GOOD PROGRESS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIII, Issue 268, 12 November 1942, Page 6

GOOD PROGRESS

DRIVE IN LIBYA Sidi Barrani Cleared By Eighth Army Roc. 12.30. RUGBY, Nov. 11. The Bt,h Army is continuing the campaign in the same methodical, unhurried, thorough manner which distinguished its tactics from the start, The Times Cairo correspondent says. Nothing is being left to chance. Rommel is so obviously and thoroughly beaten it is not worth while throwing away men and material which doubtless will be extremely useful a little later. There are at present imposing forces moving up to the frontier behind the more forward units. The desert from Mersa Matruh to Sidi Barrani is already dotted with clusters of vehicles as various headquarters and other sections establish nightly camps. There was neither sight nor sound of Axis planes for the past four days.

The Allies to-day penetrated beyond the spot from which General Wavell started his triumphant drive less than two years ago. This time we have the same distance to cover, but the main part of the task is completed—the enemy is beaten and cut to shreds.

A Middle East communique states: Our forces yesterday, advancing on the coast road, drove the enemy from Sidi Barrani, and engaged his rearguard at Bug Bug. The huge task of collecting prisoners and enemy equipment continued. Our heavy and medium bombers on Monday night attacked transport concentrated around Solium. An air combat was fought over Tobruk yesterday in which two enemy fighters were destroyed. Our torpedo and aircraft on Monday night attacked naval units in the Central Mediterranean. Two hits are claimed on a cruiser. Aerodromes on Sardinia were also attacked. Four of our aeroplanes are missing from these operations. Throughout the Bth Army's advance lighters of the air striking force have not been out of action for a single day. Already, according to a Cairo agency message, the ground crews and fighter squadrons are within two hops of the Cyrenaica landing grounds from which they operated in the summer. The main problem has been to keep fighters sufficiently far forward to be within range of the enemy fighters. This has been achieved despite congestion of road traffic. At each recaptured aerodrome advance parties hurriedly made the landing ground serviceable, pitched a few tents, organised water and petrol supplies and rushed forward ammunition. Once this forward base had been established the aircraft arrived, having carried out fighter sweeps on the way. Continuing its drive into Libya the armoured units of the Bth Army, after wide sweeps into the desert, are now on both sides of Halfaya Pass, blocking the enemy's retreat westwards. The Royal Air Force cooperation with our armoured cars is believed to have closed one end of Halfaya Pass, and our tanks and armoured cars are rapidly closing in. Allied fighters made over Tobruk one of the biggest sweeps seen in North Africa. The chase of the Axis forces has moved so fast over a wide area that it is difficult reliably to estimate the damage inflicted on Rommel. We have practically wiped out his armour, says The Times correspondent, while Reuters correspondent on' the spot believes Rommel cannot' have saved more than 30 tanks andl 20,000 men.

Italian armour was never heavily engaged on the battlefront and much of it has been captured undamaged and without oil. Rommel is obviously trying to get out as many Germans as possible, leaving the Italians to their fate.

Pnmri S i r u Portecl from Madrid that Berl7n tr> S "gently appealed to .a™. v,. ru , sh shlps to Libya to tvacuate his forces. fielri° r r!™ln? U ti * he u services in the neia. General Sir Harolri Alexander S ma h n at r hP. Chief in the 'diddle rvanri r? t ? eer ! promoted Knight Grand Cross In the Order of the Rath and Lieu tenant-General B. L Montgomery has been promoted Knight Commander in the same Order I-;ieu tenant-General Montgomery has also been promoted general for «er vices in the field. Other awards for service in the recent operations will be announced later.