The Gisborne Herald. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED “THE TIMES" GISBORNE, SATURDAY, AUG. 15, 1942. SUPPLIES FOR MALTA

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20863, 15 August 1942, Page 2

The Gisborne Herald. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED “THE TIMES" GISBORNE, SATURDAY, AUG. 15, 1942. SUPPLIES FOR MALTA

To-day’s news that a British convoy has delivered supplies to Malta comes as a welcome climax to the extravagant claims that have been made by the Axis radio stations throughout the week. If their reports were to be believed, the sea-bed of the Mediterranean was strewn with the wreckage of British ships and the Italian navy was in firm command of the whole area. The full story of this latest exploit has yet to be told, but enough has already been said to indicate that the British Navy and Merchant Marine have once again fulfilled the task allotted to them and delivered the goods under conditions which are just about as difficult as it is possible for them to be. Malta, whose heroic resistance to ■ the incessant air bombardments of the enemy is one of the epics of the war, has received further supplies and reinforcements and will thus be able to continue her important role as a severe thorn in the side ot the ’Axis! It is inevitable that an operation of this, description should be attended by losses. To expect a large number of ships to sail through enemy waters infested with submarines and surface warships and covered by an enemy air armada without sustaining loss would he to expect the impossible. That a portion of the convoy should get through is the most that could be hoped for. What the losses have been has not been disclosed and will not be disclosed so long as the enemy remains in ignorance of his achievements. It is admitted, however, that, in addition to the aircraft carrier Eagle, the 9100-ton cruiser Manchester has been sunk. These two ships alone constitute a heavy price, but if they were the total cost of reinforcing Malta there would be no reason to complain. In fact, it must be expected that other warships and merchant ships were damaged and possibly lost, but the risK was one that had to be taken, not ohly in the interests of Malta, but also tq make possible the continued resistance to the enemy in the Middle East generally. There will be other compensations, too, for the loss of British ships. Already it is known that two Axis submarines have been sunk and two cruisers torpedoed—in addition to the three damaged by United States aircraft—and it is certain also, that the enemy paid dearly in the loss of aircraft. At this stage it is pot possible to strike a balance, but the pfedotpinating fact is that the convoy got through despite the most intense opposition the enemy could bring to bear and notwithstanding his claims to have successfully intercepted it. The influence of this achievement on the operations in the Middle East is incalculable.

The official reports so far mention pnly supplies for Malta, but it is possible that part of the convoy was destined for Egypt, in which case the Eighth Army Plight receive reinforcements which would make a substantial difference to the campaign in Egypt. Earlier in the week, the Rome radio described the convoy as the largest which Britain had attempted to send through the Mediterranean. This may have been intended, of course, merely to magnify the successes which were claimed for the Axis, but if the statement were true it seems a reasonable inference that a convoy of such size was not destined fOi- Malta alone. New supplies for General Atiehinleek at this stage would be of the utmost importance, since they might make all the difference to the balance of strength of the rival armies now confronting one another in the desert. Even if only Malta has been reinforced it will be an important contribution to the Allied campaign, since it will mean a continuation and possibly an intensification of the attacks on Axis shipping which is being used to carry supplies and reinforcements to General Rommel. Already the Axis has been compelled, through the operations from Malta, to divert much of his shipping to the other end of the Mediterranean and he will be further hampered by the strengthening of the island fortress.

In the meantime, the situation in Egypt itself remains virtually unchanged. There 'have been no major battles and operations on land have been confined to patrolling. The inference is that neither side has sufficieht strength to break through or encircle the positions of the other. This, in turn, leads to a belief that both sides are striving to build up further reinforcements in the hope of securing superiority. At the moment, the enemy appears to be developing a system of defences in depth in preparation for a period of static warfare. In cohtrast to the earlier operations, emphasis is being laid on anti-tank defences instead of tank attacks, and this suggests that both sides have developed successful defences against tank warfare as it has hitherto been known. Another interesting point is that the Germans are holding their forward areas and utilising the Italians to provide the depth of the defence—in which case the defence is likely to be more deep than stfong, since the morale of the Italians is so obviously low. The contihued inactivity, however, is not reassuring, because, although the Allies are nearer to their bases, the Axis js nearer to his sources of supply arid, in the long ruh, should be able to obtain larger reinforcements. That it is still possible to run convoys through the Mediterranean, however, is an encouraging sign.