BRITISH INVASION OF HOLY LAND

North Otago Times, Volume CVI, Issue 13981, 17 November 1917, Page 5

BRITISH INVASION OF HOLY LAND

a ' BRILLIANT FIGHTING ON HISTORIC GROUND, • , y 1 "* . ) PRESSING BACK THE TURKS BY CEASELESS

' . ATTACKS.

(Australian and New Zealand Cable Association.) • LONDON, November 15. Mr W. T. Massey, official correspondent with the British forces - in Palestine, telegraphing on Tuesday, says: General Allenby t<£ day secured control of a big part of the world's most ancient battlefield. A large enemy force was fighting a desperate rearguard action northward of the Wadi Sukeir, from near the sand dunes on the coast to Beit Jubrin road and round Burke'th, which ' the Scottish captured. The Colonial and British cavalry to-day . secured a tight grasp of some northern outposts in the land of the Philistines, and they, with the mfantry, occupied Ya'dneh (the Jamnia of Joshua's time). The pursuit of the Turks relentlessly continues, and we are almost within sight of Ramleh, the former Turkish Headquarters. Beyond Bamleh; ! 'is i Lydda, the spot, reputed to contain the remains of St. George. We are only seven miles from Rnnileh. A Turkish communique dated the 10th states the enemy did not attack. The fact is that the Turks themselves six times fruitlessly i!i-|-:ii-i<ci the Scottish northward of Wadi Hesi. Their failure cfi'isod them to abandon Ascalon and other places, and we took 1000. prisoners and over twenty gun's. . ■ ■'--.' Renter's correspondent at Headquarters in Palestine reports ihat on Wednesday our troops captured the junction station where ! the Beersheba railway joins the Jaffa-Jerusalem line, thus cutting off the enemy's railway communications with Jerusalem. The enemy's last hope of holding us at Wadi Hesi has now gone. He may still put up a certain amount of local fighting, but organised re.-iis!aiK'o on a large scale is unlikely. Within a fortnight of, the inception of the offensive the enemy army, consisting of nine division!,', has been driven out of strongly fortified and apparently impregnable positions. The Turks have been -chased across the country'suffering enormous losses. The morale of the enemy's army has been broken. AJeaturo of yesterday's fighting was the brilliant charge by the Yeomanry on the enemy's entrenched position above Mughair. They charged, straight across the upland, and were received with the heavy.fire of rifles, but they cut right through the Turks, sabring right and left. The enemy found themselves,cut off and threw down their arms. A'fter the Scottish infantry's bout at Burkah 400 dead Turks were counted at one position alone. The aviators, are doing excellent work in bombing 'thcTailwnys. Five German machines/three spare engines, and other material were destroyed when wo bombed the aerodrome at Amak'el Manshiye. It is believed they were new machines which had only recently arrived. The population behind the lines are joyously resuming their usual occupations, including the sowing of crops.. They are also doing a roaring trade with ourmen in oranges and other commodities. A Palestine official message says:—General Allenby reports that -the infantry and moiintecta continue their advance. We now hold the railway line,near Neawes anil Mansurah, including the junction of the Beersheba-Damascus railway with the" line to Jerusalem. We inflicted heavy losses, on Tuesday. We buried 400 Turks at Katrah alone and topk 1500 prisoners. ("Th> Times'' Service.) Received Nobember 17, at 12.20 a.m. •■■•-. V''■' : ' LONDON, NovemlcrSft: ■ General Allenby is now twenty-one miles west of Jerusalem.' . (Reuter's Telegrams).. ,' :r Received November 16. at 7.50 ]£hu ' •'.-•,■■„•-''.. "■■'', LONDON, November .15. A ineeling of the leading British' Jews decided to form a'League of British Jews with the object of upholding the status subjects, professing Judaism, also to facilitate the settlement of the Jews in Palestine, • _, ■' . ~' ' '"

THE FUTURE OF PALESTINE DISCUSSED. AUTONOMOUS JEWISH STATE PROPOSED. 'Australian and New Zealand Galilt Aiioclatlon.) ' ' OTTAWA, November !,£ i\ Mr Dp Sola, head of the Canadian announces -that '.Mr* Balfour, when in Ottawa, agreed, on hehnlf of Britain, to create > Palestine, into an autonomous' Jewish Stjjte under the protection of tin: Allies.