BURMA CAMPAIGN

Grey River Argus, 18 March 1942, Page 5

BURMA CAMPAIGN

Recapture of Shvegyin

BY BRITISH AND INDIANS.

RUGBY. March 16 British clearing-up operations in the Shvegyin area of Burma appear to have been successful. Shwegyin, an important town on the east bank of the Siitang River, was recently seized bv the Japanese Shwegyin is about 100 miles north of Rangoon. It is unofficially announced'- that British Imperial forces counterj attacked and recrossed the Sittang River, and recaptured Shwegyin j after fierce house-to-house fighting, in which the Indian ‘troops used bayonets and kris effectively. At first, the Imperial forces attempted a surprise by crossing the river on rafts to the north side of the town, but were delayed when a traitorous Burmese gave the alarm. The Imperial troops then met and dispersed 500 Japanese .outside the town before joining in an action with the main enemy force. The general disposition of the opposing forces is: The Japanese are in occupation of the southern part of the Irawaddy Delta, with the British forces north and north-east, roughiv on the line of TharawaddyShwegyim The Chinese are northwards of the British, and are moving towards Toungoo.

NEW BRITISH PLANS (Rec. 10J5) MANDALAY. March IG. At a press conference General Alexander said: “New tactics and new general strategy have been devised for the purnose of meeting the Japanese attack.’” He added that Rangoon could not help as Tobruk had done, because of the- length of its perimeter and other disadvantages. If the British had been bottled up in Rangoon, there would have been nothing between the Japanese and the Irrawaddy oilfields.