Improved Situation in Libya

Timaru Herald, Volume CL, Issue 22133, 29 November 1941, Page 5

Improved Situation in Libya

, New Zealanders Forging Westward

Crucial Battle Raging Near Tobruk

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright '(Rec. 1 a.m.) LONDON, Nov. 28. IT is authoritatively stated that the general * situation in Libya continues to improve. The latest Cairo communique states that British and New Zealand forces which yesterday made direct contact are now forging westwards and are meeting with considerable opposition. The junction of the main forces with the Tobruk garrison has been maintained in spite of desperate resistance to prevent the British making Tobruk a valuable base. A big flare-up around Sidi Rezegh may be expected at any moment following the re-organ-isation of both forces. An enemy column which pushed across the Egyptian frontier was bombed from the air, shelled by artillery and engaged by our tanks. On its return the column was intercepted and attacked by our armed forces. This action may have stopped its progress but the result is not yet known. How the long pent up Tobruk garrison broke from the fortress and forced a corridor southwards is described in a dispatch from Tobruk. Operations started at 4 a.m. The first objectives were the strongholds Butch, Jack, Jill and . Tiger—enemy posts so named by the Australians. Butch was taken in 15 minutes in the face of furious machine-gun and mortar fire. Jack, Jill and Tiger were mopped up after four hours’ fighting. Thereafter the infantry followed a plan, heading for the El Dudda and El Adem escarpment to link up with the Imperial forces coming from the south. Operations by the end of the day had gone according to plan in the face of strenuous resistance by the enemy’s strongest battalions, and 1100 Germans and Italians were taken prisoner. Meanwhile ahead of the infantry tanks made havoc with enemy posts, and the artillery blasted enemy troops and gun positions. Never in the history of desert fighting has an artillery duel reached such a crescendo.

The junction of the New Zealand forces from the west with the British forces from Tobruk is announced in a communique from Cairo to-day. "During the night of November 25-26 New Zealand forces, supported by a British tank formation, recaptured Sidi Rezegh and occupied Bir el Hamed in the face of heavy opposition,” states the communique. "Stiff fighting continued in the area throughout yesterday and it was not until early this morning that elements of the relieving forces were able to join hands at El Duda with the British forces from Tobruk, which yesterday captured that important locality. "Meanwhile, British armoured and mechanised columns are hunting the enemy raiding force, which yesterday broke up into a number of parties, circulating on both sides of the frontier. In various brushes our columns yesterday accounted for five tanks and eighty other vehicles, while 300 prisoners, mostly Germans, were captured. Although this raid had a certain nuisance value it has not succeeded in diverting us from our main object. “Our air forces again had a successful day, particularly in co-operation with the ground forces. Operating against German and Italian reinforcements west of Sidi Rezegh our bombers and fighters destroyed several tanks and numerous transport vehicles.” Tlie announcement that the New Zealanders have joined the force from the Tobruk garrison is regarded in authoritative quarters in London as of the highest Importance. If, as may be expected, the junction is maintained and the breach in the Axis besieging line round Tobruk is widened, Tobruk, with its sea communication, may become a valuable base for supplies for the field forces which at present are maintained by long lines of communication stretching across two hundred miles of desert. Moreover, tanks from Tobruk are now available for the main battle in the Sidi Rezegh area. How the troops linked up is dramatically told by a correspondent In Libya, who said that the junction took place seventeen miles south-west of Tobruk and four miles north of Sidi Rezegh. The meeting took place in the dim light of early dawn. Because of the poor light the two forces were not at first able to identify each other, but as the light improved they were able to recognise each other as British. The drive by the New Zealanders along the main coastal road was heavily contested by German tanks and infantry. The New Zealanders have taken heavy toll of the Germans in men and machines. A military spokesman states that although the British forces have linked up with the Tobruk garrison it is still only a preliminary, as a number of pockets of German resistance will have to be dealt with before it can be said that the junction Is complete. Great Personal Courage The battle continues to rage round the New Zealanders. German and Italian armoured formations, violently counter-attacking, are doing their utmost to split the newly joined British unit. It was one such earlier thrust which drove the British back from Sldl Rezegn eight miles southwestward to Sidi Mufta. Then the New Zealanders drove the Germans back again, taking Sidi Rezegh, pushing on to the Bir el Hamed oasis four miles northward and then contacting the Tobruk forces at the fortified knoli at El Duda. Fighting continued fiercely, the situation changing hourly. A major with a tank unit chasing German armoured cars reached British Headquarters and said it had passed through four series of British and German battlelines since it left Sidi Rezegh. "Our forces are interwoven all over the desert. We are cutting off the Germans one moment and they seem to be doing the same to us the next.”

