GERMAN STAND

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 24971, 14 August 1944, Page 3

GERMAN STAND

j PORTS OF BRITTANY STRONGLY HELD AREAS FORTRESS OF BREST (I?ecd. I). 80 p.m.) LONDON, Aug. 13 "This battle is not as easy as it looks on the map," says the New York Times correspondent with the Americans in Brittany. ''Although our armoured columns are slashing with astonishing success from several directions into the German vitals, the enemy is still holding out at many points far behind our vanguards, parfciclarly in ports, which have been transformed into rallying points for thousands of Germans from broken, dispersed and cut-off units.

"The Germans, with their way barred to the south, have been assembling at the beleaguered ports of Brest, St. Malo, Dinan, Nantes and Lorient, each equipped with abundant artillery, especially heavy anti-aircraft guns and concrete fortifications. Brest is a particularly formidable fortress and may present as grim a problem as Cherbourg. ■ Resistance at Lorient "Lorient is a strongly defended port commanded by a naval captain who has I announced his determination to resist to the end. The fate of the defenders is not promising, as our forces have surrounded the town by land and they cannot escape by sea." Correspondents outside St. Malo describe how Colonel von Auloch, commander of the trapped German garrison, sent an SOS to the American besiegers for medical supplies. He offered in exchange _ seven American prisoners. The Americans accepted the offer, after which tho siege was resumed. One of the freed Americans said the entire garrison would surrender, but von Auloch refused to do so. German losses were frightful and wounded lay everywhere. Relusal to Surrender American shelling ceased at St. Malo while a captured German officer crossed no man's land into St. Malo with an American chaplain under a white flag and attempted to talk the German commander into surrender, says another report. The officer, after an hour's conversation, crossed the 500 yards separating tho citadel from tho Americans, bringing a note from Colonel von Auloch saying: "1 thank you very much. You are fighting fairly, but we are continuing to fight because, according to my conception, capitulation is incompatible with the honour of a German soldier."

Xhe battle for Jirost is beginning, says lleuter's correspondent. As American tanks and infantry on Friday morning pressed toward tho port news came that the German garrison had rejected an ultimatum to surrender. Allied tank concentrations have been observed north-east of Brest, and an all-out assault is expected at any moment. _ The Americans aro facing tough opposition from thousands of naval men, paratroops and elements of German forces which have been withdrawn to tho port. Medium forces of Fortresses attacked a largo number of targets in Brest, including coastal guns, anti-air-craft batteries and radio stations. The German news agency stated that Allied naval craft attempted to block Lorient Harbour, but German coastal batteries forced them to withdraw.

American planes dropped nearly 4,000,000 leaflets enjoining surrender oil the garrisons in Brest, Lorient and St. Nazaire.

: DEFENCE OF VICHY F J CURFEW IMPOSED IN PARIS LONDON, Aliif. 12 _ The town of Vichy is in a state of siege, according to reports reaching the Swiss frontier quoted by the British United Press correspondent in Berne, Nobody is allowed to enter or leave Vichy without permission from Darnand's militiamen. The Government offices aro guarded day and night. The German commander in the Paris area has ordered a curfew in Greater Paris, beginning at 11.15 p.m. today. NEXT ALLIED LANDING BERLIN'S SPECULATION LONDON, Aug. I-J Southern Franco rather than Northern Italy is the Allies' objective for the next landing in Europe, according to the Berlin radio commentator Sertorius. "The concentration of a considerable part of the Fifth Army, which has withdrawn from (lie front, and a concentration of shipping in fho harbours Centra 1 Italy and Corsica has," he said, "led to the assumption that the Allies intend to land in Northern Italy. 1 think that the enemv is not now considering the Ligurian coast, with its mountainous hinterland unsuitable for operational deployment. It is more likely that he intends to land on the coast of Southern France." RIVIERA COAST GUN POSITIONS BOMBED (Reed. 7.30 p.m.) LONDON, Aug. 12 Medium and fighter-bombers yesterday combined to smash enemv coastal and anti-aircraft gun positions, pillboxes and radio stations along the French and Italian Ilivieras, states a Ilomo correspondent. Excellent results aro reported. Mitchells plastered coastal gun emplacements in the Cannes and Montpelier areas. Fires and explosions were caused in all tho target, areas. Marauders scored many direct bits on coastal guns east of Toulon. 4000 PRISONERS IN DAY j LONDON, Aug. 12 Ir the 24 hours ended at midnight on "*Vednesdav, 4322 prisoners were captured by tJnited States troops, moatlj- in Brittany*