FIRST IMPROVEMENT IN SITUATION

Dominion, Volume 38, Issue 1, 26 September 1944, Page 5

FIRST IMPROVEMENT IN SITUATION

Greater Contact Across River LONDON, September 24. 'The British United Press correspondent says: “The airborne forces holding out on the northern bank of the lower Rhine in the Arnhem area are pressed together in an extremely small space. They have been fighting for a week with supplies that have been dropped to them from the air. The Second Army advancing from the south is at present working at the end of a long, tenuous axis, and crossing of the river is likely to develop into a major operation. “An R.A.F. attack last night against points of communication in the Ruhr in an effort to seal off the German approaches to Arnhem is the latest attempt to aid the encircled airborne troops.” “The battle for the Dutch bridges is nearly won,” says the “Daily Mail’s” correspondent from the Arnhem front. “Field-Marshal Montgomery’s gamble is close to succeeding, in spite of German efforts to cut the lifeline down the long corridor opened up by our armour and airborne troops. The Germans are paying dearly for their attempt to hold Arnhem. The hard-pressed airborne troops so far have prevented the Germans blowing up the bridge.” Deadlock at Bridge. Before reaching the Neder Rhine River British Second Army reconnaissance units had also contacted airborne troops dropped yesterday between Nijmegen and Arnhem. Reconnaissance units report that the main bridge over the river at Arnhem is still intact. Earlier reports stated that parachutists had captured the northern end of the bridge while the Germans held the southern end, and neither could get out on the- bridge itself without being shot up. The paratroops holding the northern end have been subjected to very heavy counter-attacks and shelled and mortared continuously. The Germans claim that most of them were taken prisoner. If so., the reason the Germans have not blown up the bridge is that they hope to recapture Nijmegen, toward which they have been counter-attacking from the cast for 48 hours without a halt, but they have been easily held by American parachutists assisted by British tanks and artillery. Most of the attacks came toward Beek, on the frontier, three miles east of Nijmegen, from enemy forces holding the Reichswald forest in Germany.

The corridor from Eindhoven has been further strengthened by British troops pushing up both east and west of the line taken by the armour in the thrust to Nijmegen, and the German counterattacks against the corridor have died away in consequence.

“An American airborne unit, heating off constant German armoured attacks, is holding open the narrow corridor along which General Dempsey's spearhead is advancing to Arnhem,” savs Reuter’s correspondent with the American airborne forces in .Holland. “This unit, in a miniature offensive this morning, smashed a strong German force loss than a mile above the corridor as other units further north wore expecting a panzer attack against General Dempsey’s highway.”

Another correspondent says that some of the American paratroops are already over the German frontier. One force captured a complete German train filled with soldiers being taken back to the Reich to form new units.

Better news has come tonight from four different points in Holland, says the British United Press correspondent with the British forces, in a late dispatch. Supplies are being sent across the Neder Uhine for the airborne troops at Arnhem, and our. patrols are making contact with the airborne troops nightly across the river. The enemy resistance appe.-prs to be decreasing between the Waal and the Neder Rhine. The threat to the Axial road 'between Grave and Eindhoven is officially considered to have ended. Finally, thp Canadians between tim .axial road, and Antwerp ha.vo made

an advance of I'o miles on a 30-mile front against slight opposition. The latter move anticipates that the Germans have decided on another major withdrawal. What is happening here is governing the extent to which contact can be maintained with the airborne troops across the river whose supply of food and ammunition is likely to be slender. The ability of the British soldier to hang on in the most difficult positions has again made all the difference in two or three critical days. Reuter’s correspondent at Troop-carrier Command headquarters says that Allied airborne forces and elements of the British .Second Army on the south bank of the Neder Rhine near Arnhem may soon be able to launch a new offensive. The troop-carrier forces have flown more than 8000 sorties since the first airborne invasion seven days ago. The weight of the equipment and men carried is estimated to total at about 2000 tons. Staff officers estimate that the losses in the air landing for all missions do not exceed 3 per cent., despite opposition. On the Canadian sector the enemy has withdrawn from the western end of the Eseaut Canal toward the Turnhout Canal. Civilians say that Turnhout. has already been evacuated. The Canadians are not yet over the canal in force. Poles in the Schelde actually crossed tlie water in a captured German E-boat, drawing heavy fire from German batteries on the east bank, which almost sank the boat. The Poles kept it afloat till they returned to the Allied side of the river. The sieges of Dunkirk and Calais continued without incident.