BIG RAID ON RABAUL

Press, Volume LXXIX, Issue 23972, 12 June 1943, Page 5

BIG RAID ON RABAUL

149 AIRCRAFT ON TWO FIELDS ENEMY CONCENTRATION POUNDED (Special Australian Corresp., N.Z.P.A.) (Rec. 11 p.m.) SYDNEY, June 11. In a smashing night raid lasting three hours, Flying Fortresses and Liberators dropped nearly 40 tons ol bpmbs on three aerodromes round Japan’s key southern Pacific base of Rabaul. Lakunai aerodrome, south of the town, was the chief objective, but Vunakanau and Rapopo were also heavily attacked. . Earlier reconnaissance flights had revealed a concentration of 149 Japanese bombers and fighters on the Vunakanau and Rapopo aerodromes, General MacArthur’s spokesman said to-day. Five waves of Allied bombers made the attacks which were the heaviest against Rabaul since March 23, when 54 tons of bombs were dropped. Intense anti-aircraft fire and interception by three enemy.night fighters, all of which were driven off, inflicted no casualties on the Allied aeroplanes, all of which returned. The bombs dropped included high explosive, fragmentation, and incendiary types. Detailing results of the raid. General MacArthur’s communique says:

“One thousand pound bombs caused violent explosions, indicating hits on ammunition dumps. Numerous large fires were started and these were visible 50 miles away. Many small fires —more than 19 were actually counted in the dispersal bays—indicated burning aircraft. Several searchlights at Vunakanau were, simultaneously extinguished by one bomb burst.” The attack on Rabaul is the only major operation reported in General MacArthur’s latest communique. Three other raids have been made during the last 24 hours by Allied bombers engaged on armed reconnaissance. A Catalina made a night attack on Gasmata aerodrome, in New Britain. North of Australia a heavy bomber attacked a 1000-ton enemy cargo ship entering Kokas harbour, on the McCluer Gulf on the south coast of Dutch New Guinea. Damaging close misses at the stern with 5001b bombs left the ship stationary in the water. The town area and shipping in the harbour at Sorong, on the westerly tip of Dutch New Guinea, were also attacked. Large explosions and fires occurred near the jetty. A communique issued by the United States Navy Department reports that during Wednesday afternoon Flying Fortresses, escorted by Warhawks and Lightnings, bombed Japanese positions at Munda, on New Georgia, in the Central Solomons. No United States’ losses were sustained.

AMERICAN MINERS FINED

FUNDS TO BE GIVEN TO CHARITY (8.0. W.) RUGBY. June 10. The United States Coal Administrator (Mr Harold L. Ickes) has announced that the United States Government, as operator of the coal mines, would fine 530,000 miners one dollar a day for the five days the miners were on strike. The fines would be deducted from the miners’ pay and the total, estimated at 26,500,000 dollars, would be distributed to charity. Mr Ickes said that if another walkout occurred before or after the truce on June 20, a fine of a dollar a day will be levied on the miners. BOMBS DROPPED FROM BALLOONS (Rec. 11.15 p.m.) NEW YORK, June 10. Incendiary bombs carried by free balloons, probably released from submarines, were dropped op Oregon forests by the enemy last year. This was disclosed by Lieutenant-Colonel James Fraser, a member of an Army party inspecting logging and lumber operations in the Oregon. Lieutenant-Colonel Fraser warned loggers to be alert for a repetition of these tactics. He said the Army was establishing a forest protection staff. He predicted that the enemy would make a concentrated attack on the Oregon forests, utilising aeroplane bombing and trained saboteurs. FIGHTER PILOT FOUND SHOT (Rec. 11 p.m.) ADELAIDE, June 11. Squadron Leader R. W. Bungey, D.F.C., was found dead on the beach at Adelaide with a bullet wound in his head. Alongside his body in a pusher was his infant son, also shot in the head. The child is not expected to live. Squadron Leader Bungey, who had a brilliant war record and was in command of the Australian Fighter Squadron attached to the Royal Air Force, returned from service in the Middle East only a few weeks ago. Shortly after his return his wife, an English girl whom he married in 1941, died. She was only 22 years of age, and had been in poor health for some time.

JEWISH COMMONWEALTH IN PALESTINE

(Rec. 11 p.m.) SYDNEY. June 11. The establishment of Palestine as a Jewish Commonwealth within the framework of the British Commonwealth of Nations is urged by Dr. Michael Traub, official delegate of the Jewish Agency for Palestine. Dr. Traub, who is concluding a goodwill mission to Australia, will leave soon for New Zealand, and will later go to America.

In Australia he has delivered hundreds of lectures to Jewish and nonJewish audiences.

When the war' began, there were about 7,000,000 Jews in European countries now under Axis rule, said Dr. Traub, in an interview. Up to the end of last year 2,000,000 of them had been murdered. Hundreds of thousands more had been murdered since. Should the announced policy of Hitler continue unchecked, it was not impossible that by the time victory was won the larger part of the Jewish population of Europe would have been exterminated.

Thus between 4,000,000 and 5,000,000 Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe were in danger of annihilation, and action to rescue them should start immediately. The present population of Palestine was 1.500,000 Jews and Arabs. Three or four million more Jews could be settled there, provided they were granted the right, to apply their pioneering ability in colonising the country on a modern basis. The establishment of this centre would npt only solve the problem of Jewish homelessness, but would also be a vital constructive factor in the cultural and economic revival of the Near East.

Amenities for Troops.—lmproved amenities for Australian soldiers at battle stations in the south-west Pacific area have been announced by the Minister of the Army (Mr F. M. Forde). The problem of giving the men in the north home leave has been largely solved by the transfer of whole units at the end of their periods of operational duties. However, there were still isolated detachments who had not been granted home leave for more than two years, Mr Forde said. —Melbourne, June 11.

Russian Prisoners Released.—Four hundred Russian war prisoners were released when the Allies took Tunis. The Red Army soldiers were mostly specialists and technicians whom the Germans had brought to Tunisia four months ago to carry out special work. The prisoners crossed Germany and stayed some time in Italy.—London. June 11.