FRESH DESERT PUSH

Grey River Argus, 4 June 1942, Page 5

FRESH DESERT PUSH

BY AXIS FORCES A Desperate Resource LAust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.: LONDON, June 2. A message, to-night from Cairo says:— A considerable Axis force consisting of ail arms is again thrusting east oehind tne Allied oaz-aia-Bir Hauiie.m line. A tierce oat- | Lie is rugmg Between Hnignuuriugt 'land Bir narmat, which is sligntiy cUdl Ulc sap, till’uUgu. Ule Jill-eu i.i.iieneiu, iz. .iiiies uurtn ox Dir x-xacneim.

xne latest reports indicated, Mr. Cnurchn,! said mat some of tne German taiiKs might nave oeen witn-

u.ubi. -■J .la.-u Wesk uU.ii viie gup ui'cui. me ulime was nut j'ci, u«cr uuu uerce Ugiitiiig v»as sun to oe

utec. ±j..20). > LONDON, June 2. wne gap of the labyan uuneneiu is m tne southward, ana tne other is to uit< nonnwaru ox the present oatiie area.

in tne uattle area the Germans are now attempting to make a push east. They are not attempting an escape tq tne westward. ■L'lie Axis rorces, axe nkely to prove a considerable nuisance until they are liquidated. The enemy s eastward thrust may be a move to 1 keep the British from sealing the gaps, or it ma v be intended to prevent the British from mounting a counter-offensive. British warships, submarines, and Fleet Air Arm planes are widely patrolling th e coast to block any further German attempt to land supplies from the sea. German E-boats and invasion barges on the night of Saturday, May 30tn., attempted to land troops between Gazala and Tobruk. The y were caught by fire from British warships, tanks and artillery. They then scattered and fled.

The Navy’s “Tobruk Ferry” is moving up men and supplies. It is also bringing back wounded and prisoners. The first batch of prisoners, totalling 150, has landed in Alexandria.

LONDON, June 2

|Ai News Agency correspondent states: Marshal Von Rommel has regrouped his main forces, he may launch another offensive, for which the British are ready. The Battle of the Gap is in full swing. On Monday, despite dust storms, hard fighting was progressing with all •land arms engaged with the Axis forces. East of our lines, the Axis forces are exerting pressure, especially between the two gaps. In the northern sector British troops are heavily pressing the enemy, who is not at present attempting to move [ westward through the gap. He is probably attempting to enlarge one gap. The main Axis forces are 20 , miles away from the British lines j where fighting is taking place be- ' tween the infantry. Axis losses were 'much greater than the British. One report stated: Trapped panzesr are being battered to a standstill from the air, after attacks extending over days. The blows from the air have disorganised the enemy’s campaign. British air power has been directed at the gap, and at one time, the channel was filled with I flying planes, /spraying transports, [ mechanised forces and ammunition and petrol dumps, with bullets at j point-blank flange. The. mechanised forces which escaped, wrecked ' themselves in collisions, in blinding 1 dust storms, or crashed in bomb I craters.

American tanks, known as “General Grants,” took a very active part.' in the Battle of Knightsbridge, spitting lire in all directions with 75mm and two-pounder guns. Their share in havoc caused to panzer divisions was very great, while they blew up lighter Italian tanks as if they were toy balloons. These tanks had to be overhauled and remodelled,, to operate in desert warfare. Many were kept a secret, and thrown against the Germans when least expected. They opened fire from a few hundred yards. They weigh 28 tons, and are equipped with a seventy-live gun, heavy machine-gun, and other small arms jutting from the side. Some of these tanks withstood 20 direct hiits. Their fire power is reported to equal anything the Germans have produced. They are aircooled, which is a telling factor in the heat of the desert. They were shipped from America months ago, and were heavily camouflaged and 'sent uP 'to the desert mainly under j cover of darkness. Tank crews, [who had fought in other American 'tanks declared: “This is the best ever. It takes everything Jerry can send, and its gun power is astonishing. It is a wizard.” Air Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder, Commander of 'the R.A.F. in the Middle East, has sent a message to Vice-Marshal Coningham, Commander of the R.A\F. in the Western Desert conveying congratulations to all ranks, and expressing deep admiration of the gallantry and determination shown. Mr. Churchill told the House of Commons-to-day: “It is clear that we have every reason to be Ehtislied, and more than satisfied, with the course the battle has taken in Libya.” He said the Navy had played an important part in the battle. It broke up a landing atI tempt by the enemy on the Mediterranean coast. It was obviously Marshal Von Rommell’s plan that these landing forces should link up with other Axis forces penetrating to the coastal road, but the enemy craft .had been driven off. Marshal Von Rommel’s sets-back in Libya wals probably more serious than had been at first supposed. It was clear from captured documents that Marshal Von Rommel had intended to defeat the British armoured forces find to capture Tobruk, but the plan had gone completely away. Ait a conservative estimate, 260 enemy tanks had been destroyed or captured, and there was no doubt that the number of transport . vehicles was also very large. It is revealed that General Cruewell was the expert who planned Rommel’s Libyan thrust, and according to the diary in his possession, the Axis plan was to seize Tobruk on the fourth day of the attack. Cruewell was blood-spattered when he limped from a burning plane. He announced to.the occupants of a British dug-out: “I am General Cruewell, of the German Panzer forces. I surrender.”

NEW ANTI-TANK GUN. (Rec. 12.0). LONDON, June 2> It can now be revealed that the heavy anti-tank gun which Mr. Churchill said had already done great execution in the Libyan battle, is a six-pounder whose shell is powerful enough to crash through the thickest of General Rommel’s tank armour. It is entirely British made.

HIGH TANK LOSSES. LONDON, June 2. . Speaking in Parliament on the Libyan operations, Mr. Churchill said: In a battle of this kind it is -inevitable that tank casualties on both sides should be high. Our re-

covery organisation is working very well. General Auchinleck reports that the spirit and morale of all our forces is magnificent, and the skill and determination shown by General Ritchie and the Corps Commanders, Lieutenant Generals C A W. Norrie and W. H. Gott, throughout thi§ terrific battle, has been of the highest order.