DESSYE FALLS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXI, Issue 126, 29 April 1941, Page 5

DESSYE FALLS

TO ALLIED TROOPS. LOSSES BY ITALIANS. LONDON, April 28. It is announced that Dessye, tlie Italian stronghold north-east of Addis Ababa, has been captured by Imperial troops without any lighting in the town. The only other strongholds remaining to the Italians in Abyssinia are Gondar, north-west of Dessye, and Jimma, south-west of Addis Ababa. The troops entered the town on Saturday evening, alter inflicting 200 deaths on the Italians and rounding np another 000. It is stated that reinforcements were being brought up at the time, but broke and' fled. A British Official Wireless message says that when the Imperial Forces entered Dessye the ma.in strength of what was loft of the Italian resistance in Abyssinia was broken and the Duke of Aosta’s troops now have only the choice of uselessly retreating towards inevitable starvation or striking across the desert to French Somaliland. Should the latter course be chosen, the Italians run the grave risk of being? cut off by the claws of the armoureu pincers from north and south. There seems little chance of these defeated troops being able to maki contact with the remaining points oi resistance at Gondar or Jimma, and the capture of Dessye places at the British Imperial disposal the administrative centre of the Walla Province. A British Official Wireless message says that yesterday our fighters machine-gunned and badly damaged a number of enemy motor-transpoit vehicles at Akronia and set fire to a petrol dump on the landing ground. On tlie previous day a convoy ol motor-transports which were carrying enemy troops was attacked, considerable damage being- done and many casualties inflicted. Aircraft of the South African Air Force bombed and machine-gunned military buildings at Jimma. AH our aircraft returned safely. " The capture of Dessye lollowed tough fighting around a pass south of the town. The Italians defended strongIv from weil-fortified positions, but finallv broke and withdrew rapidly. Haile Selassie’s flag now flies over everv town in the Gojjam Province, except" Bahrdnr. on the southern shore of Lake Tsana. . General Nasi, at Gondar. is reported to he cut off by patriots approaching from three points.