EL ALAMEIN, EGYPT - OCTOBER 20: Lieutenant General David Morrison, Chief of the Australian Army, attends commemorations for the 70th anniversary of the Battle of El Alamein at the El Alamein Commonwealth War Graves cemetery on Saturday, October 20, 2012, in El Alamein, Egypt. Veterans and dignitaries from various commonwealth countries gathered at the El Alamein Commonwealth War Graves Ceremony on Saturday to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the battle of El Alamein. Forces from across the Commonwealth countries served at El Alamein during the famous World War Two battle that is credited as turning Allied forces' fortunes against Axis forces in North Africa. The battle of El Alamein opened on the night of October 23, 1942, as Allied forces, including British, Australia, New Zealand and other commonwealth soldiers, attacked the lines of German and Italian forces, starting a desert battle that would last twelve days. In the battle, the British Eighth Army under General Bernard Montgomery destroyed about thirty percent of the German Afrika Korps, led by General Erwin Rommel. At the time, British wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill credited the battle as the 'end of the beginning' of the Second World War. (Photo by Ed Giles/Getty Images)
