ENEMY SEALED OFF

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 71, Issue 36, 22 November 1950, Page 5

ENEMY SEALED OFF

UNO DRIVE TO BORDER POWERFUL FORCE INVOLVED (N.Z.P.A.-Reuter— Copyright). (Rec. 12.5.) SEOUL, This Day. The American drive to the Manchurian border yesterday sealed off what is believed to be a powerful force of Communists, including Chinese, in Korea’s north-east arc. This is iron ore and timber country, and is covered by a good road and rail network.

An American intelligence officer

said that sizeable Chinese forces were * reported on both sides of the Tumen River dividing Korea and Manchuria. The; ,Nor th; Korean . forces, are:; iprtown to haVe retreated into • this corner of the country. In the east, the Communists appear to be concentrating on Huichon, with a defence line running from Taechon to Unsan. The officer said he thought this was not a continuous line, but would be held by Communists on the mountains and hills running up towards the Yalu River. The Huichori-Onjong area is reported to be occupied by Chinese Communists, who have placed blocking defences along the approaches to Sinuiju, at the mouth of the Yalu River. The officer said he thought the Communists now intended to make a stand on these defences when the United Nations’ forces attack. At the moment the Allies are carefully moving the whole line forward, not fighting out in “isolated thrusts, to avoid falling into a trap at the beginning and having mauled spearheads reaching ahead of the main force. Seven Allied divisions were reported to-day poised for a drive against 100,000 enemy troops in North Korea. The United Press correspondent said that officials at general MacArthur’s headquarters had abandoned the faint hope that the Chinese would withdraw from Korea Under political pressure or political assurances. The stage was set for an Allied drive to the Manchurian border when the Communist forces fell back in Cen- • tral Korea, thus ending the danger of an enemy break-through down the middle. Meanwhile Chinese Communist troops poured down through Northwest Korea to reinforce a new line 50 to 60 miles south of the border. While the Allies marked time on the western front, South Koreans scored another sensational advance on the east coast. They broke through the last known Communist defence line in the north-east and advanced 12 miles to within 15 miles of Chongjin the biggest east coast port still in enemy hands. The South Korean advance snatched from the United States’ 7th Division troops the distinction of being the northernmost of the Allied forces. The Americans held the honour for a few hours after they reached the Yalu River boundary between north-eastern Korea and Manchuria.