Complex sentence: The Western Desert, is about wide, from Mersa Matruh in Egypt to Gazala on the Libyan coast, along the "Litoranea Balbo" ("Via Balbia"), the only paved road.
Split into simpler sentences: The Western Desert, is about wide, from Mersa Matruh in Egypt to Gazala on the Libyan coast. The "Litoranea Balbo" ("Via Balbia") was the only paved road.