COMPLETE VICTORY OVER TURKS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 10085, 25 September 1918, Page 5

COMPLETE VICTORY OVER TURKS

WIPED OUT 111 PALESTINE KINO CONGRATULATES ALLENBY ON VICTORY EVACUATION OF ST QUENTIN BRITISH CAPTURE STRONGLYHELD POSITIONS

By Telegraph — Press Association,—Copyright. Australian and New Zealand Cable Association and Reuter. (Received September 24* 11.50 p.m.) BONBON, September 23. The Press Bureau states that the King has telegraphed to General Allenby as follows: — ■ With pride and admiration wo received the news of the ablyconceived and brilliantly-carried-out operations in which the British, Indian, and Allied forces under your command, with the support of the Royal Navy, gained a complete victory. , . ~ I am confident tills will rank ns one of tlio groat exploit in tile i history of the British Empire, and ever stand as a memorable testimony to. British lealership and the fighting qualities of the British and Indian troops. TURKISH ARMIES HOW NON-EXISTENT ALMOST THEIR ENTIRE WAR MATERIAL LOST. Australian and Now Zealand Cable Association. LONDON/ iisapten\ber 23. Mr W. T. Massey, wring to “The Times'’ from Palestine Headquarters on Sunday, says:— . , , . x ,, . . , ... . “There is still a great deal of clearing up to do, hut the first battle is practically over. “General Allenby has secured one of the most complete victories in the war. A few unimportant sections may have got away in driblets, but the Turkish armies have ceased to exist as armies. They have been lulled of captured, and have-lost almost their entire war material of ©very description. “If a new army is to bo created for Palestine and Syria, the Turks must provide not only men, but the mechanism of war. Nearly all their guns on this front, and transport, rolling stock, and engineers’ stores have fallen into our hands. ■ The infantry alone have taken 270 guns. The cavalry was too busy securing prisoners to count and send reports of their gun captures. “I have been over a large portion of the battlefield, hundreds of square miles in extent, anl have seen the debris of the routed array, and realise that it must be some time before a full statement of the enemy’s losses is possible. “This much is certain: Bold strategy, backed by the victorious action of the enthusiastic and determined troops, obtained a victory for the Allies from which the Turks cannot hope to recover. NEW ZEALANDERS CROSS THE JORDAN. “To-day’s news is as good as preceding days. In the Jordan Valley we made important ground. A few of the enemy had come down from Nablus and got across the ©d-Damie ferry. The New Zealanders, at eight o’clock got across the track and-stopped this exit. They ixnmdod up eight hundred prisoners, including the Staff Commander of the Turkish Fifty-third division. Apparently it is bad luck to command this division, for in the first battle of Gaza the Australians caught the commander iu a carriage. At one o’clock to-day the New Zealanders crossed the Jordan and secured the Damie bridgehead. “East of Jericho,- the infantry who had rolled up the enemy from the west had little to do to-day beyond taking the surrender of isolated parties; but they increased their capture of guns. The Irish, Welsh, and Indian infantry, operating about the Nablus road, got well to the north and east of Nablus, adding to the discomfiture of the retreating enemy. The Irish covered twenty-one miles, fighting over mountains, in thirty-six hours. “The cavalry approached Xetr Kenna and Seifurieh, north of Nazareth, yesterday. To-day the Yoemanry and Indian cavalry heat off an attack on the Tubariyeh-Acro road, north of Nazareth, from the direction of Haifa. BRITISH AND AUSTRALIAN AIR, WORK. “The British and Australian airmen are carrying on as usual. They chose a new field to-day. The detached motor and other transport was try. ing to escape by the Shible-Beisan road, and they dropped four tons ol bombs, inflicting severe damage, on men and material. In my wanderings 1 have seen the extraordinary success achieved by the airmen in these opera tions. On the Tul Keram-Nablus road tho-pilots flow at a very low altitude, and dropped bombs where it was impossible to miss. The road for miles is choked with smashed lorries, wheeled transport, and dead men and norses. Having broken up the transport column, and made it difficult foi the men to move, the airmen returned and used their machine-guns on the creeps who were endeavouring to hide. What was accomplished in this neighbourhood was repeated in the Damie road and elsewhere. The airmen’s total of casualties inflicted on the enemy must i*>ac.h a high figure. All the prisoners speak of the dread sound of the aircraft. SUPERB BEHAVIOUR OF INDIANS. “One of the features of this battle has been the magnificent dash oi the Indian troops. _ The veteran soldiers of India wore expected to do well; and they have lived up to their high reputation. The young battalions who replaced the white troops sent for service on the Western front were an unknown quantity; but these young Indian battalions came through the ordeal magnificently. They fought like seasoned warriors, and cheerfully answered any call. Divisional commanders tell me they are delighted with the valour of the Indians under all conditions. Forty-seven hours of continuous fighting and marching tested them to the utmost, but they behaved superbly, their only fault being too great eagerness to push on. In Thursday’s tremendous attack against the coastal defences the officers had to restrain tho men from rushing into our artillery barrage. “These troops took tho place of some Londoners who -were sent to Prance, and were tremendously keen to preserve the record of tho division of Indians with the Londoners, who were the first in Jerusalem, and first over the Jordan, and wanted to be tho first through tho coastal defences. Tfiey succeeded, went on, and secured the crossings of tho Wadi Falik" for the cavalry. Then they advanced to the north-east to Tul Keram, covering the istonishing distance of twenty-two miles in thirteen and a-half hours injluding trench fighting and actions in the open. This wonderful pertormmoo is an example of what tho young Indian battalions are capable of They are all of practically tho same quality. For their skill in hill fightl rag it would be hard to find a parallel. There was a stern struggle for the Biet Lid Hill, five thousand yards from Nablus, on Friday. \Vhen it was -•aptured, it was decided to take the station, which was commanded on the south by a high, steep hill. The Sixth Battalion crept up tho irregular dopes in tho moonlight, and caught tho garrison entirely unprepared. Thev ■ushed the surprised German machine-gunners, and there was not a single casualty among the Sikhs. Tho Indians, marching over the hilly country had to leave all their artillery except mountain guns behind.” THE OFFIOIAL REPORT. Australian and Now Zealand Cable Association and Reuter. . . , _ , , , LONDON, September 23. A communique from Palestine states:— Through our having seized the passages of tho Jordan at ed-Damie m Sunday morning, the enemy’s last avenue of escape from west of the ■lvor was closed, and tho 7th and Bth Turkish Armies have now virtually 'cased to exist. Their entire transport has been, captured -By 8 n m ves 'torday 25,000 prisoners and 260 guns had been counted, and many prisoners and much, material has hot yet been enumerated. * 1 8,000 TURKS EAST OF THE JORDAN YET TO BE DEALT WITH Australian and New Zealand Cable Association. (Received September 24, 11.16 p.m.) _ _ . ! LONDON, September 23. The Turkish roads of escape aro blocked at Nazareth, Beisan and Mogaze, while tho Nablus road is out at Eddaze. Tho Turkish force’westward of the Jordan is therefore boxed in. Still, some were not taken prisoner, but ceased to exist as a fighting force. All transport, guns and rolling-stock were captured. Tho original estimate that eighteen thousand Turks had been captured westward of the Jordan referred to the bayonet strength and excluded artillery and machine-guns and other units. Tho total ration strength was for, 60,000; tho combatant strength was 35.000. The Turkish force westward (? eastward) of tho Jordan, consisting of a rifle strength of between 6000 and 8000. with a ration strength of thirty thousand, situated on tho lino of the Hodjaz railway, has not yet been dealt with. i