FIERCE OPPOSITION TO ALLIES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 87, Issue 219, 16 September 1943, Page 5

FIERCE OPPOSITION TO ALLIES

SALERNO BATTLE AREA SOME GROUND YIELDED EIGHTH ARMY PUSHING NORTH (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) Recd. 9.30 p.m. London, Sept. 15. Troops of the Fifth Army in Italy are meeting with fierce opposition from German panzers in the Salerno area. At some points Allied troops have yielded ground, but fresh reinforcements are being landed to strengthen the assault. An American broadcast from Algiers said: “Allied Headquarters do not attempt to minimise the seriousness of the situation on the Salerno front, but the latest news is that we are holding our own.” Algiers radio said the bridgehead was now well secured and available for continued Allied use. Within a hundred miles of the Salerno fighting the two Eighth Army groups are moving north. They have occupied Cosenza, in central Calabria, and on the east side of Italy they are reported to be level with Bari.

Crack German troops and panzer units are going all out to ishake off the Allied grip on the Gulf of Salerno. All dispatches stress the ferocity of the German counter-attacks. They are fighting, one correspondent says, with the bitter determination of men who know that enormous issues are at stake.

The Germans on the Salerno front are doing their utmost to give their troops air cover. Combats are raging over the battle area almost continuously. The strength of the enemy air opposition in the Naples area is the result of long-range Axis planning, says the Daily Express’ air correspondent. The Axis air chief in the M*editerranean, Field Marshal Kesselring, conserved his fighter and bomber after the fall of Tunisia last May for the Allied invasion of Italy. Kisssiring is able to throw his full weight against the Allies. It has become a war of attrition in the air. bet the Allied Air Commander, Air Xa/wGal Tedder, can be in little doubt the result. With his powerful and United States squadrons he has a strength far greater than Kesselring, who can call on 1000 air-er.’-'-t at most. Of these 500 are bombers, mostly light and medium, which need strong fighter protection.

Italy has 100 airfields in five belts, fiutd General Montgomery’s forces kfive captured the southernmost belt, which Allied planes are being used to blast the Germans from the otb-v four. The first belt is concen-

trated chiefly in the Taranto-Brindisi area, whence our medium bombers will be able to range over Greece. The second belt covers the NaplesFoggia area, from which our planes could cover the Balkans operations and attack the Pioesti oilfields. The third belt stretches across Italy from ; Rome. The fourth belt, which bars entry into northern Italy, is roughly rounded by Leghorn, Speezia, Ravena and Ancona. From here our bombers could attack the Balkan cities of Belgrade, Zagreb and Budapest. The fifth and northernmost belt is mainly centred on Milan and Turin. From here our bombers could smash German industries in central Europe and J€iy southern Germany and all southern France open to the kind of attack Wiat Sicily got. “The Germans were prepared for tfca Allied landing in the Nales area,” •ays Reuter’s military correspondent. “The present Allied operations differ in several important respects from jrcvzous actions of the same nature. Firstly, the Germans expected us to land where we did and were prepared to meet us. Secondly, th? Germans were a good deal stronger than we! ?*ad reason to expect. Thirdly, they • h*d been receiving reinforcements more freely and more quickly than the ; yes? cal situation in Italy seemed to | Warrant. Fourthly, the Allied landing ' Occurred at extreme fighter range, for I reason tighter cover has not ! as complete as would have been | ix. case at nearer beaches. In these I the fact that we were! to establish a bridgehead is satis-; 6*‘tory bift the men are being put to j a severe test. The Germans are throw- | mg all their weight into a counter- j gjjvnsive while they have us with one I fo*? off the ground.” The Times’ military writer says: “In ■ the landing around Salerno th n Allies i accepted two military risks: Firstly, | that the Germans would be able to I c&ncentrate great strength before our 1 ftothold was secure: secondly, that we I would not succeed in seizing airfields from which land forces cculd be given cldse support. These risks were taken «e?cnly in the hope of carrying the fixs:t to the enemy as speedily as possible and of striking before the enemy recovered from th n shock of political events in Italy, and also in the hope of giving the maximum aid to Russia. However, it has proved that the delays have been too long.” •Tlie Daily Mail says: “It has be- ' obvious that the Italian cam- , . W»ign is a much bigger job than was | • npposed, even last week. The situa- ' fion is a healthy corrective to the ■ •ptimists who wer? saving that the , war wou'd be over by Christmas.**

DUCE’S “RESCUE”

PARATROOPS STORM HOTEL GUARDS OVERPOWERED (By Telegraph—P’-ess Association—Copyright) Reed. 10.50 p.m. London, Sept. 15. The German news agency, giving what it calls an official account of Mussolini’s rescue, says parachutists rescued him from a hotel on the 9000 ft. Gran Sasse Peak, in the Abbruzi mountains. The rescuers, led by S.S. leader Otto Skorzeny, quickly overpowered the Carabinieri guards and entered Mussolini’s room, Skorzeny saying: "The fuhrer sends me to liberate you." Mussolini embraced him, saying: “I guessed it. I never doubted that the Fuhrer would do everything to get me from here.”

