El-Kasasin (Al-Kasasin, Kassassin in English) is a village in Lower Egypt, located about 30 km west of the city of Ismailia, known as the site of the 1882 Battle of Kassassin, in which the Egyptian army led by Ahmed Urabi clashed with British troops.

In 1943, there was a camp in the area where, at the beginning of December, soldiers of the 2nd Polish Corps previously stationed in Palestine were grouped together, from where they were then directed to loading ports to move to the Italian peninsula.

However, before this happened, on 17 and 18 December 1943, the commander of the American 7th Army, General George S. Patton, arrived in El-Kasasin. Recalling this visit, he noted:

“General Anders made a strong impression on me as a very masculine type. During World War I he occupied the position of chief of staff of a Russian division. He was wounded seven times and received Polish decorations for bravery twice. The Polish troops look the best of any I have ever seen, including the British and American troops. Laughing, he told me that if his corps got between the German and the Russian army, he would be in trouble as to which one he would rather fight against.”

It was then that transports of the 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division left for Italy in mid-December, the 5th Kresowa Infantry Division and supply units were transported in February and the 2nd Armoured Brigade in April.