RACE FOR TIME

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20826, 3 July 1942, Page 3

RACE FOR TIME

BATTLE OF EGYPT CHURCHILL SILENT HEAVY AXIS LOSSES FREYBERG WOUNDED (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Noon.) LONDON, July 2. Only passing references to the present situation in Egypt were made by .the Prime Minister, Mr. Winston Churchill, in the course of his speech in the House of Commons to-day. He said ne was not going to disclose what reinforcements were available or on the way, but, he added amid cheers, the Germans already knew that the New Zealanders were there. Mr. Churchill also disclosed that the commander of the New Zealand forces, General Sir Bernard Freyberg, had been wounded in .the course of .the recent engagement. Reuter’s correspondent with the Eighth Army reports that infantry skirmishes at the northern end of the British positions after a heavy artillery exchange marked the opening of the Alamein battle. The German

losses are known to be heavy as a result of British delaying actions through the bottle-neck. The tank encounter on Tuesday appears to have ended in our favour, says the Daily Express. The Royal Air Force was magnificent. There could not have been anything finer in the Battle of Britain. After a day of glaring heat, droves of British fighters and bombers went sweeping overhead, resulting in long lines of German ambulances moving to the rear bases. Final Strain Coming

The Daily Telegraph’s correspondent reported that it was a grim and desperate race for time, in which tired men on either side were struggling to get the last ounce from themselves and their machines. A great majority on both sides had been fighting almost continuously for months. During the next few days must come the final strain. Victory will go to the side which can bring up an extra gun and an extra round. It is a race with tremendous stakes. Every hour saved matters now. The Times’ correspondent says that reinforcements of all kinds are pouring in from all quarters. The roads to the desert are practically a solid mass of vehicles. The Daily Mail’s Cairo correspondent reports that New Zealand gunners caught a force of enemy mobile infantry on the flank and blew many troop-carrying vehicles to pieces. The correspondent adds that Tuesday’s communique, covering both the army and the Royal Air Force activities, suggests that General Auchinleck has taken supreme command in the field, which is the logical step in the present crisis. The Eighth Army is probably now composed of Eighth Army survivors, the New Zealanders. South Africans, and also part of the British garrison of Egypt under General Stone. U.S. Tanks Arrive

The Independent French News Agency reported that United -States tanks from Basra have arrived to reinforce the Eighth Army. Is is emphasised that the British have taken no reinforcements from the Ninth Army in Syria or Palestine. The Tass News Agency in Moscow says it is reported from Geneva that reinforcements for General Rommel landed at Bona and Bizerta, whence they were sent to Sfax and Gabes by rail. German troops and materials are reaching General Rommel by French sea routes. Two German mechanised brigades landed in Algeria in the first few days of June. Large concentrations of troops and material were observed at Gabes. The Daily Express’ Johannesburg correspondent stated that the South African casualties at Tobruk will shortly be published. It is understood that they total 15,000, mostly missing, the biggest list South Africa has ever had.