces behind conflict

The Royal Dutch Shell oil depot near Beirut comes under a bombing attack from three Bristol Blenheimsof No. 11 Squadron RAF, flying from Aqir, Palestine, at the start of Operation EXPORTER.

Syria had been invaded because it was believed that Germany would move forces into the area north of Egypt. It had been hoped that French forces in Syria, loyal to th…