ENEMY BASTION WEAKENED

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 111, 4 February 1941, Page 7

ENEMY BASTION WEAKENED

Albanian Front GREEKS’ GAINS IN CENTRE Predicament Of Italians (By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Received February 3, 9.15 p.m.) LONDON, February 3. It was officially announced in Athens yesterday: “We launched successful local attacks in various sectors, occupied important positions, and captured automatic arms, mortars, and all sorts of material and 270 prisoners, including officers.” The Athens correspondent of “The Times” says that the successful Greek actions of the last few days were only a continuation of the patient nibbling process with which the Greeks followed up the capture of Kelcyra, but the latest victory was evidently accelerated by General Cavallero’s desperate endeavour to counter-attack incessantly regardless of the preparations made for his army. General Cavallero launched his coun-ter-attacks in four successive waves in the central sector, using the greater part of the first-line troops in this region. They were beaten back with losses, after which the Greeks followed up the rout with a series of local and ostensibly independent actions, including a night assault. As st result ,of these actions heights of exceptional importance have been captured, including the entire massif due northward of Kelcyra. This, in turn., opens the way to other heights dominating the enemy’s principal communications in this sector, on which it is noteworthy that General Cavallero apparently relied for his prospects of holding up the Greeks, because the region is a defensive bastion of first-rate importance.

Despite snow, fog and generally-de-teriorating weather the Greeks have been enabled to approach much nearer to their principal objectives in this sector, and General Cavallero may well be forced to fall back on the strategy of his luckless predecessors and rely principally on defensive operations. Huge Enemy Loss. LONDON, February 2. The Athens radio tonight described the latest operations in Albania as the beginning of a new phase in the Greek advance. Foreign observers estimated that the Italian losses in the latest counter-at-tacks reached 40 per cent, of the total effectives. The radio added that the Greeks in the coastal sector, after consolidating the positions recently captured on the heights, are now. bringing strong pressure to 'bear against the enemy, compelling them to abandon position after position. The Greeks have occupied excellent Italian defence works which are a protection from the cold. Yesterday the enemy attempted a rearguard action ou the western slopes of the mountains, but the Greeks descended from the crest and wiped them out. It has been officially announced in Athens that Valona was again attacked yesterday by Royal Air Force bombers, the raid being carried out in bad weather conditions. Warehouses, a munition dump, and a timber depot were among the targets effectively bombed, direct hits on buildings being registered. Anti-aircraft fire was intense, but the formation machine-gunned the battery from a low level. All the aircraft returned safely. Submarine Successes. The submarine Papanicolis torpedoed and sank an Italian steamer of 10,000 tons which warships were escorting off Brindisi. Athens announces. An unidentified submarine on the Dalmatian coast sank an Italian tug which was towing a large armed barge for Albanian coastal defence. Fifteen men were drowned. The barge was then towed into a Yugoslav port. Italian air attacks during the third month of the war, ended on January 28, killed 67 civilians, including 21 women and children, wounded 93 persons, and destroyed 160 homes, 50 refugee houses, and five churches, and hit three schools and four hospitals. British aid to Greece is not confined to war material, but includes many consignments of food and clothing, such as 2,000,0001 b. of bully beef, 2,200,0001 b. of rice, 350,000 pairs of boots, 120,000 pullovers, and 350,000 pairs of socks, besides 80 tons of medical equipment and 45 ambulances.