COLLAPSE OF KEY DEFENCE

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 180, 28 April 1941, Page 7

COLLAPSE OF KEY DEFENCE

Yugoslav Traitors Blamed EXHAUSTED GREEKS (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Received April 27, 7 p.m.) LONDON, April 26. The “New York Times’ ” correspondent, Mr. Sulzberger, who re? cently arrived in Turkey from Greece, making s a review of the operations in the Balkans, declares that the invasion of Yugoslavia was greatly aided by Fifth Columnists. Within 36 hours of the invasion traitors cut almost every important communication in South Serbia. The Yugoslav armies there were unable to get in touch with each other and actually evacuated the Monastir Gap before the Germans were anywhere near, thus enabling the speedy German advance which outflanked the British line. The Yugoslavs planned to attack the Italians in Albania, where the Greeks were ready for an offensive, but inefficient troop concentrations spoiled the plan. The offensive to Albania never actually began, and the Greeks were forced to withdraw from their part of Albania in order to cooperate with the new Allied defence line, which was based on the assumption that the Monastir Gap would remain closed.

Finally, a majority of the Greek generals favoured capitulation, feeling that Greece had already done her part honourably. Nevertheless, they kept on fighting and dying in thousands in order to give the British a fighting chance to escape. • A Greek general who was with his army during the last hours before its capitulation has given facts and categorically denied charges of cowardice that have been levelled at the gallant, but outnumbered Greek forces (states British Official Wireless). Brilliant Withdrawal.

“I am in a position to assure the Greek people that the officers and men carried out their duties with utter disregard to self and wrote fresh pages in the gloribus military history of our country,” the general states. "The unhappy issue of events was in no way at all due to cowardice or any other cause, save that the Greek army, after fighting hard and victoriously for six months on the Albanian front, suddenly found itself when the Yugoslav front collapsed forced to meet another army with more modern equipment, more highly mechanized and with a stronger air force. ' “In these circumstances it had to withdraw some 90 miles continuously pounded by the enemy air force, from which it had no protection. This operation was made for strategic reasons and was carried out without a single soldier falling into the hands of the enemy, and it will excite the admiration of . the whole world when the precise conditions in which it was performed can be disclosed.

“Finally, finding its communications severed and its supplies cut off due to ceaseless bombing and machine-gun-ning, seeing Greek towns destroyed one after another, and under intense pressure from the north and the east, it was forced to lay down its arms when a continuation of the struggle was utterly impossible.” PAPAGOS RESIGNS COMMAND (Received April 27, 11.40 p.m.) LONDON, April 27. It is announced in Athens that the Greek commander-in-chief, General Papagos, has been relieved of the command at his own request.