The 2/43rd Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Raised in July 1940 in South Australia as part of the 24th Brigade, the battalion was initially part of the 8th Division, until the 24th Brigade was re-allocated to the 9th Division in late 1940. It was with this formation that the 2/43rd saw service in the Middle East in 1941–1942, taking part in the fighting at Tobruk and in the First and Second Battles of El Alamein. It also undertook garrison duties in Syria, before returning to Australia early in 1943 to fight against the Japanese in the Pacific.

The 24th Brigade was a brigade-sized infantry unit of the Australian Army. Formed on 1 July 1940 as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force, the unit was raised for service during World War II. Originally formed as part of the 8th Australian Division the brigade was subsequently transferred to the newly created 9th Australian Division in December. The brigade served during the Western Desert Campaign, forming part of the Allied garrison during the Siege of Tobruk. Later, the brigade was withdrawn to Syria for occupation duties, but then later took part in the First and Second Battles of El Alamein. In early 1943, the brigade was returned to Australia to fight against the Japanese in the Pacific. In 1943–1944, the brigade fought in New Guinea, taking part in the landing at Lae and the Huon Peninsula campaign. Its final campaign came late in the war, when it took part in the Labuan landings and the Battle of North Borneo in mid-1945. After the war, the brigade was disbanded in early 1946.