Daily Post - 22.04.1943, Side 1

EI'JIND’S ONLY ENGLISJtl
DAJLY
ON SALE 8 A.M. EVERY DAY
EXCEPT MONDAY
DAILY POST
IV—75
Thursdav, April 22 nd, 1943.
Frice 50 aurar.
Easter
Bnfidaville Captured — Initial Defence
Lfnes Smashed
Following the speciál communiqué late last night that the
British Eighth Army resumed its ojjensive in Tunisia, to-day’s
official communiqué from General Eisenhower’s HQ announced
Montgomery’s capture of Enfidaville.
AJRTILLERY ACTIVE
Allied correspondents in Tun
isia all seem to agree that this
may be the beginning of the
last great battle in North Af-
rica. The initial attack open-
ed, as usual, with the wither-
ing artillery barrage that the
enemy has from long experien-
ce come to dread. This started
at 11 o’clock Monday evening,
and for 90 minutes the non-
stop pounding of the enemy
positions was kept up, first a-
gainst one Axis pocket, and
then against another, swiching
back and forth, as Montgo-
mery’s infantry stormed for-
ward. At one time as many as
200 guns were dropping shells
on a single objective.
OUR INFANTRY ADVANCE
Then in the bright moon-
light, and when the barrage
was still at its height, our in-
fantry moved across the hills
and olive orchards, to charge
with bayonet and hand gren-
ade the enemy positions one by
one. They met plenty of op-
position, for the enemy was
well supplied with machine-
guns, mortars and hand gren-
ades. But there were no big
guns to contend with, as the
hillsides are too steep for the
moving of heavy guns. Light
artillery moved along with our
troops, and as one formation
scaled the peaks, others moved
around to the rear, meeting
with considerable success.
A few miles west of the main
attack sector, Montgomery’s
mountain troops, Gurkhas and
Empire troops, succeeded in
scaling the 1,200 feet high Je-
bel Ghazi, carrying the Afrika
Korps’ top-ridge positions with
the dreaded kukhri and the
bayonet. An immediate result
of this success was the evacu-
ation by the enemy of a near-
by village, commanded by this
mountain top.
HARD TASK AHEAD
The British Eighth Army’s
main attack was concentrated
on a narrow sector between
Enfidaville and the sea, and
less than three hours after the
attack began, the German first
line had been breached. This
breach was made in the very
first hours of Hitler’s birth-
day, by in a sector defended
seasoned German troops. Our
guns immediately moved for-
wards, to hammer at the sec-
ond German defense line.
An American military spokes
man in North Africa has emp-
hasised the toughness of the
task which lies before the Al-
lied troops now. The moun-
tain barrier, which has to be
negotiated before the slope-
down to the Tunis—Bizerta
plain is reached, is 12 miles
deep, and the terrain such
that tanks are useless.
ENEMY’S LAST STAND
AH Tunisian <&spatehes to-
day agree that this is the en-
emy’s last chance to hold us,
and that he knows it. Romm-
el is massing his very crack
Afrika Korps veterans to meet
our onslaught, and they are
fighting with the ferocity of
desperation, hided by short
communications for the sup-
ply of his troops. The Ger-
mans have establish-'d. them-
(Continued on 4).
In view of the closing of
the Printing Shop for five
days at Easter, Daily Post,
together with the Icelandic
morning papers, will next
appear on Wednesday, Apr-
il 28th.
Here are the loveliest pair of
long legs in Hollywood. They
belong to Wanda Stevenson,
who is six feet tall. The selec-
tion was made by Charles
Walters, one of the film city’s
foremost dance creators.
SILENCE 'IS GOLDEN BE
BE A HOARDER
R.A.F. Raids Set
New fflark
London. April 21st. The RAF
last night set a new record, by
carrying out simultaneous op-
erations against Stettin, Ro-
stock and Berlin in Germany,
with the Fighter 'Command
attacking trains ahd barges all
over the Low Countries, Fran-
ce, and even Germany.
EFFECTIVE BOMBING
The Bomber Command’s
heavy four-engineed bombers,
Lancasters, Halifaxes and
Stirlings, flew to north-east
Germany last night to bomb
the Ealtic port of Stettin, —
which lies 50 miles from Bri-
tain. The raid is officially des-
cribed as very heavy.
The w^eather was good, the
sky clear and brilliant moon-,
light, and our crews said they
really got in some good bomb
ing. This was the RAF’s eighth
raid on Stettin, which has
many important factories, turn
ing out machines and chemic-
als, and is one of Germany’s
chief supply ports for Russia.
It also has big submarine
building yards.
Simulianeously the Bomber
Command sent Stirlings to
raid Rostock, which, it w.J be
recalled, was extremely heavi-
ly attacked last summer. Our
bombers at that time destroy-
ed entirely an area covering
130 acres. Rostock’s chief im-
portance lies in the fact that
it is the home of the big Hein-
kel aircraft works, being also
in possession of important sub
marine building yards. This
attack also, is described as
very heavy.
BERLIN HIT AGAIN
Meanwhile Mósquito bomb-
ers were adding high explos-
ive bombs to the festivities of
Hitler’s birthday celebrations
in Berlin. 'This was the Ger-
man capital’s 60th raid.