Greek Successes Continue

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 1, 2 January 1941, Page 7

Greek Successes Continue

Fate of Valona Soon Decided ITALIAN SUPPLY SHIPS SUNK United Press Association—By Electrio Telegraph—Copyright. Received Wednesday, 9.20 p.m. LONDON, Dee. 31. The Greek successes in Albania continue. Informed commentators at Athens are confident that with the capture of strategic heights on the coastal sector, the fate of Valona will soon be decided. “We also captured eight guns, many automatic arms and mortars and much material. We broke up a ski detachment which tried to operato and took its arms and some prisoners.” A later communique reports that a tank attack was made by the enemy, but repulsed. One tank was captured. During Monday two enemy planes were shot down. Greek headquarters state that over one thousand prisoners were captured, including an entire battalion, both officers and men. A Struga (Yugoslavia) message says unconfirmed reports originating from an Albanian source state that one complete German division has arrived in Albania, of which the motorised units were immediately sent to Albasan and Libras. The same reports state that pioneers and engineers from a German division were immediately sent to Berat and Ljusna. about half-way between Berat and the Durazzo main road. The Greek radio stated that the Greeks broke through strong Italian entrenchments constituting the advance defences of Valona and dislodged the Italian defenders. The same is true in the Pindus sector north of Klisura, where the white feather-covered Bersaglieri were dislodged. Here quick Greek penetration prevented the consolidation of the Italian entrenchments, tho Greek* manoeuvring skilfully and circling small segments and cutting them off in the mountains. The French radio says reports from Borne declare that a hundred were killed in Naples by an B.A.F. raid on Sunday. (( An Italian communique says: On the Greek front our naval forces bomb.rded British and Greek supply centres on the Greek and Albanian eoasti. Our bomber formations attacked Salonika and Prevesa and aerodromes at .Tanina and Kozane and deatroved two planes on the ground. “There was artillery activity on the Sudan frontier. Enemy planes bombed our bases and set fire to a plane. "We shot down two enemy planes. “Planes last night fiew over several localities in Southern Italy, dropping flares. One was shot down.

“In Cyrenaica, Italian artillery repulsed tanks and armoured cars attempting to approach the Italian positions.

A Belgrade message reports that an unidentified submarine torpedoed an Italian transport in Yugoslav waters near the Albanian frontier. Yugoslav ships answered the SOS but were too late to save the crew.