After returning the battalion, which had suffered very heavy losses, was reformed with large numbers of reinforcements. In 1942 he became Commanding Officer of the 7th Battalion, Argylls (although it was then designated as the 7th/10th Battalion), still serving as part of the 154th Brigade in the 51st (Highland) Division, reformed in August 1940 by the redesignation of the 9th (Highland) Infantry Division, now commanded by Major General Douglas Wimberley and led the battalion overseas to North Africa in August 1942. At the Second Battle of El Alamein in late 1942, he received a Bar to his DSO for his part in the capture of important objectives. He led the battalion, after El Alamein, throughout the Tunisian campaign, at El Agheila, in the capture of the Libyan port of Tripoli, Medenine, and Wadi Akarit, where Campbell gained his Victoria Cross. On 28 April, shortly before the campaign came to an end, Campbell became acting commander of the 153rd Brigade.