A convoy attempting to reach the Negev during Operation "Derech LaNegev"
One week after operation "Gais no.2", passage of provision convoys to the Negev was refused by the Egyptians. On the 16th of August, 1948, a convoy led by the Givati Brigade and organized by the Negev brigade was scheduled to travel the same route.
The 52nd Battalion secured the road by occupying army posts along the route and on the 18th of August, close to midnight, the convoy left on its way. The convoy encountered an ambush near unoccupied extension no.202 and returned north after a short battle. Only 4 trucks and one half-track managed to overcome the ambush and reach the Negev. A week after arrival, 'Shualay Shimshon' troops together with their jeeps were flown back north, leaving the half-track and the trucks in the Negev. The road leading to the Negev was reopened two months later during operation 'Yoav', until then a solution for maintaining the besieged Negev had to be found.