GUSTAV LINE TAKEN

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 May 1944, Page 5

GUSTAV LINE TAKEN

GERMAN RETREAT DEVELOPING

MAIN ROAD TO ROME CUT

FRENCH-AMERICAN CAPTURES

LONDON, May 16. To-day’s communique from Italy says that French troops in the mountainous country south of the Liri Valley have made more progress. At one point they are eight miles from the positions where the advance began and they have taken three more villages. ‘ American troops west of the road running south from Ausonia have captured Spigno, three miles southwest of Ausonia. The Bth Army has extended its bridgehead across the Rapido River below Cassino. A reported with the Army says the bridgehead is now two miles deep. The village of Pignataro Interamna, four/miles southwest of Cassino, is being attacked. The number of prisoners taken since the beginning of the offensive is estimated at 3000. The Allied air forces fiew 1800 sorties yesterday. Heavy bombers were not operating, but medium bombers attacked ports on the west coast; and light and fighter-bombers attacked targets in the battle area. About 30 German aircraft were over the battle area, and seven of them were destroyed. Eight Allied aircraft are missing. , ; Reuter’s correspondent reports that troops of the Bth Army in the Rapido bridgehead are assaulting the town of Pignataro, two miles west of San Angelo, in face of heavy opposition from German Mark 111 and Mark IV tanks and 7.5 assault guns. The bridgehead is now nearly two miles deep. FRENCH FURTHER GAINS LONDON, May 16. An Allied communique stated that the Allied armies in Italy have maintained the impetus of their attacks against the southern sector of the Gustav Line. The Eighth Army’s bridgehead across the Rapido River in the Liri Valley has again been expended, and more strong points taken. To-day’s Allied communique adds: French troops of the Fifth Army have made further advances in the moun-I tains in the south. All organised! German resistance has now ceased' up to a road running north and south through Ansonia. The troops also have advanced and taken the town of Spigno, which is west of this road. “Effective naval co-operation continues to be given to the left flank of the Filth Army. An American cruiser, escorted by two destroyers, on Sunday bombarded enemy positions and batteries in an area around Formia and Itri. Two enemy ammunition dumps were hit. Bombardment of the same area was successfully continued on Monday with 800 rounds from a British cruiser. There was some retaliatory fire from the shore, but the ships suffered no damage or casualties. EIGHTH ARMY'S ACHIEVEMENT NEAR TO APPIAN WAY (Rec. 11.20 a.m.) LONDON, May 16. The Eighth Army spearheads are now on the point of cutting the German garrison’s main escape road from Cassino—Highway Six, which is the main inland road to Romo, says Reuter’s correspondent at Allied Headquarters. Meantime, General Leese’s men, after severing the Cas-sino—-Pignataro Road, are little more than one mile from the Appian Way and parallel with the railway which is the coastal route to Rome. The Germans are hotly contesting a wedge between Highway Six ancT the Cassinc-Pignataro Road. They are fighting savagely to protect Highway Six with hastily organised parachute units, backed by tanks. General Kesselring is throwing in numbers of Mark Three and Mark Four tanks to stave off the threat of Pignataro’s fall and the severance of the Rome road.

French troops driving northward and westward on the Upper Garigliano sector captured Santa Lucia and Le Forche, both south-west of the already occupied San Giorgio. Le Forche is the furthest point reached by the French, and represents a total advance of eight miles. The French also hold the villages of Casale, Annunziata and Castelnuova, all between Ansonia and San Giorgio, and have cut the road running northwest from Castelnuova. The Americans on the Lower Garigliano captured Capodacqua, south of Spigno, and just west of the lateral road, They also captured Monte Lacivita, west ol Santa Maria Infante.

The Geimans, except at Cassino and Monastery Hill, are already out of the original Gustav Line, and are defending hastily-dug defences, states Reuter’s correspondent in a despatch to-night from advanced headquarters. He adds that the Ger-1 mans’ reserves are already filling up the Hitler Line. COUNTER-ATTACKS FAIL. GERMAN ADMISSIONS (Rec. 11.40.) _ LONDON, May 17. Thu Americans have repulsed enemy counter-attacks against their hill positions and resistance in this sector has decreased. The Germans holding the high ground west of the Fifth Army are now dependent on rough mountain trails for communications. The French have virtually destroyed the German 194th Grenadier Regiment with the whole of its headquarter’s stall, and 131st Infantry Regiment. The Coloumbia Broadcasting System in a broadcast from Italy stated that Allied troops, yesterday, captured 21 square miles of ground, making tl)c total captured in the first four days of the offensive, 81 square miles. The German News Agency’s military commentator, Praegner, to-night, admitted that the German troops have withdrawn to “prepared positions in the real,” after abandoning four towns, Ansonia, Sligno, San Giorgio, I and Castel Nuova. I Renter's military correspondent] points out that Praegner’s admission! means that the Germans have retreat-] ed along a l()-mile curved front extending from a few miles from the] sea up to the Liri Valley. His report 1 agrees with Allied messages that the! lower half of the Gustav Line has been over-run and that the Germans have! been swept west of the main lateral .road through Ansonia. The positions to which the Germans say they have retired probably form the advance defence works of the Adolf Hitler Line, which is situated about six miles east of the four towns mentioned. ADOLPH HITLER LINE. (Rec. 11.45.) LONDON, May 16. The Algiers radio to-night reported that Allied units of the Fifth Army had captured Monte Frammera, less than two miles from Esperia, which is reported to be one buttress of the Adolf Hitler Line. French troops on the same front, in a sudden attack, completely routed the German 71st Infantry Division, which is now in full retreat. Reuter’s correspondent says that

the French troops on Monte Frammera now look down on the Hitler Line. They are less than 3000 feet from Esperia. The “Daily Express” correspondent says that the Hitler Line has been prepared for months with inner and outer defences. It will not be easy ■to break. It has Hitler’s label and the military engineers had to make sure it was good. The Eighth Army has established, new bridges across the Rapido River. Allied counter-attacks along the Adriatic have regained all the ground lost last Saturday. This sector is now quiet. , ■ I The Algiers radio stated that mem--1 bers of the German Army Medical I Corps captured in Italy were given a : chance to return to their own lines but ’all preferred to stay in the Allied J 1 Frederick Faust, war correspondent ' for “Harper’s” magazine and a well- : known author of American thrillers under the pen name of “Max Brand, ■was killed in action on the opening ■night of the Allies’ offensive. laust , went in the opening assault with the troops on the Lower Garigliano. ALLIED COMMAND PLEASED RUGBY, May 16. The battle in Italy has gone very largely according to plan, and our ! casualties are well under estimated figures, it was learned authoritatively on Tuesday evening. A war correspondent says: The High Command is very pleased with the results of the dive-bombing attacks on enemy gun positions, .particularly in the Eighth Army area, where many German guns were sited in positions inconvenient for our artillery to attack. The Allies consider that 'they have developed fighterbomber technique far superior to that used earlier by the Germans. SPITFIRES’ 400TH VICTIM LONDON, May 16. The Air Ministry’s News Service states that the 400th enemy aircraft shot down by the Spitfire wing in I Italy was shared by Warrant Officer Cedric Young, of Bulls, and a South I African Lieutenant. It was a Fockewull dive-bomber. It was the first time any wing had shot down 400 enemy aircraft outside Britain.