BITTER STRUGGLE

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 283, 26 August 1944, Page 7

BITTER STRUGGLE

First Battle Inside Paris ACCOUNT BY F.F.I. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, August 24. The story of the battle in Paris before the armistice was told tonight in a communique from General Koenig s headquarters. It states, that it appears from new information that the decisive day in the development of the Paris battle was Saturday. Early on the morning of the insurrection strikes became general, and bloody skirmishes increased in all . districtsThe Germans reacted by sending tanks, which fired on a crowd and killed a number of civilians. The fighting was specially intense in the following districts: The Hotel de Ville, the He de la Cite, between the Place St. Michel and the Pantheon, the Place Denfert, Rochereau, and the Avenue des Gobelins, as well as on a line running between the Place de la Republique, the Boulevarde Barbes, and the Gare de I'Est. All the German attacks were repulsed, and 10 heavy tanks were destroyed or captured, as well as 60 machineguns. The F.F.I. captured some anti-tank guns and a considerable amount of equipment, and took 1000 prisoners. Ministries Occupied. During the night the occupation of public buildings continued, and by the morning of Sunday, the Hotel de Ville had been occupied, and the Perfect of the Seine, M. Bouffet, arrested. At that time the F.F.I. was holding the Hotel de Ville and the Prefecture, the Palaise de Justice, the Elysee Palace, the Invalides, the Ministries of the Interior, Finance, Justice, Agriculture, and War, the hail of the Gare de I’Est, and a number of municipal offices, telephone centres, and printing works. During Sunday the enemy appeared to retreat at numerous points. The German command began negotiations for an armistice, offering *to recognize the. F.F.I. as belligerents. During the negotiations the struggle went on at certain points. Thus a group of 400 patriots who had taken up a position between the Boulevarde and the Place St. Michel distinguished themselves throughout Sunday and Monday by destroying 10. tanks, four machinegun carriers, 20 lorries, and 17 cars, and inflicting heavy losses on the Germans.