Force K was re-created on 21 October 1941, with the light cruisers and and the L and M class destroyers and , to operate from Malta against Italian ships carrying supplies to the Axis forces in North Africa. On the night of 1941, in the Battle of the Duisburg Convoy, Force K sank the convoy, forcing , the supreme command of the Italian armed forces, to consider Tripoli "practically blockaded". Convoys to Tripoli were suspended, only Benghazi remaining in use. Soon afterwards, Force K was reinforced at Malta by Force B, with the light cruisers and and two J-, K- and N-class destroyers. The combined force was so effective that in November 1941, the Axis supply line suffered 60 per cent losses.