Daily Post - 23.03.1943, Qupperneq 1

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Allies Lanich Terrific
Fioal Battle For N.-African
Snpremacy Has Begun
LONDON, MARCH 22nd
In Tunisia, the British Eighth Army in on the move again.
The fighting is offically described as fierce. The American Fifth
/
Army is rnaking good progress towards Rommel’s rear, and
eastwards, towards tlie coast, have taken a considerable number
of prisoners.
Air Offeisive In Tnisia
The news of the British
Eighth Army’s attack on the
Mareth positions was first
given by Mr. Churchill in his
world wide broadcast from
London last night. Although to-
day’s communique from Gen-
eral Eisenhower’s HQ gives no
details, it is clear that the big
battle for Tunisia has begun.
SHADES OF EL ALAMEIN
In his message to Mr. Chur-
chill, announcing the attack,
General Montgomery says that
operations are proceeding
satisfactorily. The attack began
Saturday night, and simul-
taneously with the land assault,
a terrific air offensive wa?
launched, which correspondents
say, must have made Rommel’s
men think of E1 Alamein.
Bombers squadrons, heavy,
medium and light types; figh-
ters, fighter bombers, long
range fighters and tank busters
from airfields all along the
Allied line, roared in to the
attack.
SHUTTLE SERVICE
The Allied air forces have
been wating for the weather,
which on Friday changed for
the better. That was the signal
to go ahead. Since then con-
tinuous bombing attacks have
been maintained, or as B.B.C.
correspondent Howard Mar-
shall puts it, a twenty-four
hours-a day policy has been
kept up. Bostons, 'Baltimores
and Mitchells have kept up a
shuttle service between their
base and the sector for which
they were responsible, making
nine heavy raids on Saturday
alone.
Allied fighters, during low
level attacks on Axis tran-
sports, shot down four aircraft
out of a formation of intercep-
ting Messerschmitts. One Axis
bomber was destroyed else-
where, as well as several
grounded Axis aircraft on air-
fields attacked.
AMERICAN SUCCESSES
American forces have cap-
tured Sened, north-east of
Gafsa, on the railway line from
there to the sea, and to-day’s
messages put the Americans al-
ready some distance beyond
here. Correspondents seem to
think it quite probable that the
Axis will make a stand in the
hills north and south of Mak-
nessi. Further south, the other
American column, pressing
south-east from Gafsa towards
Gabes in Rommel’s rear, has
more progress to report. The
two. American columns have
between them taken 1,400 pri-
soners, mostly Italians.
Whirlwiuds Hit
French Viaðnet
For the second night running
Whirlwinds of the Fighter
Command attacked the viaduct
at Morlaix, near Brest.
Defying intense anti aircraft
fire, our planes flew in at low
level, and unloaded their bombs
right on the target.
Russians Hold Firra
On llpper Dnieper
London, March 22nd.
On the Central front in Rus- .
sia, Durovo has tallen, while
further south German attacks
have heen held in the Kharkov
region.. New. strong. enemy
attacks are reported between
Vyazma and Orel.
NEARER SMOLENSK
Moscow announced late last
night that driving eastwards
from Vyazma over the week-
end, our Russian Allies have
captured Durovo, only 69 miles
east of Smolensk on the main
railway line from Vyazma. The
capture of this strongly forti-
fied enemy position is the most
important gain on this front for
some days. Messages form cor-
respondents indicate that the
Russian pressure is increasing
as our Allies drive nearer to
Smolensk.
NO BRIDGE HEADS YET
The battle for the Donetz
crossings continue with undi-
minished violence. All the fran-
tic efforts of the Germans to
establish bridgeheads on the
east bank have so far failed,
and at Cheguyev Soviet resis-
tance is said to be stiffening.
HEAVY GERMAN LOSSES
A good way south of Vyazma,
the enemy ín an attempt to
relieve the pressure on the
southern front, has started
attacking heavily about mid-
way between Vyazma and
Orel. The Nazi losses here have
been very heavy, both in men
and material, the last two days’
fighting having cost the Ger-
mans 2,000 officers and men
killed. and our Allies are hold-
ing í:rmlv to their positions.
MacArthnr’s Bombers
6et Jap Vessels
London, March 22nd.
In the South-West Pacific
Allied aircraft attacked eight
Japanese vessels over the week-
end. Some of them of the Kei
Islands, west of the Aru group,
and the others in convoy off the
south-coast of Dutch New
Guinea, where a lot of enemy
shipping movement is repor-
ted. At least one of these ves-
sels was hit so badly that it is
believed to have sunk.
Among other targets visited
by General MacArthur’s bomb-
ers were Japanese positions in
New Britain, New Guinea, and
the Solomons, where two dírect
hits were scored on an enemy
destroyers, which brought her
to a dead stop.
Wavell On Bnrraa
Battlefront
London, March 22nd.
An agency message from
New Delhi to-day reports that
Field Marshall Wavell, C.-in-C.
India has arrived on a visit to
the Burma battlefront.
Allied aircraft were as active
as ever over Burma during the
week end. Our bombers were
over the Dombaik area, attac-
king Japanese positions on the
east side of the Mayju penin-
sula. Among targets here and
elsewhere were enemy air-
fields, ammunition dumps, and
railway objectives, as well as
road transports.
Chungking messages report
that the Japanese invasion from
Burma into the Yunnan pro-
vince has been halted. Our
Chinese Allies have here launc-
hed several counter-attacks,
and the Japanese have been
| forced to withdraw from posi-
tions recéntly gain .d.