WEST OF BARDIA

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 81, 30 December 1940, Page 7

WEST OF BARDIA

Mopping-up Work Continues TOTAL OF PRISONERS NOW 38,114 (British Official Wireless.l (Received December 29. 7 p.m.) RUGBY, December 28. .A communique from the British headquarters in Cairo states: "Hie concentration of our forces investing Bardia is proceeding smoothly, while our artillery continues to harass the Italian garrison. Operations by our mobile detachments to clear the country to the westward are proceeding. “The prisoners counted to date since the beginning of the operations in the Western Desert now number 38,114, of which 24.845 are Italian officers arid other ranks. Four additional guns have been captured south of Bardia. “On the frontiers of the Sudan and Kenya our patrols have again been active.”

A Royal Air Force communique states: "There was little activity over the ■Western Desert yesterday. A number of reconnaissances were made and our lighters maintained active offensive patrols without, however, engaging any enemy aircraft. •'•ln Italian East Africa, Assab was raided by our bombers, their bombs straddling military stores and a large transport yard. At Kassala a Rhodesian squadron carried out bombing and machine-gun attacks on the enemy positions. Bombs fell in the target area, but the full extent of the damage and casualties is not known. Near Gedaref fighters of a South African squadron intercepted two 01142 s, one of which was shot, down in flames. “All our aircraft returned safely.”

13-ineh Guns Shell Bardia

LONDON, December 27.

The British guns are pounding the Italian defences at Bardia in preparation for the final assault. Two 13-ineh guns have been manned by naval gunners to support the field artillery. A continuous stream of heavy tanks and guns is moving up. An army officer told a correspondent of the Associated Press of Great Britain: “We could go in and take Bardia now, but that would probably cost a good many lives, so we are keeping on hammering at them. When we get more tanks up we will get them out of their holes without much trouble.” Reports from Cairo say that thousands of Italian troops are working feverishly on new fortifications at the port of Tobruk, which is already heavily fortified. Tobruk is GO or (0 miles west of Bardia. The work is said to have been ordered by Marshal Graziani, apparently with the intention of giving the Italians a second stronghold in Libya if Bardia falls.

Italian prisoners say that Mussolini Inis given orders for Bardia to be held at all costs. The Italian troops were on the point of falling back from Bardia to ’Tobruk when these orders were received from the Duce.