GREEKS NEAR VALONA

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 December 1940, Page 7

GREEKS NEAR VALONA

LAST HEIGHT CAPTURED FIGHTING IN SUBURBS [BY CABLE—PRESS ASSN. —COPYRIGHT.] LONDON, December 15. Reports from the Albanian border indicate that the bloodiest fighting of the war has broken out on the northern front. The battlefied northwest of Pogradetz is strewn with dead.

Artillery fire was opened on the whole north front early in the morning and the Greeks threw * their trops forward under cover of a heavy barrage against fortified Italian positions, attacking with particular violence in the Devol valley and the Shkumbi valley.' The Greeks are advancing slowly under heavy fire north-west and north of Pogradetz. Big guns, both Italian and Greek, are roaring continuously from Moskoolis to Lake Ochidra. Italian bombers are very active on the whole north front. The Greeks are using tractors and snowploughs in an effort to push on to exploit fully the impetus of each local victory. Italian prisoners bring tales of desperate chaos in the Italian provisioning. The breakdown of this resulted in large numbers of soldiers being found dead from hunger. The Greek communique issued last night said that the offensive was proceeding successfully. Important heights had been occupied and many prisoners, 60 anti-tank rifles, mortars and other arms had been captured. An Athens spokesman said that the new heights captured were the last Italian stronghold. The Tepeleni correspondent of the “Daily Telegraph” says the Greeks here have taken a mountain which was a formidable barrier to their advance to Valona, separating the Tepeleni area from the coastal

region/ The Greeks are now confronted by a series of hills sloping to the coast at right angles to this mountain, thus facilitating their advance and further gravely circumscribing the Italians. LARGE CAPTURES. A Greek military spokesman said that Italian prisoners, not including the most recent captures, totalled 200 officers and 7000 other ranks. The booty included 120 guns, 55 antitank guns, , 230 motor-cars, 15,000 motor-cycles and bicycles, many tanks, thousands of automatic arms, many pack and haulage animals, and other material amounting in value to millions of pounds. It was later stated that the Italians were reported to" have evacuated Khimara and were falling back towards Valona. A large part of Tepeleni is stated to be ablaze. The Greek forces in the south have accelerated their advance and now menace Khimara. The Italians, concentrating on the heights in front of Khimara, drafted in fresh troops to relieve the units worn out with the rapid retreat and the relentless Greek attacks, but the Greeks quickly dealt serious blows to these troops. A Greek column. on the coast has joined up with a column pursuing the Italians from Argyrokastron, which was already two miles from Tepeleni. The two Greek columns , together occupied Borci, three miles from Porto Palermo. Thus the Greeks have full lateral communication from the coast to the region of Khsura. The Italians, therefore, face formidable forces on what is possibly their last effective defence positions before Valona. The “Daily Telegraph points out that it is difficult to see how Valona can be held if these defences fall.

R.A.F. BOMB VALONA. RUGBY, December 15. Valona was twice raided by the R.A.F. yesterday, it is announced from the headquarters of the British air forces in Greece. . In the first attack, bombs fell among military stores and a motor transport park. A column of black smoke was seen to rise from the motor transport concentration, and although the clouds prevented full observation, the army barracks was also seen to be hit. In the second attack, the aerodrome was bombed, all the bombs 'falling in the target area, and an enemy aircraft taking off, spun rouno on its wing tip and stopped. From all the operations, all the British airciait returned safely. COMPARTIVT STRENGTHS. LONDON, December 14. The brilliance of the Greek victories since the campaign began is well indicated by a comparison issued by the Greek High Command of the strength of the opposing. forces on October 28, when the Italians began their attack. In the coastal sector the Italians had one army corps, consisting of three divisions, three regiments of cavalry, one regiment of grenadiers, and 18 batteries of heavy artillery. The Greeks had one division. In the Pindus area, in the central sector, the Italians had one division of Alpini, reinforced by heavy artillery. " The Greeks had one regiment and one battalion. In the northern sector, the Italians had one army corps of three divisions, two Albanian battalions, eight batteries of heavy artillery, and a sectiop of tanks. The Greeks had one division and one brigade.