LIMITED GAINS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 20 December 1943, Page 3

LIMITED GAINS

MADE AND HELD BY ALLIED ARMIES IN ITALY

In Face of Enemy Counter-Attacks

FIGHTING IN ADRIATIC SECTOR AS FIERCE AS EVER

GERMAN RESISTANCE BEING WORN DOWN LONDON, December 19. Both Allied armies in Italy have made more local gains and German counter-attacks at several points have failed to recover any lost ground. A correspondent states that American troops of the Fifth Army have captured San Pietro, one of the main bastions that has blocked progress towards Cassino, on the eastern side of the road to Rome. San Pietro is a strongly-fortified village and the Americans have now pushed about one mile to the north of it. Further inland, American and French troops have made some gains. The Eighth Army is now firmly established just south of the Ortona-Orsogna Road and in several places has pushed across it. The battle for the control of this road is still as fierce as ever. General Montgomery’s men are wearing down German resistance bit by bit. The past week’s fighting on this front has resulted in a general move forward on the whole line between Ortona and Orsogna, It was not a large movement, but it is important. The Eighth Army, another message reports, is smashing German panzer counter-attacks in grim fighting for control of the Ortona-Orsogna-Guardigrele road. Our troops knocked out 13 tanks. The German attacks were specially strong north of Orsogna where, in the face of heavy artillery fire, the New Zealanders made several additional gains in the outskirts of the town. Allied fighter-bombers have been doing more good work over the battle area in spite of bad weather. Allied medium bombers struck at enemy communications, the main target being in Southern France, where the already battered railway viaduct near Cannes was again attacked. A railway bridge carrying the same line near Nice was also attacked.