ITALIANS ROUTED

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIX, 28 January 1936, Page 5

ITALIANS ROUTED

GREAT ETHIOPIAN SUCCESS NEWSPAPER REPORTS OF BATTLE (United Press Association—-By Eleetrio Telegraph—Copyright) LONDON, 26th January. Though the Italians reiterate that they remain in undisputed possession of the battlefield, the Dessie corres* pondent of “The Times” records the greatest Ethiopian success yet achieved.

The “Daily Mail’s” Addis Ababa correspondent says that the Abyssinians persist in claiming victory and assert that they severed Italian communications with Makale. The “News-Chronicle’s” Dessie correspondent says that Marshal Badoglio not only failed to relieve the relentless enemy pressure at Makale, hut was driven hack to the fortified position at Ghcralta in a clash of primitive barbaric strength against the death-dealing mechanism of modern science.

The “Daily Telegraph’s” Addis Ababa correspondent says that the Italians were routed though numerically superior.

ABYSSINIAN DEAD ITALIAN CLAIM OF 10,000 ENORMOUS QUANTITIES OF ARMS AND ANIMALS CAPTURED (Received 28th January, 10.5 a.m.) ROME, 27tli January. Marshal Badoglio’s communique claims that the Abyssinian dead in the battle of Ganale Dorya are at least 10,000. The Italian losses were small. The Italians captured enormous quantities of arms and animals, also personal baggage and a Belgian officer advising Ras Desla from a high-powered wireless station. BIGGEST BATTLE OF WAR DESPERATE FIGHTING DESCRIBED BLACK SHIRTS REPULSE ABYSSINIANS (Received 28th January, 10.55 a.m.) LONDON, 27th January. Correspondents describe as desperate the fighting in Tembien in the biggest battle since the war began. The engagement was fought in one of the most mountainous regions on the northern front.

Black Shirts who were entrenched in key positions adopted what Marshal Ba. doglio describes as “an offensive of defence.”

Abyssinians recklessly attacked in wave upon wave, sprayed from the ground and bombed from the air until their bodies were heaped up in front of Italian machine gun emplacements. Undeterred they stepped over their fallen comrades in an endeavour to break the opposing line. The “Daily Mail” states that the Black Shirts with a bayonet charge and tlie battle cry of “Savoia,” finally repulsed the Abyssinians, thus, in the words of Rome, establishing (lie prestige of the white Italian combatants. ITALY’S OIL PURCHASES BUCHAREST, 27th January. Italy has recommended the buying of refined instead of crude petroleum from the Black Sea. BOMBING OF AMBULANCES COMPLAINT TO GENEVA ADDIS ABABA, 27th January. Dr. Schuffler and Captain Broaphy, in charge of the Ethiopian third Red Cross unit, requested Geneva’s attention to be drawn to the Italians’ repeated bombing of ambulances near Makale. declaring that five women and two child patients were killed on the 18th inst.