Attack by Italians Ends in Disaster

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 191, 13 August 1941, Page 5

Attack by Italians Ends in Disaster

TOBRUK DEFENDERS WIPE OUT ENEMY FORCE (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, Aug. 11. “During Saturday night, Italian troops delivered an attack against one of our posts on the outer-perimeter defences of Tobruk. The attackers were allowed to approach within 300 yar/ls, when they wore killed almost to a man by heavy defensive fire from our artillery and machine-guns, * * says to-day’s communique from British General Headquarters at Cairo. The communique adds that, in the frontier areas yesterday, British patrols successfully engaged patrols of hostile ( armoured fighting vehicles, which were subsequently forced to withdraw by the accuracy of the British artillery fire. To-day’s R.A.F. Middle East communique says that on Saturday night Blenheims attacked gun-repair shops at Bardia, starting a number of large', bright fires. Enemy landing grounds at Gazala also were bombed and machineguned. Yesterday, the communique adds, Maryland bombers of the South African Air Force carried out attacks on enemy positions, motor vehicles, and personnel in the neighbourhood of Bardia.

On Saturday, R.A.F. bombers demolished barracks and blockhouses south of Misurata, and also attacked enemy motor transport vehicles and petrol trailers in the same neighbourhood. All the trailers were holed by machine-gun bullets, and several lorries were overturned and destroyed. Tho formation then attacked two large ammunition and supply dumps. The dump* were scattered, and personnel standing v by were killed or wounded.

Aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm made a torpedo attack -on a largo merchantman at Syracuse, Sicily, on Saturday. A quantity of bombs were also dropped at Augusta, farther ndrtjh, one making a direct hit on a gasometer. From these operations, all the planes returned safely.