SLIGHT GAINS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 January 1944, Page 3

SLIGHT GAINS

FIFTH & EIGHTH ARMIES IN ITALY RAILWAY YARDS IN BALKANS RAIDED. BY FLYING FORTRESS & OTHER PLANES. LONDON, January 5. In Italy, both the Fifth and Eighth armies made more progress today. The Fifth Army advanced a little over a mile in one area and has captured a height overlooking the German winter line in that area. Indian troops on the Eighth Army’s front have ' captured an additional spur. ~ „ The North-West African Air Force yesterday bombed railway yards in Bulgaria and Yugoslavia. Flying Fortresses and fighters attacked the railway yards at a town 50 miles south of Sofia, and medium bombers went for barracks and railway yards in Yugoslavia.

NEW DEFENCES

BEING BUILT BY GERMANS. SEVERAL .MILES DEEP. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.5 a.m.) RUGBY, January 5. Prisoners recently captured in Italy say the enemy is now feverishly building up new defensive positions in the rear of the battle area, writes a corres- j pondent at Allied Headquarters in North Africa. These are several miles deep and concentrated on the lines of the Todt system, which will impose a maximum amount of delay in the Allied advance towards Rome. Some of these formidable fortifications, which are reached by communication trenches, are well supplied with machine-gun posts and mortars, not only built all along the new defensive line but at vital points of the old line, probably in the vicinity of Cassino and San Vittore, and also in the Pescara area. The correspondent adds that there has been no change in. our positions on the Eighth Army front. On Tuesday, despite very determined fighting, we captured an 180-ft. elevation, which the Germans are making persistent efforts to regain. The Iridian troops have made a small advance of several hundred yards. In the face of the heaviest machinegun fire, they succeeded in occupying a road south-west of' San Tomaso.

The Fifth Army reports an advance of a little over a mile, west of Venafro, and the capture of a high point northwest of that town. We now hold all the high range dominating the little village of San Vittore, which the enemy has made the bastion of his winter defence line. Over on the west front oui’ patrols were as usual active, despite cold and overcast weather.