A GRAND SHOWING

Evening Star, Issue 24096, 17 January 1942, Page 7

A GRAND SHOWING

AUSTRALIANS IN ACTION HUKHATE AIR SUPPORT LONDON, Jan. 16. Tha Australian Prime Minister, Mr J. Curtin, announcing at Canberra that the Australians were in action against the enemy in Malaya* added thaf later, reports indicated that the men of the A.I.F. were fighting magnificently, but were hampered by lack of air support. ‘ The Times,’ in a leader, stated that there was no doubt the situation m Malaya had become extremely serious. The enemy’s advance, which had averaged 100 miles a week, had been bold, resolute, and by no means lacking m skill. ‘ The Times ’ went on to emphasise that British, Indian, and Australian troops were at the moment compelled to fight without adequate air support. It pointed out, too, that so far our forces had suffered relatively light losses in their withdrawal. The time had come, however, for a stern and resolute stand, and losses could not be considered in the defence of Singapore. , , ' The A.I.F. troops, who have been moved to the front line, were trained for months in jungle and guerrilla warfare, planning to employ this form of attack against the Japanese and meet the enemy with his own weapons. FULL OF CONFIDENCE. Major-general G. H. Bennett stated: “ The Australians have been here for nine months and have studied the type of warfare believed to be the best for this type of country. They are guerrillas by nature and training, and now the- chance has come to discover whether their belief is correct. They are going in full of confidence, feeling that they know the answer to the Japanese problem and glad to play their part. The force consists not- only of Australians, but Indian and British troops, the majority of whom have been in the fighting since the start, and they need a rest. Therefore a heavier responsibility rests on the fresh Australians. The Australians undoubtedly are better than the Japanese, man for man, but this is not man for man, it is a man to many men. That does not perturb us, as we have qualities outweighing that. When the Jap. meets these splendidly fit men he will get a shock. We know the Japanese are not so good as many believe, and in spite of our fewer numbers we hope not only to stop the Japanese, but at the earliest date put them on the defensive. “ The impending battle for southern Malaya will test the theory widely held here that the Japanese can be countered with the weapon they have been using since the outbreak—namely, infiltration. We will penetrate behind his lines if necessary, as he penetrates behind ours. British strategy thus far has been confined within the limits imposed by a shortage of men and vulnerable linos of communication. For that reason there has been a series of ‘ contact withdrawals.’ Since the outset British strategy has been to save men as far as possible until reinforcements permitted a decisive battle. Furthermore, the Imperial force will now bo better protected in the air against Japanese bombers, which has been a most serious problem for troops operating further north.”

SOME DAMAGE CAUSED ENEMY RAIDS OVER RABAUL (British Official Wireless.) (Rec. 10.35 a.m.) RUGBY. Jan. 16. A supplementary R.A.A.F. communique states that the Japanese again raided Rabaul in New Britain this evening. Both this and the previous one were high-level attacks. Service property was damaged.

