SCHELDT BATTLE WON

Greymouth Evening Star, 4 November 1944, Page 5

SCHELDT BATTLE WON

ANTWERP PORT OPEN

FLUSHING ALMOST CLEARED

AMERICAN GAINS IN EAST

LONDON, November 3. British troops have now completely cleared the German pocket south oi the Scheldt estuary. Early this morning all resistance ceased m Zeebrugge. This notable success means that- all Belgium has now been liberated, and that the freeing of the port of Antwerp has been brought a step nearer. The Germans can no longer command the approach to Antwerp from this coast, but they still have guns on the coast of Walcheren Island. These batteries are threatened by the British Marines advancing from their beachhead at Westkapelle, and by the •commandos which are fanning out north and south of Flushing. It is hard fighting everywhere on Walcheren. The Germans have disposed their fire-power on the dry strips of the island very effectively. At the east end of the island they pushed back the Canadians on the causeway, but the Canadians hit back and gained a stronger foothold. In two other parts of the front the Aliles have gained ground in local attacks. At the base of the Dutch salient, on the east, they have advanced to within a mile of the town of Mei j el, west of Venloo. In the Aachen sector, troops of the American Ist Army advanced a mile and a half to capture the villages of Vossenack and Germet"er, both about 14 miles south-east of Aachen.

The United States Ist Army’s attack through the Hurtgen Forest south-east of Aachen was resumed to-day ’ and made further progress against heavy resistance.

OFFICIAL SUMMARY.

LONDON, November 3

To-day’s communique from Allied Supreme Headquarters reports: — “There has been continued progress on Walcheren Island. Allied forces, moving from Westkapelle, have now by-passed Dornburg. Others have reached a point within two miles of Flushing. Fighting continues in Flushing and the western end of the Walcheren causeway. “All resistance east of the Leopold Canal has ceased, but mopping up continues at Zeebrugge. Allied forces in the Meijel area have advanced to within 2000 yards of the town. “Our troops in the Hurtgen sector, after a heavy artillery preparation, gained 2500 yards. We have taken Vossenack, one and a half miles south of Hurtgen. Our drive is continuing against stiffening resistance. Baccarat and also the villages of Gelacourt and Deneuvre, near Baccarat, have been freed. jt “Gains were made further south, where, against heavy resistance, La Bourgonce, 11 miles south of Baccarat, was taken. Our positions at Moselotte bend have been improved. ANOTHER LANDING RUGBY, November 3. Another amphibious landing was made to-day at Walcheren Island from which the Germans are trying to escape by sea in sailing boats, barges or anything else that floats to other islands further north, writes a correspondent in Holland. The landing was made under cover of darkness some distance south of the causeway which was crossed three days ago. It was over treacherous quicksands where more than a hundred Germans were trapped and drowned during their invasion of Walcheren in 1940. A safety line had been mapped for the landing party by reconnaissance patrols and a surprise was achieved by landing. The Germans put in a counter-attack dur-, ing the morning and also directed considerable weight of machine-gun and mortar fire against the bridgehead established at the end of the causeway. Both counter-attacks were however, driven off and the bridgeheads exploited to such an extent that to-night they linked up, and

leading elements were less than fourthousand yards from Middelburg.

GERMAN ADMISSION.

(Rec. 10.35 a.m.) LONDON, November 3. 'There are now only a few scattered German guns which can fire against the entrance to Port Antwerp. Jhe struggle to clear the Scheldt is about over, although there is still hard fighting before all Walcheren is captured and the German garrison destroyed, says the Canada Press correspondent with the Canadian First Army. A few German snipers are still holding out at Flushing, but organised resistance has ended in the town. Aremuiden, between Middleburg and the causeway from South Beveland, has been declared an open town. The Berlin radio said: The battle lor the mouth of the Scheldt is fading away. Fresh British reinforcements landed at Walcheren and Allied warships are keeping up a nonstop bombardment against the almost totally destroyed town of r lushing where fighting is raging in the northern outskirts. f

CANAL CROSSING HELD (Recd. 11.40 a.m.) LONDON, Nov. 3. ! The Allies now hold a small crossing over the Mark Canal in the vicinity of Oosterhout, in addition to two bridgeheads over the Mark River in the region of Oudengosch, says Reuters’ SHAEF correspndent. The crossing does not yet represent a strong foothold (the Mark Canal joins the Mark River near the river’s southward bend towards Breda and continues eastward toward Oosterhout where it joins up with the Wilhelmina Canal). Heavy fighting continues east of Steenbergen where the Allies are encountering better quality German troops. Rocket-firing and bomber Typhoons to-day struck against German troops and material massing for a counter-atttack near Klundert. GERMAN LEADER CAPTURED (Recd. 11.40 a.m.) LONDON, Nov. 3. A bitter north wind swirled the Winter’s first snowflakes over Waljcheren to-day as the British and Canadians cleared Flushing, captured Domberg and stormed and silenced Domberg’s great gun batteries, says Reuter’s correspondent at 21st Army Group Headquarters. British Commandos winkling out the last snipers from Flushing captured Lieut.-Col-onel Reinhardt, Flushing’s garrison commander and presumably the commander of the whole of the Island defences. The fiercest fighting is still going on on the causeway from Beveland, but the Canadians managed to reinforce their Walcheren bridgehead. Six hundred Germans vzere taken prisoner in this sector to-day. The fall of Zeebrugge, from which the last Germans' have been cleared means that all of Belgium is now liberated. The British United Press military correspondent, commenting on i the clearance of the Scheldt | pocket, says it was a war in which I each ditch was a barrier, each dyke a rampart and the battlefield I was nearly always the bare road on a dyke 15 feet above the surrounding country, which is covered by I German 88’s and snipers. This country is man-made, but, although the I Dutch kept out the sea, they could (not keep out the water and the Canadians, when shot down, sometimes drowned in an inch of water. The battle was fought along the dykes. On these bare, exposed stretches men lived and fought | for days. The weather was appalling. ! It rained most of the time and from • dusk until mid-day there was mist '• and penetrating cold. The first snow this year 101 l in Brussels to-day.