GB Offices Abroad: Middle East Forces (M.E.F.)

Middle East Command, later Middle East Land Forces, was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to defend British interests in the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean region. it primarily composed of Arabs, Sudanese and Persians.

During the Second World War, Middle East Command supervised military operations in and around the Mediterranean basin and the Middle East. Following the defeat of the Axis forces in the Western Desert at the Battle of El Alamein and the landing of additional Anglo-American forces during Operation Torch, it transferred control of land forces to the newly created Allied Forces Headquarters.

The stamps were printed and issued Jan 1 1943, by Harrison and Sons, for use in Cyrenaica, Dodecanese Islands, Eritrea, and Tripolitania.

GVI Issues