Stories of the great personal courage, Initiative and resource of all British arms pour in. An Australian piloting one of 20 Tomahawks which engaged 60 Axis bombers and fighters ran out

of ammunition and carried on fighting with a revolver. These Tomahawks shot down 10 planes for the loss of two. A South African Tomahawk pilot had a foot shot away by a shell but was determined to fly to the base. He realised he was on the verge of collapse when he was half way and emptied his waterbottle over his head. He was forced to give up the struggle five miles from his base but he neatly landed the plane before collapsing. Rescuers asked why he did not bale out. He replied: "I had to get my plane home.” A South African sergeant during a tank battle at Sidi Rezegh climbed on to a German tank. A German pushed up the turret to shoot him. He dropped in a grenade, blowing up the tank and himself. The correspondent of the "Daily Mall” who has been with the cruiser squadron in the Central Mediterranean for ten days said: "We have been steaming at 25 knots and sweeping every supply route to Africa. We do not fire a single shot but share with other squadrons the satisfaction that not a ton of seaborne supplies has reached the Axis forces in Libya since the battle was joined.”

Big Battle Near Tobruk The correspondent of the “Daily Express" with the Eighth Army says: “The crucial battle is in progress near Tobruk, where the enemy is desperately making an effort to reopen the gap. The whole area on both sides of our linkup swarms with enemy troops, tanks and guns attacking from both right and left.” Reuter’s correspondent, describing the tank battle near Sidi Omar on November 24, says: “Our light tanks, after engaging between 30 and 40 German tanks, drew them into a heavily mined area, where our anti-tank guns and 25 pounders were ingeniously camouflaged and all ready to open fire from close range. The Germans came on full tilt, but seeing they were outgunned quickly made off westward in single file,'our shells crashing among them. After the smoke had cleared we found 18 tanks [knocked out. As the remainder were withdrawing, our aircraft dive-bombed them, causing further destruction. The Italians found inside some tanks declared that all had agreed to surrender as soon as they found the British. Other Italian prisoners complained that they had had only a cupful of water apiece for three days and very little food. Italian gunners shelling them from nearby positions signified their desire to surrender, but the German machine-gunners behind them opened fire whenever they attempted to reach the British lines.” A military spokesman at Cairo states that only advanced units of New Zealanders and the Tobruk garrison have so far joined up. Enemy pockets remain between the main forces and it is too early to say that Tobruk has been relieved. Storming of Gambut A New Zealander describing the operations leading to the capture of Gambut aerodrome says: “We were advancing at night and found four lorry loads of Germans asleep without a sentry. We captured them all. Then the Germans brought up 17 motor-cars filled with men armed with Tommyguns. Our tanks knocked out 11 cars. The Germans kept on firing until we were within 10 yards and then put up their hands. They will not face the bayonet.” A New Zealand company commander described the capture of a series of enemy fortifications. “Our tanks were advancing to mop up machine-gun posts cleverly hidden in a ridge. Suddenly a terrific artillery barrage opened up on our flank and under cover of tanks the Germans began to advance. A strong wind whipped up the dust from the tanks into a sandstorm. All we could see through the haze was the sharp flashes of the guns. It seemed a good time to advance. We fixed bayonets and in single file, a few paces apart, we went through a melee of huge shapes as tanks loomed up through the storm, but there was no knowing whose tanks they were. They opened fire and hit- some of our boys but we fin-

ally reached the ridge, spread out and stormed the positions. We took those Jerries by surprise. They did not see us until we were on top of them. We captured the position but had a bad moment when the Jerry tanks broke off the battle and came charging through the positions we were holding, but apparently they did not know what was happening or were too busy retreating because they did not stop. We captured 280 Germans and killed and wounded 110.”

