 As only a few Egyptians owned farmland, a situation was created where the rich got richer while the poor got poorer.The Italians had only advanced within 50 miles of Egypt before stopping at Sidi Barrani, and on 9 December 1940 the British launched an offensive that drove the Italians back into Libya.In response, in January 1941, German forces were dispatched to the Mediterranean to assist the Italians and on 12 February 1941, the Afrika Korps under the command of Erwin Rommel arrived in Libya.