 After this, they were sent to the Kaponga Box for a period to undertake garrison duties and construction tasks, before undertaking manoeuvres with the rest of the 2nd New Zealand Division around Baggush in October in preparation for their deployment to Libya as part of Operation Crusader, which began in mid-November.After taking part in the fighting in the Western Desert, the 22nd Battalion was withdrawn to Kabrit where it received a batch of 200 reinforcements to replace its losses in Libya, and undertook further training.In April 1942, the battalion was deployed to Syria along with the rest of the 2nd New Zealand Division, where they formed part of the Allied garrison that had been established there at the conclusion of the Syria–Lebanon campaign.