BRITISH KEEP TURKS ON THE RUN.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume IV, Issue 959, 8 March 1917, Page 7

BRITISH KEEP TURKS ON THE RUN.

JUCCESSFUL OPERATIONS IN TWO THEATRES PROGRESS IN MESOPOTAMIA AND SYRIA. A. and N.Z. Cable Association and Ecutcr. (Received March 8, 10.50 a.m.) LONDON, March 7. A Mesopotamia official message states: —On Monday our cavalry engaged the Turkish rearguard at Jajj, nine miles southeast of Ctesiphon. Enemy booty is strewn over 80 miles of country. It is impossible to give accurate figures of captures, but 38 guns up to the present have been salvaged from the river. An official message regarding the operations in Egypt states: The Turks abandoned before our advanced troops a very strong position in neighbourhood of Sheikh Nurhn, in Syria, after spending two months in constructing a formidable system of defence. Yesterday our aircraft dropped a ton of high explosives on troops and railway trains.

Ctesiphon is 86 miles north-west of Rut-el-Amara, and only 19 miles short of Bagdad. This was the furthest point reached by General Townsheud in November, 1915. On November 25 he began his retreat to Kut, where he was invested on January 9. Ctesiphon consists of the ruins of a very old city. It was the scene of a very severe battle before General Townsheud's retirement.