FIRST BIG TANK BATTLES

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 51, 24 November 1941, Page 7

FIRST BIG TANK BATTLES

Blow For Rommel

ißy Telegra |.b.—Press Assn. —Copyright.) LONDON, November 21. The thunder of battle resounds over vast stretches of the desert tonight, as the Anglo-Imperial forces continue their unrelenting pursuit and destruction of the Germans and Italians. The British land forces had already destroyed or captured 130 German and ... Italian tanks, up to last evening. uur losses are authoritatively set at one-iliird the German and Italian lutal, namely about 00. The official military spokesman in Cairo, tonight said that the Germans by this evening had lost half of their tank force. # The Axis" so far has lost 69 planes (19 were captured almost intact at Rezegh) while the British and Dominion air forces have lost 14. Tonight’s Cairo communique says: “Tiie battle in Cyrenaica was joined iu earnest yesterday afternoon. Following their rapid advance on the two previous days, our armoured forces on November 20 engaged German tanks in strength near Rezegh, 10 miles from Tobruk’s outer defences. After losing 70 tanks and 33 armoured cars, the German forces withdrew, leaving several hundred prisoners in our hands. •'Between this area and Sidi Omar, near tiie Egyptian frontier, a further British armoured division came into action against yet another concentration of German tanks which had advanced southward from the BardiaGambut area. During the first action of November 19 the enemy lost 20 tanks against 20 of our own. Yesterday morning this action was resumed, as a result of which the enemy was finally driven off in a uorth-easterly direction, losing a further 34 tanks.” The communique said that the Italian armoured division which was. originally deployed in the El Gubbi area had apparently exerted no influence ou the battle now proceeding in that area. Push Across Rear.

The troops in the wake of the armoured spearheads are thrusting northward behind Sidi Omar to cut off the frontier line defences, on which the Germans and Italians spent so much time and effort. To their right they see great columns of black smoke shooting up on the horizon as the artillery on the Egyptian side of the frontier pounds the fortifications and lays down barrages for the attacking troops. Our lightning advance to Rezegh has put us astride Rommel’s main line of retreat and supply. General Cunningham apparently has consolidated this thrust by rushing up major armoured forces and establishing what the Cairo spokesman called at ring around German forces in north-east Libya. Rommel is believed to have some armoured forces west of Tobruk, but their strength is unknown. The Italians, according to the latest reports, are retreating toward Tobruk. Whatever the outcome, General Cunningham apparently has succeeded brilliantly in splitting the Axis forces by consolidating the wedge to Rezegh and forcing a separate engagement with the Italians at El Gubbi. The lightning speed of the British .■lterations was illustrated by the cap- • ure of Rezegh aerodrome. Fifty pilots ■ad the members of the ground staff ■>e;e stiH oii’tlie airfield, and the Brit--h rounded them up before they were ■ ware of their plight. It is believed that the British armoured forces are already many miles *est of Tobruk.

A dispatch from the desert describes a severe trouncing of Italian tanks, 45 of which were put out of action before the British advance to Rezegh. The encounter occurred on the night of November IS with a concentration of Italians around El Gubbi. The fight was short, the British playing havoc with the Italians, who fled north-west with the remains of their force and a British brigade at their. heels. The British force reached a point near the perimeter at Tobruk next morning. Up to this stage the Germans, with some exceptions, had not been accepting fight, making off as fast as possible in the direction of El Adem, with British armoured units following closely. One large force of German infantry, however, which was almost surrounded in the region of Sidi Omar, put up a strong resistance. The New Zealand division is moving up fast from the south in a northwesterly direction in an attempt to cut off a possible German retreat in the S'idi Omar area, and two Indian brigades are deploying with the same aim. Other German forces are holding out between Solium and Bardia, with the support of the guns at Fort Capuzzo. British infantry are attacking them.. The Cairo military spokesman said that the Libyan battle this afternoon was going extremely well.