NOT THE WHOLE TRUTH

Evening Post, Volume CXXIX, Issue 134, 7 June 1940, Page 7

NOT THE WHOLE TRUTH

GERMAN LOSSES

IRRECONCILABLE FIGURES

(British Official Wireless.)

(Received June 7, 10.20 a.m.)

RUGBY. June 6.

The practice of concealing their casualties which was constantly followed by Germany during the last war is recalled in connection with a special German communique broadcast on Tuesday giving the German Losses during the invasion of the Low Countries and northern France as 64,238.

The British estimate of the German losses in the campaign is between 400.000 and 500.000. Such a figure would more closely correspond to earlier estimates given currency in Germany itself. On May 20 Germany was semi-officially informed that the "successes of the army have not been achieved without regrettable losses. These losses.' however, are not greater than the German losses on the Somme and the Marne in the last war." On the same day, Herr Fritsche, director Of the German Propaganda Ministry, said: "You. may be satisfied that the losses are smaller than the German losses in the Somme battle in the Great War." On May 28 the official German news agency warned the German people "to be prepared to hear of losses corresponding to the bitter resistance shown by the Allied armies in France and Artois."

The German losses in the Somme battle alone amounted to at least 660,000 killed, wounded, and missing.

"The Times" says: "It is thus frankly impossible to reconcile Tuesday's figures even with the warning circulated previously by the German authorities themselves. On other grounds, it is certain in any case that the German public are still far from having heard the whole truth, or anything like it."