REBELS BOMBED

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 114, 16 May 1941, Page 7

REBELS BOMBED

IRAK CAMPAIGN

MILITARY POINTS AS

TARGETS

RELIEF AT HABBANIA

LONDON, May 14

In reply to questions in the House of Commons, the Foreign Secretary, Mr. Eden, said that according to reports from Irak the small forces of the Royal Air Force stationed at Habbania, having successfully beaten off the attack of the Iraki forces under ihe orders of Rashid Ali, are now in control of the whole area around the cantonment. Both they and the Imperial forces at Basra, he said, were being rapidly reinforced, and vigorous air action was being carried out by the R.A.F. against military objectives throughout Irak.

; "This will be continued," Mr. Eden !said. "'The British ( Government is j convinced that the action of Rashid Ali and his supporters in launching the attack upon the loyal ally of their country is not upheld by the Iraki people as a whole." ! A message from Bagdad to Vichy says that a communique from Rashid Ali's headquarters states: "Our desert patrols have frequently made contact with the enemy." It adds that a single British plane flew over Bagdad, dropping many bombs without result, and [ also alleges that enemy planes bombed jtwo clearly-marked Red Cross ambu- ' lances.—U.P.A. i LONDON. May 15. ! The latest news of the fighting in Irak is that the R.A.F. continues to attack rebel positions and military objectives such as aerodromes, railways, and motor transport, . Raschid and j Mosul and the railway lint: were raided.