NIGHT RAIDS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 272, 17 November 1941, Page 7

NIGHT RAIDS

SICILY AND LIBYA Ethiopians lightening Grip On Enemy British Official Wireless. Rec. 2 p.m. RUGBY, Nov. 16. The Middle East R.A.F. communique states that marshalling yards at Catania, in Sicily, were successfully raided by bomber aircraft on Friday night. Brindisi was also bombed and other objectives were at Bengasi, Berka, Bardia and Derna. The central moles at Bengasi were again hit, and a violent explosion occurred in store dumps at Berka. A force of enemy aircraft was intercepted by fighters over a landing ground in the Western Desert and a Messerschmitt 110 was destroyed. Other enemy planes were damaged.

On Friday Maryland bombers of the South African Air Force attacked the aerodrome at Derna and obtained direct hits on two grounded enemy aircraft and the wireless station. Endmv aircraft crossed the Malta coast early yesterday and dropped bombs, states an Admiralty message. No damage was caused and there were no casualties. Later in the morning a single-engined aircraft crossed the coast but no bombs were dropped. Tactics at Tobruk A Cairo headquarters communique states that during the night of November 13-14 there was no hostile bombing or shelling of Tobruk. During the morning, however, the enemy directed heavy mortar fire against the eastern sector of our defences. Later the same sector was dive-bombed. In neither case did we sustain damage or casualties.

Our patrols failed to contact the enemy, indicating that he is again adopting a policy of withdrawing from the most forward positions. In the frontier area our patrols were attacked. There was some enemy shelling and a few hostile armoured vehicles were observed. We again concluded our reconnaissance without loss.

News of the progress in the cleaning up of the military situation in Abyssinia is given in a joint communique by the command and air headquarters, Nairobi, which states that strong fighting patrols from our forces operating against Gondar from Derba Tabor made a reconnaissance of enemy positions on top of the escarpment at Ferroaber-Kulka-ber and succeeded in penetrating enemy positions and drawing much fire.

Following the Ethiopian army success at Granda on November 11, the enemy has now evacuated Janguar and is believed to be evacuating the whole of Cercos and Gorgora. On all other sides of Gondar our regular and patriot forces continue to harass the enemy.

The South African Air Force attacked various enemy positions, scoring many direct hits on trenches and other positions at Kulkaber. R.A.F. aircraft, escorted by South African Air Force fighters, carried out an extensive search of the Adua area for a number of reported German aircraft, but saw nothing of them.