Tobruk Confident and Defiant

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 188, 9 August 1941, Page 7

Tobruk Confident and Defiant

Perfectly Organised Teamwork ENEMY REDUCED TO STATE OF NERVES United Press Association—By Elec trie Telegraph—Copyright. Received Friday, 8.30 p.m. CAIRO, Aug. 7. Although the town is more battered and many buildings throughout the area have been reduced to rubble, things seem to have changed little iii Tobruk, says the official Australian war correspondent, who has returned to the fortress after an absence of two months. Planes still roar overhead and the sky is dotted with black and white puffs as anti-aircraft guns roar into action. Judging by the great height the enemy planes keep, compared with the early days, our anti-aircraft defences seem well on top. Our vehicles are still dispersed in their hundreds on the plain running to the coast, and the food and ammunition dumps have not diminished in size. The harbour looks the same, littered with sunken hulls and masts, while other ships lean crazily on tne beach high up on the water’s edge. Perfectly-organised teamwork has been responsible for the successful defence of the fortress and the gradual but sure change-over from defence to fierce aggression that has reduced the enemy outside to a state of nerves. Our troops captured Tobruk in 29 hours and they have held it for four months without ever once looking like losing it. A medical officer empuusises the improvement in the health of British troops in the Middle East compared with the last war. The latest medical knowledge and equipment have reduced dysentry, malaria and typhoid. Bo far there has been no typhus or influenza. The officer instanced the South African war when there were 288 enteric cases per thousand troops yearly compared with 1.89 in Egypt in the Great War and .07 in the whole of the Middle East in this war. Malaria dropped from 3.5 per thousand to .85 and typhoid from 1.89 to .07. Venereal diseases show only a slight reduction.

Tables Turned in Middle East AXIS FEARS ATTACK BY BRITISH FORCES LONDON, Aug. 7. ‘ ‘ The Axis Powers, instead of threatening Egypt, are now nervous about the possioility of the Empire forces attacking Libya, Sicily and the Greek islands,” said an authoritative British spokesman to-day. “This is because tlie initiative in tho Western Desert is now so completely in our hands.” He added: “Tlie British offensive on the Solium front took such a toll of the German armoured vehicles as to rule out an enemy offensive on that front in the near future, even if it were possible while Tobruk was holding out. “The landing of our troops at Basra forestalled Hitler in Iraq, while the revolt in Yugoslavia aud tne offensives in Greece and Crete caused more time and casualties than he expected. The British invasion of Syria finally wrecked Hitler’s whole Middle East plan.” Extremely heavy dust-storms have temporarily limited the activities of the British raiding parties in the Tobruk area, but under cover of the dust one patrol attacked an enemy post inflicting casualties and capturing prisoners and weapons, says to-day’s communique from British General Headquarters at Cairo. la tho frontier area British artillery and machine-guns engaged the enemy. One surprised a small enemy column and took prisoners.

Sicilian Submarine Base Bombed

(British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, Aug. 7. Continued blows against enemy ports in North Africa and raids on an Italian submarine base in Sicily are recorded in to-day’s R.A.F. Middle East communique. The communique says: “Bomber aircraft of the R.A.F. and tlie {South African Air Force carried out a number of attacks on enemy-occupied ports aud landing-grounds during tho night of August o/6. At Bengnazi Heavy bombers obtained hits on the central Cathedral and Italian moles. At Derna fires were started at the port and on the landing-grounds, and ooinbs were dropped on motor transport, workshops and cold-storage buildings. Raids were also carried out at Uambut and Gazala, where a number of bombs fell on the landing-ground, and at Misurata, where an enemy barracks was hit and badly damaged. “A number of enemy aircraft dropped bombs ou Malta during the night of August 5/6. Cur lighters intercepted, and one destroyed three enemy aircraft, two falling in flames. One of the destroyed aircraft was identified as a CR-20. “Bomber aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm attacked the enemy submarine base at Augusta, Sicily, during the same night. Many direct hits were made from a low altitude by heavy bombs, and one caused a very large oil fire on a submarine jetty. The lire was still burning an hour later when other aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm arrived over the target. Three aircraft which had dropped several bombs on flarepaths and dispersal areas at Gerbini machine-gunned searchlight positions at Augusta from a low altitude, inflicting , casualties on the crews. “One of our aircraft is missing from [ these operations.”