World War II by country throughout the war, as did the international city of Tangier. Nauru was administered by Australia under a League of Nations mandate. Nauru was shelled by a German surface raider in December 1940, aiming to incapacitate its phosphate mining operations (this action was probably the most distant military activity carried out by Germany during the entire war). Phosphates are important for making ammunition and fertilizers. Nauru was occupied by Japan from 1942–45, and was the target of shelling by American battleships and cruisers, and aerial bombing by the Allies. For example, Nauru was bombarded by the American battleships "North Carolina", "Washington",
German military administration in occupied France during World War II Vichy France. While the Vichy government was nominally in charge of all of France, the military administration in the occupied zone was a ' Nazi dictatorship. Its rule was extended to the free zone when it was invaded by Germany and Italy during ' on 11 November 1942 in response to Operation Torch, the Allied landings in French North Africa on 8 November 1942. The Vichy government remained in existence, even though its authority was now severely curtailed. The military administration in France ended with the Liberation of France after the Normandy and Provence landings. It formally existed from May