The move from Tobruk was so bold, so secret and so well-guarded that the enemy was taken completely by surprise. Strong tank formations were accompanied by infantry. One of the gladdest sights the garrison has seen came on the morning of the break-out when Tomahawks skimmed over the perimeter and the soldiers cheered. The tanks were under the command of an Irish colonel who had already led them in major battles in the Solium area. Now leading the formation from an open tank turret and flying a large flag, he fought his way to the escarpment, beating off counter-attacks and holding the new corridor open. The tanks held their own in spite of terrific artillery fire. Meanwhile our 26 and 60 pounders, manned by gunners stripped to the waist, and with sweat pouring down their bodies, fired until the barrels were practically redhot. The Royal Army Service Corps carried on bringing up ammunition and food. The Royal Army Medical Corps operated from zero hour to the end, doctors, orderlies and ambulance men attending to the wounded on the battlefield, and evacuating them to the rear. One ambulance had its back blown away. The driver laughingly said: “I was lucky I had no patients.” The correspondent spoke to a wounded lad from Liverpool in reference to the attack on "Butch.” He said that our lads came up like champions. Nothing stopped them. A Bavarian said: “We never thought you would break through.” While the British occupied the main attack, the Poles in the western sector attacked the Italians from the rear and then returned to their lines, having with hand grenades and killed more than 100 men and captured some prisoners with only one CaSUa italian Glee Was Too Early The news to-day that the Tobruk forces have joined up with the New Zealand troops south-east of the port invites the recollection that it is now just six months since the Italian press gleefully announced that the British garrison at Tobruk was showing signs of exhaustion. Months later a number of attacks, supported by tanks having failed to enable them to take advantage of this alleged exhaustion, to capture this highly-valued prize the enemy announced that Tobruk was to be surrounded by an impregnable ring and slowly bombed and shelled out of existence. Every day, often five or six times daily, Axis aircraft showered their bombs on the harbour and defences, and every day their artillery shelled the whole area. The result was singularly ineffective. It is an axiom that a defended port must be attacked at the same time by land and sea if it is to be reduced. Thanks to the British Navy, Tobruk could never be attacked from the sea. The Tobruk garrison did not sit quietly under the enemy's threat. Almost nightly, raids were made and patrols penetrated deeply into the enemy's positions destroying observation posts, shooting up working parties, bringing in prisoners, and almost invariably the initiative was with us. The Germans were led to believe that the Australians alone numbered three divisions. Still there is no doubt that the enemy really thought our troops were entrapped. They could not believe that supplies were being brought In by the sea and it must have been a shock to them to learn that almost the entire garrison had been relieved this autumn by fresh troops without their knowledge and with no loss to ourselves; and still more that the garrison had been reinforced with tanks. The holding of Tobruk made the Axis attack on Egypt impossible. For seven and a half months three Italian divisions and some German troops have been nailed down to land blockade lines, with the result that armoured divisions on the frontier lacked the infantry backing which is essential to a forward move. When Lieutenant-General Sir Alan Cunningham began his attack the Tobruk garrison took part and with tanks which the Navy had landed, drove deeply into the south-east sector of the enemy's defensive lines.

Both British and German sources foresee a continuance of the severe fighting in Libya, -tough fighting lies ahead, said a Cairo spokesman, and a military spokesman in Berlin declared that the British had mustered such formidable forces that we must reckon on hard fighting during the next few days. The Cairo spokesman said the battle had been handled extremely well.

The general feeling in informed circles was quiet confidence. There is every hope that the temporary junction with the Tobruk forces will become solid with the arrival of larger British forces from the south and east and the relief of Tobruk appears imminent.