BRAVERY AT KEREN

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 113, 15 May 1941, Page 9

BRAVERY AT KEREN

SEPOY'S SINGLE-HANDED COUP

RUGBY, May 13.

An Indian officer with ten years' active service who took part in storming the fort at Dologoradok, the key of the main defences covering Keren, Eritrea, has described the action as being as hard as any he has known.

"The fort had concreted machinegun positions, a double apron of wire, and some field guns," he said. "Our gunners did very well, but they could not find suitable positions to cut the wire, and we simply had to advance straight up to the fort, cut the wire, and drive t,he Italians out.

"After we had taken the- fort we got an observation and started for the first time to do some effective counter-battery fire. Under its cover our battalion advanced to the top of a small hill just under the Italians'positions on the crown of the heights. •We lay there for several days, shelled from the right, left, and centre, and having constantly to repel counterattacks till we could advance again.

"There were many brave things done. Our platoon had been told to capture two machine-gun posts which had been troubling them. Instead of using the whole platoon, an officer asked for one volunteer. The youngest man in the platoon—he was only 18—stepped out, filled two haversacks with handgrenades, and worked his way round behind the machine-gun positions, each of which contained four men.

"He killed the whole eight with two hand-grenades. When he was retiring on the rest of his platoon he was counter-attacked by twelve Italians, and he killed six and captured six. He was an ordinary Sepoy.—B.O.W.