"CAPTURE NEAR"

Auckland Star, Volume LXXVI, Issue 120, 23 May 1945, Page 5

"CAPTURE NEAR"

OKINAWA ISLAND JI.J3. '$ays Japs. Putting In Last' Reserves N;Z. Press Associatioii-HCopyright 1.30 p.m. NEW YORK, May 22 Vice-Admiral Kelly Turner, commander of the Okinawa assault, predicted that the Tenth Army would capture Okinawa in ■ the comparatively near future. "It seems that the Japanese have about their last reserves in the line," he said. "A great road system has been built in a comparatively short timeiwhere no roads previously existed. Several airfields are already operating and every day we have planes from Okinawa attacking Japan. Think what it will be like a month from now." The Associated Press Okinawa correspondent says that nearly 250 Okinawa civilians crept oiit of two tunnels three feet high to-day. They had sought refuge there when the American attacks on Okinawa began six weeks ago. They were so stooped and stiffened from their life in the caves that they were unable to stand erect. They blinked through blurry "eyes at the daylight. • One woman gave birth to a boy as soon as she reached the camp- " A Navy Department spokesman in Washington revealed that Navy, planes, based on Okinawa, sank I 86,880 tons and damaged 51,500 tons of enemy, shipping on the Korean coast in the past few weeks. Admiral Nimitz's communique says the 6th Marine Division in Western Okinawa repulsed a substantial Japanese counter-attack. The Marine's are holding Sugarloaf Hill i after it had changed-hands.ll times. ! The 77th Infantry Division.' in darkness early to-day attacked enemy i lines north of Shuri and captured the town of Tairamachi in face of intense small arms fire. The division is now driving slowly south after repulsing, a Japanese attempt to recapture the town.'