FIGHTING FIT

Evening Post, Volume CXXXIII, Issue 140, 16 June 1942, Page 5

FIGHTING FIT

N.Z.E.F. IN SYRIA

LEARNING TO STRIKE HARD

(Official Wir CorresponCent, N.Z.E.F.) BEIRUT, June 12.

.The' possibility of Syria, a battleground for 5000 years, seeing further fighting in this war steadily lessens as, the, United" Nations strike at the Axis on land.and sea and in the air, and pour :war equipment into the Middle East by sea. The Allied fleet watches the Eastern Mediterranean, and on land the Russian army in the Caucasus and the. Azerbaijan mountains starfds between the German .forces and the riches of Iran, Irak, and Syria, where the 9th and 10th British Armies are stationed. Guarding the age-old invasion routes into Syria is the 9th Army, including the New Zealand Division and Australians. There is no defensive-inertia in the division. It has struck the enemy hard in the past and is learning to strike him harder still in the future. In bitter winds on the snowfields, and, in the leaden heat of the Syrian desert, the New Zealanders have been carrying out intensive tactical training- In one week the troops' have been lorried infantry, maa strong striking force; the next, mountain troops, carrying supplies on mules and forcing a way for long miles over steep, scrub-covered wastes.- Close air support provides long-range eyes, and the artillery land forces add a powerful weapon1 to the already strong brigade group organisation.

Two New Zealand brigades have already manoeuvred in Syria as an independent striking force, and the third, which fought for five weeks in Libya' as a brigade group, is starting similar training shortly. A feature of these manoeuvres has been the success of the air support scheme, which enables the brigadiers to observe and attack the enemy far beyond the range of land weapons.

E-Qng marches, and plenty of digging and road-making, have made the New Zealanders brown and fit. Live shooting with all arms has added interest to the training. Occasional changes of position, including a week's change of air in camp at the seaside, relieved the monotony of being out of action. Their next, action will find one of the most experienced divisions in the British Army at its best.