VICTORIES IN HOLLAND

Greymouth Evening Star, 8 November 1944, Page 5

VICTORIES IN HOLLAND

BRITISH TAKE MIDDLEBURG

SOUTHERN MAAS BATTLE ENDING

HALF GERMAN ARMY LOST

LONDON, November 7. | British troops have d £v e n the Cronmns from their last mam Srongholds on Walcheren Island by the liberation of the town of Middelburg in the centre of the island and the port of Veere, on the east coast. Other units are clearing the Ger mans from the Hooded swamps of Walcheren, and mopping up in the north-west corner. The battle south of the Maas is nearly over. British troops are in the outskirts of the ferry port of Willenstad, at the mouth oi the river. Poles are fighting lor Moeidijk, a lew miles inland, where the Germans are reported to have blown up the bridges across the Maas. Allied Kft have struck nt German com-| munications north ol *!’ e , “ h bombing railway yards at Utietcht and railways north of Roiterdam. A Reuter correspondent- with But-! ish and Canadian forces says: British troops entered Middleburg, a com- ( munications centre on the Hooded: Walcheren Island, in boats and am-; phibious vehicles. They found the, town in complete confusion. It was jammed with refugees from the! whole island, as well as German troops. There have been some skir-1 mishes in the town, but Geimans. everywhere are giving themselves up.| One thousand have thus far been) taken prisoner. With the liberation of Middleburg and Veere the only Germans making a determined stand on the island are in a small area on the northern fringe. We have taken 700 prisoners since the start of Wai-! cheren and South Beveland operall°nS‘ LATER. A correspondent reports: Americans have been fighting in the streets at Moedijk, where a small German suicide garrison is holding out. British troops further west captured Willemstad, the centre of the only other German pocket of resistance south of the Maas River. OFFICIAL SUMMARY. LONDON, November 7. To-day’s Supreme Allied Headquarters communique says: “On Walcheren Island we captured Middelburg, also Veere, on the coast Jour miles north-east of Middelburg. Other units are fighting a way northeastwards from the Dornburg area. Gains on the Dutch mainland have taken our troops to the outskirts of Willemstad. Fighting continues on approaches to the Moerdijk bridges which have been blown up by the enemy. “We have continued to meet strong opposition in the Hurtgen forest. We have repulsed German counter-at-tacks west of Hurtgen, but the enemy, in an infantry-tank thrust in Vossenack were forced to withdraw a short distance from that town. We have contained the enemy attack, and our units have resumed the offensive, and regained former positions. West of Schmidt, we have made small gams against heavy opposition. We have freed several more towns north and south-east of Baccarat. New gams have been made against stubborn enemy resistance in the Vosges heights, west of Gerardmer. . “We have made gams in the Maritime Alps at several points, and now hold high ground along the Italian frontier. GERMAN LOSSES (Rec. 10.20 a.m.) LONDON, Nov. 7. It is estimated that the battle south of the Maas cost the Wehrmacht between 43,000 and 40,000 of its 100,000 troops in Western Holland, says the Associated Press SHAEF correspondent. Prisoners totalled 20,000, with an estimate of 17,000 to 20,000 killed or wounded. The German News Agency stated that the British landed on Schouwen Island, in the Scheldt Estuary. SCENES IN MIDDLEBURG (Recd. 12.55 p.m.) LONDON, Nov. 7. The British troops who took Middleburg, the main communication centre on Walcheren captured two thousand prisoners and Lieut.-Gener-al Daser, Commander of the Seventieth Division garrisoning the Dutch. Islands, states Reuter’s correspondent with the First Canadian Army. They are now being ferried back to prisoners’ cages in boats used by the British in their assault. Other British troops who captured Veere took five hundred prisoners. , . . , Though all organised resistance at Middleburg has ceased, mopping up continues against some opposition from a few pockets in the southern part of the town. Assault tioops in boats paddled right into the streets oi Middleburg to-day and found such confusion that the war there had come to a halt. British and Germantroops were jammed with civilians who were wildly welcoming the lib- I erators. The streets were packed. It> was impossible to shoot without danger of hitting civilians or own men. | Houses were packed to the rooftops with refugees from other parts of the island, the only way off for all is by boat. AMERICAN SUCCESS (Rec 10.30 a.m.) LONDON, Nov. 7. Reuter’s SHAEF correspondent reports that, the First American Army Forces in stiff fighting recaptured Vossenack, from which they weie forced out by a German counteiattack yesterday. Apparently the German Irontiei cities have given up black-outs as a, bad job, says Reuter’s correspondent at the American Third Army Headouarters. Pilots flying over Strasburg last night reported lights in the streets and buildings were blazing, as they did a few weeks ago at Cologne and Duisberg before the R.A.F. “saturated” them. A Third Army spokesman said: “The Germans areusing lights to speed up supplies for the front. The enemy knows the j Allies are able to raid frontier areas at will, and probably decided that the advantages of using lights outweigh | the disadvantages to work and move- | ment imposed by the security of the i blackout.” RAID ON DUNKIRK (Rec. 10.20 a.m.) LONDON, Nov. 7. The Canadians carried out another large scale raid against the German' garrison at Dunkirk and returned with 200 prisoners, says Reuters’ correspondent with the Canadian First Army. The Allies later granted a re-! quest from the German garrison fori a two-hour truce to bury their dead.j ENEMY’S GOOD TIME. i (Rec. 12.15 p.m.) LONDON, Nov. 7.! Describing a reconnaissance raid, of Czechs with the Ist Canadian Army against Dunkirk, the Associated Press says the Czechs, shouting blood curdling battle cries, advanced 2500 yards and killed or

wounded at least 250. Germans, besides taking many prisoners. A Czech captain said: “The Germans fought like demons. We had to blast them out of the pillboxes with hand grenades and tommy-guns, but prisoners told us the troops would all like to surrender if. they were not driven to fight by their offleers.” The correspondent adds that the closest Allied patrols are now only about 3000 yards from the edge of Dunkirk,' which is reported to be empty except for German headquarters officers and about 500 civilians. The bulk of the .garrison is deployed along the 25-mile perimeter. The civilians are chiefly collaborators who refused to leave when the general evacuation was carried out during the truce last month. Prisoners say the officers hold nightly champagne revels with French collaborationist girls, who came along when the Germans retreated to "Dunkirk. According to the prisoners and deserters the officers to-day still have plenty of food, large stores of champagne and other facilities for amusement. The garrison of approximately 12,000 has enough food and ammunition to hold out for six months. “The officers are having the time ol their lives,” said one prisoner.

TROOPS AND REINFORCEMENTS.

(.Rec. 12.40 p.m.) MONTREAL, November 7. His recent tour of the battlefronts showed that the problems of supply and reinforcements had been extremely difficult, said Mr. Ralston in his first speech since his resignation as Canadian Minister of Defence. Referring to wounded troops Mr. Ralston said: “Don’t talk to these men about the Boche reeling back, as I read in a newspaper recently. They know from experience that the Boche doesn’t reel back. They know he fights more desperately than ever to keep off and delay the great operations which must yet be undertaken. Don’t talk to these men about the war being ended. They know there’s a bitter fight ahead.”