INVIGORATING TONIC APPEARANCE OF A.I.F. TROOPS ENEMY SUFFER SHARP REVERSE LONDON, Jan. 16. The latest Singapore communique describes the land fighting It states. that heavy casualties have been inflicted on the enemy and that planes'of the Far East Command have carried out heavy bombing attacks on enemy targets.. Some contact has been made with enemy troops on the west front, where the situation is unchanged. In Negri Simbilan, where the Australian troops are in action, the Japanese casualties were very heavy when, following an initial; advance, they suffered a sharp reverse. The Australians wrecked 14 tanks and 10 other armoured vehicles which the enemy was using in the advance. Reuter’s Singapore correspondent says: “ The news that the Australians have gone into action at this critical stage acted like a tonic to the tired -British troops.” A Batavia message states that after Tarakan was occupied, by the Japanese one Dutch coastal battery sank two Japanese destroyers and one landing sloop. An anti-aircraft battery shot down a seaplane. All the batteries, searchlights, and other arras were destroyed before the Japanese overran the place. JAPANESE INTIMIDATED REPUTATION OF AUSTRALIANS ENEMY FORCE CAUGHT IN AMBUSH (llec. 8 8.m.) CANBERRA, January 16. The latest reports to hand indicate that the A.I.F. is fighting magnificently and has the situation in hand, although it remans most difficult because of the absence of air support, said Mr Curtin. A cable had been received from Majorgeneral Bennett that the Australians were eager for a fight. “ 1 trust the enemy will soon realise that I am alive,” he said. Major-general Bennett stated that in their first action of the advanced units against the Japanese the A.I.F. casualties were very light, and at least 200 of the enemy were killed. Mr Curtin said the communiques the Japanese had been broadcasting and the flurry which they occasioned by their propagandist activities were designed to ascertain where the A.I.F. was located. Having regard to tho A.l.F.’s prestige in other theatres of battle in every war in which it had fought, the Japanese were most anxious to know how they could avoid the Australians, or, if that were unavoidable, organise an overwhelming superiority over them. How an Australian patrol ambushed and inflicted heavy casualties on advance Japanese troops in Malaya is related by the Associated Press correspondent. ‘The Australian patrol, moving through the jungle at dawn, .suddenly sighted a party of from 80 to 100 Japanese infantry on foot, preceded by medium tanks. Quickly taking up a station on either side of tho road, the Australians allowed the first enemy tanks to pass and then opened up a withering attack on the Japanese, who were taken completely by surprise. Grenades were hurled at the tanks wliilo tommy guns and rifles mowed down the enemy troops. Before the Japanese were able to recover the Australians broke up and disappeared individually into the jungle, assembling later. An official report from headquarters, succinctly Australian, says; “ IVc cleaned them up.”

THE AUSSHES PREVAIL (Rec. 1 p.m.) SINGAPORE, Jan. 16. In an operation in which an Australian patrol ambushed a party of advance Japanese troops and a bridge behind the Japanese was blown up, the Official Australian Correspondent reports that the Japanese effected .repairs during the night, and in the morning a number of Japanese tanks came down the road. They were engaged by Australian anti-tank troops, and six tanks were knocked out. Simultaneously, on cither side of the

road infantry were dealing with Japanese attempts at infiltration. Then enemy air activity commenced, the roads being savagely dive-bombed both behind our lines and along the path of the outposts. This afternoon enemy, in strength estimated at a brigade, with extra tanks and armoured cars, was beginning to make contact with our main body. Australian artillery is pounding the enemy, who is attacking fiercely. During the morning the enemy was also reported as attacking further west. Hero he was engaged by Australian artillery supporting Indian troops, and was checked by accurate and devastating fire. In the order of the day to the A.I.F. Major-general Bennett said: “ Our job is not only to delay the Japanese, but also to destroy him. In your hands rests not only the fate of Singapore, but the security of Australia itself.” General Bennett predicted that there would be hectic fighting in the next two or three days.

GRAVE OUTLOOK SITUATION IN MALAYA JAPANESE CLAIM FURTHER PROGRESS LONDON, January 15. There is now general recognition in London that the threat to Singapore is critical and that the outlook in Malaya is likely to remain grave. Unofficial reports from Singapore say the Japanese are making more rapid progress than the latest official British statements indicate. The official rcports_ continue to be vague and uninformative, and the only reports of the land fighting continue to come from Japan. The Tokio official radio claims that Japanese troops entered Johore State last night and occupied the railway junction at Geinas and Tampin. It was later claimed that Japanese tank forces had reached a point 90 miles from Singapore in the vicinity of the Endau River. The Japanese on the Malayan east coast have reached Pahang, and in the west their forces have landed on the island of Rhio, in the archipelago south of Singapore. The Japanese also claim that a special landing force captured all the aerodromes in the Minahassa zone in the Celebes, and that their air force attacked Now Britain in the Bismarck -Archioeiago. and also the Malacca islands, in the Netherlands East Indies.