200 MILES INLAND

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 76, 28 October 1941, Page 5

200 MILES INLAND

BRITISH PATROLS IN LIBYA Rugby, Oct. 28. A correspondent with the British forces m North Africa reports that patrols are now operating 200 miles inland, and are pushing further and further into Italian Libya. The correspondent thinks, genernlly speaking, that the enemy owns nothing comparable with the Empire's inland position. He describes the possession of the vital oases of Siwa and Jarabub, 200 miles inland, as a “dagger held at the back of the Axis forces.” The Allies now bold all the strong points to the south, including two other important oases which give access to the Sudan, Free French Africa, and the heart of the continent. Mussolini’s fence of barbed wire and concrete which runs from the coast down to the treacherous sands blocking the way to central Africa is considered to be largely useless now. Touring cars can go through gaps in it and armoured cars can break through even p.t the strong points.—B.O.W.