JIMMA CAPTURED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23999, 24 June 1941, Page 7

JIMMA CAPTURED

ABYSSINIAN ADVANCE

STEADY PROGRESS MADE CLOSING IN ON ENEMY LONDON, June 23 Patriot JVirees, led by British officers, captured the town of Jitnina, south of Addis Ababa, states a Cairo communique. The Italian general officer commanding had previously offered to surrender the town, but at the time there were 110 military or political advantages to be obtained from accepting the offer, which was refused. "Since then," adds the communique, "advances and further successes obtained by our troops in the adjacent areas have altered the situation, and at midday on Saturday our troops lormally took possession of the town." A cabled Homo communique states: "We evacuated Jimma after declaring it an open town in order to avoid damage to private property and injury to civilians. We left a small garrison to hand over the town to the British." "Operations on all fronts in the southern area are proceeding satisfactorily, in co-operation with the patriot forces, which are closing in on the Italians from all sides," says the Cairo communique. "Further elements of the Italian 24th Division surrendered at Soddu. "fifteen miles west of Lade Mt'i our African troops, after a sharp engagement, captured prepared enemy positions, taking prisoner 130 Italians and 30 colonial troops, also four guns and 20 machine-guns. "In the Debra Tabor area Indian troops, supported by patriot forces, ate steadily closing in on the town." PROBLEMS OF PEACE DEMOBILISATION PLANS SPECIAL STUDY BEING MADE (Reed. 5.5 p.m.) LONDON, June 22 In a speech at Wakefield, r. Arthur Greenwood, Minister without Poit folio, said: "It is my particular task to study ways and means of meeting the claims of the people upon their leaders for the establishment in the world of conditions of freedom, security and more civilised ways of life. When one is making plans for bringing people together to formulate agreed proposals, and for setting forth complicated problems requiring inter-departmental cooperation and consultation over a wide field, it is not easy to explain at any given moment how things are taking shape, but they certainly are taking shape. "There is first and foremost, the problem of enabling men in the fighting services to return, at the earliest possible moment when the war ends, to the freedom of civilian life. It is not a simple problem; it has many aspects and vast ramifications. But we are getting on with the framing of plans to ensure that demobilisation, when it comes, will not spell unemployment, demoralisation or want.

"The smooth and orderly release of fighting men from the restraints of military service can be effected. It means planning ahead and it involves a consideration of related problems. Among these I place in the forefront of my studies of the immediate post-war situation the question of the peace-time uses that can be made of the vastlyextended productive equipment called into being by war needs. "It is now generally recognised that labour, as a vital element in our economic system, must be accorded conditions which recognise its human needs and the part it plays in the national life. We are studying, in the most practical spirit, wartime developments of industrial production and regulation of labour, with a view to applying them to peace-time.'' AIRCRAFT EXAMINED MACHINES FROM AMERICA LONDON, June 23 Air Chief Marshal Sir Charles Portal made a technical examination of some American aircraft which have recently been delivered to the Royal Air Force during a private visit to an aerodrome in the Home Counties. They included a Douglas DB7, which, when converted for night fighting, is known as a Havoc, the big four-engined Boeing BI7C bomber, better known as the "flying fortress," and a Curtiss Tomahawk single seater fighter, which is now doing good service with the Royal Air Force in Britain and in tho Middle East. EFFORT ABANDONED FATE OF SUBMARINE NEW YORK, June '23 It is announced by Admiral Richard Edwards that, as no possibility of life exists on the submarine 0-9, which sank during routine practice on the Portsmouth coast, the Navy has abandoned its efforts to reach the crew. Two divers 1 successfully attempted to reach the submarine. One got within a few feet, and said that it looked as if it had crumpled up. REVOLT IN ESTONIA | (Reed. 5.5 p.m.) LONDON, June 22 Reports reaching Stockholm say a revolt has broken out in Estonia, the rebels seizing armed ships in Tallinn harbour and firing on the city. The Red Army is dealing successfully with the rebels. NEUTRALITY OF TURKEY I (Heed. 11 p.m.) ANKARA, June 23 An official Turkish communique i states: "hi view of the situation | created by the war between Germany j and Russia, the Government of the ] Turkish Republic has decided to proclaim Turkish neutrality." NAVAL VESSELS SUNK (Reed. 5.5 p.m.) LONDON, June 22 The Admiralty has announced that the naval drifter M A. West and the trawler Sindonis have licen sunk. There were no casualties in the M. A. West.