8TH ARMY’S SUCCESS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 78, 25 November 1943, Page 2

BTH ARMY’S SUCCESS

ALFEDENA CAPTURED ADVANCE OF SEVERAL MILES WEDGE DRIVEN INTO GERMAN FRONT (Rec. 11.30 a.m.) Rugby, Nov. 24. British troops have occupied Alfedena, 14 miles north-west of (Rec. 12.5 p.m.) London, Nov. 24. The Eighth Army’s capture of Alfedena, the pivot town of General Kesselring’s winter line communications, resulted from a five-mile advance. Alfedena controls two main roads northward along the mountain backbone to the trans-Italy highway between Rome and Pescara. The capture of San Angelo, eight miles north-west of Agnone, rewarded a six-mile push. Reuter’s Algiers correspondent sayf. the Eighth Army has driven a wedge five miles deep into the German Apennines front, and with the capture of San Angelo made further progress, consolidating positions on the banks of tl#: Sangro river. (Cairo radiq, reported that units of General Montgomery’s infantry crossed the Sangro). There was a further increase in heavy artillery fire in the Venafro area, Reuter adds. Italy has been the graveyard of the Luftwaffe chief’s reputation. Field-Marshal Wolfram von Richthofen, whose relations with General Kesselring have long been strained, is the latest to be relieved of his command, leaving General Kesselring in full charge of the air forces in Italy. WEATHER STILL BAD Allied headquarters states: “There is little improvement in the weather, which continues to hamper operations. Enemy, artillery was active on the Fifth Army front. The Eighth Army made more progress in the central sector and occupied Alfedena. The village has been destroyed by the enemy. Further north, where heavy rain fell, there is little change. “Light coastal craft of the Allied navies are again active on the west coast of Italy. On Sunday night they sank a lighter laden with petrol near Leghorn. Yesterday fighters bombed a motor transport off Albania. Other operations were prevented by bad weather. On Monday night light bombers attacked motor transport between Ortona and Pescara.” GERMAN PLANE LOSSES London, Nov. 24. It is officially announced that 1462 enemy planes so far have been captured on the Italian mainland, and 79 abandoned German planes were seized in Sardinia.