IN ABYSSINIA

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 166, 16 July 1941, Page 10

IN ABYSSINIA

BELGIAN TROOPS' PART

ITALIAN GENERALS CAPTURED

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday. . rr e Consulate-General of Belgium in J\ew Zealand states that a contingent from Belgian colonial forces f£ a 2 ne i in , Congo crossed into s " da ! l iast January to join the British Imperial forcos. A communique from the headquarters of the Belgian forces in the Congo has been received by the ConsulateGeneral. "General Gazzera. general officer g Italian troops of t i C. a " a an£ l Sidamo provinces, on July 3 sent a delegate to the Belgian troops to discuss the cessation of hostilities with the Belgian General Gilliaert, general officer commanding t t le . Allied forces in north-east Abyssinia, says the communique. "The capitulation was signed on July 4 for al Ethiopian territories south of the Blue Nile. "The surrender was preceded by an attack in force by Belgian troops after a violent preparation by artillery and mortars. At noon on July 3 the Italian delegates requested an armistice, which was followed by the total reddition of the Italian forces comprising 15,000 men of Galla and bidamo, at 2 p.m. the following day At Saio Belgian troops captured General Gazzera and General de Simons, who _ was commanding a group of Italian divisions, and a general commanding the 23rd Italian Division, apart from 1200 Italians, among them many officers, and 2000 native noncommissioned officers and men. Thus the gallant campaign of the Belgian troops in Abyssinia, in collaboration with the gallant British troops, ends with a brilliant success." In the economic field the Belgian colonial empire brings a considerable contribution to Britain's war effort. All the gold produced in the Congo, almost 5Q0,0000z yearly, is B°ujg to the Bank of England, as well as the balance of all foreign exchange credits (valued at 80,000.000 dollars in 1938) after the colony's and the Belgian Government's own requirements are provided for. The Congo's economic resources i are used also to aid the Free French i allies in co-operation with the French ! colonies which rejected Vichy. The 1 allegiance is complete and g'oes far beyond the economic field. In this i way forces which won Togo, the ! Camejoons and Equatorial Africa i back to the Allied "cause used the Congo as a base of operations. When peace is achieved through victory men of goodwill will say Belgium in the darkest hour of her history did not lose heart nor faith in life. i