REDS’ ONSLAUGHT IN MALAYA EASES : STILL DANGEROUS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22730, 31 August 1948, Page 5

REDS’ ONSLAUGHT IN MALAYA EASES : STILL DANGEROUS

(11 a.m.) SINGAPORE, Aug. 30. A total of 135 bandits have been killed and T2 wounded since June 16, stated a Government communique issued tonight. In the same period 10 police had been killed and 34 wounded. The army casualties since the emergency began were given as eight killed and 10 wounded. Five Royal Air Force personnel lost their lives in operations during the same period. The Singapore newspaper Straits Times expresses the opinion that the tempo of the Communist onslaught has slowed down, although they are still committing outrages which shock the country. It adds that today’s killings are a warning that the forces of terrorism are still far from beaten, but wanton killings are now less frequent and the Communist capacity for mass attacks on villages, estates and mines has certainly not increased. The impression is growing that the bandits are being hit more effectively wherever they are met and, to ‘hat extent, the situation, in general, may be said to be improving. An attack on the Tarnbah tin mine was launched at dawn by 100 Chinese terrorists. The mine manager, Mr. J. Hunter, was killed by a' burst of tomniv-gun fire at his bungalow. Besides killing a Malay special constable at the mine, the terrorists wounded two others. During the attack against th e Pertang police station, one Malay constable was killed and two others wounded.

The terrorists wounded one constable in a rescue squad which tried to clear a roadblock near Pertang. While other players and watchers scattered, Chinese bandits last evening shot dead a Chinese playing basketball on the outskirts of Kluang in Central Johore. Terrorists who raided an estate in the Lenggeng area of Negri Sembilan yesterday murdered an estate driver. The R.A.F. today denied knowledge of killing 10 Siamese in the Naradhivas village on August 23.