13,000 JAPANESE IN SOLOMONS

Press, Volume LXXX, Issue 24371, 25 September 1944, Page 3

13,000 JAPANESE IN SOLOMONS

♦ OFFICIAL ESTIMATE (R.N.Z.A.F. Official News Service.) BOUGAINVILLE, September 20. Official estimates place the number of Japanese remaining in the Northern Solomons at 13,000. Since March and April when they lost 9080 men in an attempt to capture the Allied airstrips at Bougainville and thus reduce the intensity of the air attacks then being directed at Rabaul, the Japanese have confined their activities to jungle skirmishing. They have not been able to reinforce or evacuate their troops, but they show no inclination to surrender. They have prepared extensive trench systems, machine-gun posts, pillboxes, and artilleyy positions. The present Allied strategy is directed to weakening the enemy’s defences, and lowering his morale. The New Zealand air squadrons are playing a large part in this activity Recently New Zealand Corsair fighterbombers carried out 40 sorties in one day, passing their previous best effort of 38 sorties on August 17. Formations of 24 Corsairs took part in the days operations, striking at targets in many parts of the island. , ... Enemy naval personnel in the Kanin region had to contend with their third minor blitz of the week. Going in at two-minute intervals, the New Zealand pilots dropped 12 tons of high explosive on the target, scoring several direct hits, starting a number of fires and doing considerable damage. A further six tons of bombs was dropped on bridges and roads at the er/reme end of the island. A direct hit completely wrecked an important bridge east of Kahili. The Japanese made no attempt to resist the attacks.