After sailing via the Suez Canal, the 2/1st arrived in Egypt on 13 February. The battalion then moved to Palestine where it concentrated with the rest of the 16th Brigade at Julis near Gaza. The entire brigade remained in Palestine until the end of August, when it moved to Egypt to carry out preparations for active service with the 6th Division. The battalion's first campaign of World War II was the advance from Egypt into eastern Libya in January and February 1941. On 3 January 1941, the battalion took part in the first Australian ground action of the war, spearheading the 6th Division's attack to capture Bardia. Striking from the west, the 2/1st went in just after dawn supported by artillery, armour and aircraft, breaching the wire defences in front of the Italian positions, establishing a bridgehead for the follow-on forces to exploit. Later in the month, the 2/1st was once again in the vanguard when the 16th Brigade led the 6th Division's assault on the Italian-held port of Tobruk. Following its capture, the battalion was left to garrison Tobruk as the advance continued. It left Tobruk on 7 March, ultimately bound for Greece with the rest of the 6th Division, amidst concerns of a German invasion.