EIGHTH ARMY

Grey River Argus, 17 December 1943, Page 5

EIGHTH ARMY

GAINS GROUND North of Moro River BIG GERMAN AIR ATTACK. ON FIFTH ARMY POSITION. [Aust. & N.Z. Press Assn.] (Rec. 11.10.) LONDON, Dec. 16. Reufter’s ’ Algiers correspondent says: The Germans' in Central Italy sent up without success the greatest force of ’plane s since that opposing the Salerno landing. More than one hundred fighter-bombers participated' in an attack on Fifth Army positions. On the Fifth Army front there were exchanges of artillery and mortar five and patrol clashes northwest of Venafro. Bad weather interfered with air activity on c both fronts, but throughout the day some hundred sorties were flown by fighters over the army line and the Jugoslav coast. Algiers radio stated: British patrols of the Fifth Army sector crossed the Garigliano River by rafts and swimming. They met little opposition. The Germans are concentrating a heavy mortar fire against the sector which the Italians are holding. Eighth Army’s Bid FOR STRATEGIC ROAD. N.Z. TROOPS IN ACTION. (Rec. 6.30.) LONDON, Dec. 15. Algiers radio said the Eighth Army troops were hourly closing in on the strategic Ortona-Orsogna-Guardigre-le road on the central sector. New Zealand troops on the left flank of the Eighth Armv are in action in the Maiella Mountains, on the left flank of Indian forces. Canadians and British troops are between the Indians and the Adriatic. Canadians and Germans were fiercely attacking and counter-attacking in the OrtonaGuardigrele; area across a ravine, which was under constant shelling from Allied and enemy artillery. The Germans here appear to have massed one of their heaviest concentrations of artillery.

An Allied communique stated the Eighth Army advanced against fierce resistance, and captured a village a mile north of the Moro River and four miles from the sea. The Germans lost heavily in killed and prisoners. Caldari wos captured just south of the Ortona-Orsogna road One corresnondent, describing the disposition of the Eighth Army said: Canadians, who established their bridgehead across the River Moro near the Adriatic coast, have now joined that bridgehead to one made bv the Indians further inland. From here the Eighth Army’s 15-mile line runs west to the Maiella Mountains, anil the New Zealanders are lighting in the Orsogna-Guardigrele sector. Another report stated: The weather on the Eighth Army front, although clearing, is still bad and the ground is soggy. Enemy resistance is tougher and more determined than ever, but the Eighth Army is moving on. Canadians carried out a daring raid on Sunday on Nighhon village half a mile off the Ortona-Orsogna road. They captured 146 prisoners, including the commanding officer, adjutant, and four other orticers of the Third Battalion of the 361st. Panzer Grenadier Regiment, a unit of the once famous Light Division. In this audacious raid the Canadians cleared the village of enemy troops and material before withdrawing under cover of darkness. Further inland, the same night, after successfully topulsing enemy counter-attacks south of Caldar.i, Indians captured a village live miles from Ortona. On the left of the Indians, the Second New Zealand Division restricted activities to patrolling and consolidation of their sector. Some of the fiercest fighting of the campaign rages about the main road running 15 miles inland from Guardiagrele. Canadian infantry and tanks several times forced the road near Ortona, but each time German fire has prevented them from maintaining their footholds. A military commentator on the United Nations’ radio at Algiers stated: The two Moro River bridgeheads have been joined and are five miles long and one mile deep from the north bank. Since Monday the Allies have taken 250 mostly in a daring raid by the Canadians. GERMAN ADMISSION. (Rec. 11.10.) LONDON, Dec. I'6. The Berlin radio overseas commentator, Captain Sertorius, said: British and New Zealand forces, escorted by numerous advancing under a canopy of ’planes, succeeded in gaining ground in some places north of the Moro River. GERMAN RETREAT INDICATED. (Rec. 11.20.) LONDON, Dec. 16. Ortona, the Adriatic seaport on which the left flank of the German line in Italy rests, is in flames, according to the renorts of Allied pilots. It is believed that the Germans are burning and demolishing the town before withdrawing. N.Z. Division’s Progress TANKS PROMINENT, (N.Z.E.F. Official War Correspondent) EIGHTH ARMY FRONT, Dec. 3. Tanks hammering their way ahead under our gunfire and infantry patrols striking forward through the hills bv night have taken New Zealanders deeper into the German defences almost every hour since they crossed the Sangro River several days ago. Together in battle for the first time in our military history, New Zealand troopers in heavy tanks and our infantrymen have cooperated so superbly that they are well beyond what was intended to be the northern sector of the German Winter line. Now with the great snow-topped block of the Majella Mountains towering thousands of feet above them, the New Zealanders arc pushing forward still further towards the main highway linking Pescara on the Adriatic coast with Rome. Six miles of hills, roads and villages beyond the Sangro are firmly in our hands. All this countryside is dotted with farmhouses. There are gunpits well prepared as a defensive line. It has fallen to our attacking force at a smaller cost than almost any other major advance the New Zealanders have made in the last two years. After almost a week of close fighting and heavy shellfire, our casualties in men and material are still considered light As often happened m North Africa, the Hermans have been relying on road demolitions, minefields and groups of powerful guns to hold back our advance, while they retreat further into the hills. In the desert war and even in Tunisia, blown out roads could be by-passed, but here where highways and tracks twist through deep hills, almost every demolition means a delav of hours. Some stages, however, in the New Zealanders’ advance in the last two days were covered so rapidly that the

Germans fled leaving anti-tank guns in their pits, and valuable bridges mtact. That was when a solid twopronged assault from the hills immediately beyond the Sangro River took a force of New Zealand tanks several miles directly through German forward defences on a broad main road. Meanwhile; our infantry, with the close support of tanks, covered even a greater distance into enemy lines further towards the coast. Against the tanks roaring towards them along the highway the Germans fired tremendous concentrations of high explosives. Bursting all amongst our armour, these shells cut into the road, and dug deep black craters into the fields alongside. A few of our tanks were knocked out, but most kept on and securely held the ground they had taken. Again in the last few hours, they have attacked and taken more miles of this road. With them are New Zealand engineers and bulldozers readv to tackle road blocks and demolitions. Some of the first New Zealand tanks to fight in Italy are still in line beside our infantry, blasting out mortar posts, and holding each newly-taken village ridge against threatened Panzer counterattacks. NO BULGARIAN PEACE FEELER. LONDON, Dec. 15.> Reuter’s diplomatic correspondent stated: Authoritative quarters m London knew nothing to support a report bv a New York press correspondent from Cairo that Bulgaria has put out a peace feeler to Britain and America, through Russia. The suggestion, attributed to M. Bo filo v. that Bulgaria should be allowed to retain, possession of the territory grabbed from Jugoslavia and Greece, is in itself so grotesque as. to cast doubt on the accuracy of the ; report. Reuter’s Cairo correspondent says, the Bulgarian Government has launched a propaganda campaign to bolster morale before a possible invasion of thii Allies.