The Evening Star SATURDAY, MAY 26, 1945. A.I.F. IN THE ISLANDS.

Evening Star, Issue 25494, 26 May 1945, Page 6

The Evening Star SATURDAY, MAY 26, 1945. A.I.F. IN THE ISLANDS.

The Australian campaigns in the islands are' going well if slowly. They are not campaigns of strategic importance, but'-they are essential if the defeat of the Japanese in the Pacific is to be complete. They are not mere mopping-up operations, as the very size of the forces engaged, the nature of the terrain, and the enemy opposition plainly indicate. There are three main battle areas- occupying the attention of the Australians: On the north coast of New Guinea, between Aitape and Hansa Bay; in New Britain, striking from Open and Wido Bays in the direction' of llabaul; and on Bougainville. Not one of these campaigns is over a thousand miles from Australia, and the New. Guinea fighting is taking place about five hundred air miles from Cape York, Australia's northernmost point. The New Guinea campaign has had its fair share of the news, for the forces here have been large, the country difficult and malariainfected, and weather conditions possibly the worst of the three islands. Enemy strength has varied according to different reports, but it has been accepted that there were about 20,000 Japanese in the Wewak area and to the west when the A.I.F. went into action. In the fighting that led to the fall of Wewak, the Japanese lost substantially, and many surrendered when that base was cleared, but no figures have been given that indicate plainly the full extent of the Japanese losses or how near the end of this campaign has been brought. The Bougainville fighting possibly because of the presence of New Zealand airmen there, has been followed with a fair amount of local interest, and it has been a campaign productive of very tough fighting, in which the Australians, particularly in the Puriata area operations towards the end of March, have fought gallantly against superior numbers. Had it not been for the intervention of Matilda tanks', used for the first time on Bougainville, the result of the Puriata battle might not have been in the Australians' favour. Enemy strength on Bougainville, when the present offensive opened, was estimated at 16,000. The island offers generally mountainous, jungle- ! clad countrv, with reasonably good weather conditions and limited malarial areas.

The objective of the Australian landings at Wide and Open Bays, on cither side of Gazelle Peninsula, on New Britain, is to contain the_ Japanese within the limits of the peninsula as a preliminary to their destruction and the recapture of Itabaul. The fighting here has been tough and is likely to continue so, for it is estimated that there are 40,000 Japanese in the area, and terrain difficulties on the peninsula are exceedingly severe, comprising largely incredibly rough, tangled jungle covering virgin territory which is a mass of razorbacks, ridges, and spurs. Climatic conditions are generally not good, and there is malaria in evidence, but so far this has_ been kept under control. Jungle fighting is acknowledged to be the worst in the world, and where the jungle Las on its side terrain and weather the fighting becomes even more difficult. The morale of the forces on either side is subject to considerable strain in this type of warfare, in which it is impossible to see where the enemy is, and in which death can be sudden and violent in some of the_ most serene corners Nature can provide. These island campaigns <are no mopping-up operations, but grim and bloody battles waged with courage and determination. The Australians engaged know how much mopping up there is about the task assigned to them, and they bitterly resent the term. Apropos: The Acting Minister for the Army, Senator Fraser, visited a- hospital in the But area (New Guinea), where he saw a soldier in bed with his arm swathed in bandages. " How did' you got that? "he asked. The soldier replied: " I was mopping ug the. Japanese with