After arriving in Egypt further training was undertaken there and in Palestine. The battalion was later re-allocated to the 19th Brigade after the Australian brigades were reorganised into "triangular" three battalion formations. In early January 1941, the 2/11th saw action during the Battle of Bardia, fighting against Italian forces in Libya. Further actions followed later in the month around Tobruk and Derna, and then around Benghazi the following month. In April 1941, the battalion fought a brief and unsuccessful campaign in Greece, and then on Crete the following month. On Crete, the battalion was heavily engaged while attempting to defend Retimo airfield and a large number of the battalion's personnel were killed or captured. As a result of the casualties suffered in Greece and Crete, the battalion was virtually destroyed and the 2/11th had to be rebuilt in Palestine at the end of 1941, before joining the Allied garrison that had been established in Syria following the conclusion of the Syria–Lebanon Campaign. It was brought back to Australia in early 1942, after the Australian government decided to transfer the bulk of Australia's ground forces from the Middle East to the Pacific to meet the threat posed by Japanese forces which were advancing rapidly through the Pacific. After landing in Adelaide in March, the 2/11th was attached to the 2nd Brigade, a formation made up largely of soldiers from the Militia, carrying out defensive duties in Western Australia. The battalion was transferred back to the 19th Brigade in Queensland in July 1943, and in late 1944 was committed to the Aitape–Wewak campaign. A mopping up operation, the campaign was one of a series of patrols and advances: at the start of the campaign in January 1945, the 2/11th were assigned to an area on the eastern bank of the Danmap River and as the campaign progressed advanced south of Wewak, moving into the Prince Alexander Mountains throughout April and May and into July 1945. At the conclusion of hostilities in August 1945, the battalion's personnel were sent back to Australia for demobilisation in small groups until mid-November when the cadre received passage home. The remaining personnel of the 2/11th subsequently concentrated at Puckapunyal where the battalion was disbanded on 7 December 1945. During the war a total of 2,939 men served with the 2/11th Battalion which suffered 489 casualties, of whom 182 were killed. Its members received the following decorations: two Distinguished Service Orders, six Military Crosses, four Distinguished Conduct Medals, 20 Military Medals and 66 Mentions in Despatches.