FARING WELL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25660, 7 October 1944, Page 7

FARING WELL

OPERATIONS IN GREECE PORT OF PATRAS TAKEN (Rec.-7.p.m.) LONDON, Oct. 5. Latest reports to-night are that the ground and air operations in the Peloponnesus, and particularly the region of Patras, are faring well, states the Daily Mail’s correspondent at Mediterranean headquarlers. He adds that the liberation of Athens and the neutralisation of German power in Crete and the Rhodes chain of small islands in the Aegean may not now be far off. The success of our landing from the air and sea emphasises the extent of the enemy’s evacuation, which has been going on for some weeks. The Times correspondent says as soon as news of the arrival of the British spread, wandering Italians who had been deserted by the retreating Germans gave themselves up. They were ragged and bootless, and said the l Germans stole all their underclothing before turning them adrift among hostile Greek patriots. The Daily Express correspondent, in a delayed despatch, says that in the suburbs of Patras about 1000 Germans, and an equal number of Greek quisling troops, face the British force. “We have the 'help of 400 or 500 partisans. No one particularly wants to fight—the Germans, because they have little stomach for it; we because we do not wish to bring damage to the friendly Greeks. As soon as we arrived at Patras, the German commander of the garrison sent a message of his desire to parley with Major Earl Jellicoe, commander of the British combined forces. The negotiations broke down on a definite prohibition from Athens.” The correspondent dwells upon the bitterness between the Greek patriots and the quislings, and says the quislings will give themselves up only to the British, while partisans insist that only they should take quislings, which means that all quislings would be shot. “Unhappily anyone may be called a quisling who expresses sentiments not exactly agreeing with the partisans.” All-night Battle

The first description of the fighting in Patras comes from the Daily Express correspondent with the invasion forces. Writing yesterday, he says: " Soon after dawn to-day, after a terrific all-night 'battle, weary ‘ Tommies ’ are being smothered with flowers by delirious Greeks in St. George’s square, Patras. The Germans were sinking in their escape ships offshore and the partisans were almost mad with joy. This was the climax of four days of almost continuous battle, first with the Germans and their Greek quislings and then, after the Greeks had surrendered to us, with the Germans pinned in the harbour area. Most of the R.A.F. regiment and the special troops had not slept all that time. “ Breaking-point came yesterday when the R.A.F. regiment’s mortars smashed the heavily defended radio hill, which overlooks > the city. We occupied the hill just after dark. Enemy rearguards throughout last night tried to turn us out of this key position while the majority of their forces embarked on the harbour and dashed for safety up the Gulf of Cornith.

Major lan Paterson, with a few of his commandos, by a remarkable piece of ingenuity under heavy gunfire, managed to get the Germans' 75-pounder on radio hill in working order and turn it on the fleeing ships. One was hit and sank, and another was holed and beached.

“A German suicide patrol before dawn made a last stand at the entrance to the docks and was wiped out. The battle was most strange. The Greeks came into the streets to welcome us even when the fighting: was going on, flowers, bullets, and wine being mixed up. The Greek police told our men where to go and where not to go. Civilians took our men down narrow alleyways and over rooftops away from the line of enemy fire. “ The partisans’ bursts of martial ardour, especially at night-time, often imperilled our men as much as the Germans. The first German commander sent a. message that he would like an excuse to surrender. He was deposed on Monday and the second commander announced his intention of fighting to the last man. Now he and his crowd have gone other Germans ars creeping from their hiding places and surrendering to the British, terrified lest they are torn to bits by the Greeks.” Enemy Leaving Athens

The Germans are evacuating Athens and the Peloponnesus and hastily moving northward, but are meeting great difficulties owing to the northern bridges being torn up or blocked, states Ankara radio. *

Reuter’s correspondent at Allied headquarters, Mediterranean, says the officially-expressed belief is that Patras is one of the enemy's last strongholds in the Peloponnesus, and that “ Land Forces. Adriatic,” which is the official name for the forces carrying out the operations, expect the whole of the Peloponnesus shortly to be completely free of German troops, if this is not already the case. The Allied forces, after two days of a rough sea voyage, went ashore in a cloudburst, but were on the move northwards within two hours. They travelled all night without encounter-, ing any Germans. Greek villagers, working in the rain and thunderstorms, helped fill in bomb craters. The pealing of church bells and tremendous cheering from crowds of villagers lining the quayside greeted the first craft from the invasion fleet. Inland the villagers draped garlands of flowers across the roads and stood all night waving flaming torches as the British passed. , Fighting is going on in Albania, where the mountainous country is a great obstacle. The troops are completely dependent on mule transport. The mountains are too steep even to climb on foot while carrying equipment.

The Associated Press correspondent in Rome reports that the Allies in Southern Albania have cut off Corfu from the supply port of Saranda.