Mussolini was then flown to Hitler’s headquarters. Count Ciano is not among the rescued Fascist leaders, whose number is steadily increasing, declares Berlin radio. "Ciano has not been seen for many days, but apart from everything else Ciano's attitude at the last meeting of the Fascist Grand Council excludes all possibility of his playing any part in the revived Fascist Party."

Reuter's Zurich correspondent says that alleged demonstrations of joy throughout Italian cities as a result of Mussolini’s release do not accord with the people's feelings. Reliable reports from Italy prove that the people generally received the news with misgiving, even fear. German soldiers tnemselves oragnised the demonstrations of enthusiasm in the big cities. Bitter opposition to the Germans is spreading throughout Italy. "Communist revolts’ in Milan and Turin assumed proportions of first importance. The Daily Telegraph's correspondent on the Italian' frontier says that, although the Germans refer to bands of rebels in northern Italy, these bands consist o. several Italian regiments which are fiercely lighting the Germans in the mountainous regions with the civilians’ full support.

GERMAN PROPAGANDA

Recd. 7 p.m. London, Sept. 14. It is reported from Turin that the Germans are making extensive use of the liberation of Mussolini as propaganda. Printing offices in northern Italy have been compelled to issue thousands of huge posters announcing the news. An order decrees the hanging out of Fascist flags and the immediate donning of black shirts in German-occupied Italy.

RESCUE STORY DOUBTED IN U.S.

Recd. 11 p.m. New York, Sept. 13. The news of Mussolini’s rescue is subjected to considerable doubt in diplomatic quarters, where the impression is growing that IL Duce was either dead when found or is in the hands of the Ali. s and the Nazis are trying to smoke out a declaration to I this effect, says the New York Times’ i Berne correspondent. A lemon or this size when exposed would naturally i ruin the credence ot any future Geri man claims. However, it is noted that German sources for internal consumption have not stressed tae news of Mussolini's alleged rescue. If II | Duce is dead, which is considered I probable, it would explain his noni appearance at the radio, which is a ; point the Germans have thus tar lail- ! ed to explain. i The Zurich Dietat's correspondent I on the frontier says Mussolini joined I Farinacci at Cremona, the new seat |of the Fasc _ Government. He adds ; that former - ascist officials are again I ruling Milan, Turin, Genoa, Novarra, | Bologna and other north Italian | towns under German control. The j Fascist newspaper Regima Fascist! ; has also reappeared I The Dietat’s Berlin correspondent says that Mussolini’s first action is expected to be a proclamation cancelling Italy's capitulation and ending the rule of the House of Savoy,

OUR MEN IN ITALY

SURRENDERED WARSHIPS' i

Reed. €.45 n.m. London. Sent. 14. 1 Over 100 Italian naval vessels o f i all sizes have reached Malta and j other Allied ports. says Reuter’s Algiers correspondent. They include five battleships. six heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, one" auxiliary cruiser, 27 destroyers, one seaplanecarrier. 19 submarines, 12 torpedoboats, six corvettes, and one hospital shin. “The Italian flee* is scrupulous? 5 honouring the engagement entered into by the Italian Government.” says! the Allied naval commander at i Algiers. |

l Spssial Correspondent—N.Z.P.A.) Reed. 6.15 p.m. London, Sept. 14. “The whole position is confused,” said C. B. Burdekin, of the Prisoners of War Department at New Zealand House, commenting on New Zealand prisoners in Italy. “There is no news coming through of what is happening. “Latterly there have been only a few of our boys in camps in southern Italy. Some of them may have been moved northwards before the invasion. It is likely that when the Armistice was announced New Zealanders, in common with other British prisoners, may have walked out of the northern camps hoping to make for Switzerland or Yugoslavia, but there is no confirmation of this. “Tlrre are seven men reported so far who were removed from Italy to Germany before the fa 1 of Mussolini. They are Gunner A. B. Cresswell and Privates T. Mottram and A. L. Richardson, all of Wellington, who ar? in Stalag IVB. and Privates E. S. McBride (Chrktchrreh). H. McC l uggage (Waipu), and T. R. Rushbif.~c. of Gore, and Sappers S. Selk" (Auckland), who are in Stalag VIIIB.” ....

CRITICAL STAGE

ALLIES LOSE GROUND GALLIPOLI RECALLED Recd. 7 p.m. London, Sept. 14. There is every indication that the battle on the Salerno front is increasing in intensity and has reached a cr.tical stage. At least two cor- : exponents liken the battle to the bloody struggle on the’ beaches ol Lallipoli in 1915. Berlin radio is making sweeping claims far beyend anything from the Gorman High Command, but the latest reports from Allied headquarters give no ground for extreme pessimism. On the contrary, Reuter’s correspondent describes the struggle as one of ebb and flow, and all sources emphasise that reinforcements are flowing in. The British United Press says that the Germans have thrown in more armoured units in a do-or-die attack. The Fifth Army has lost ground in places, but the battle is still going on day and night. The Germans' attacks are most serious, especially around ;’arerno. Dispatches from Allied headquarters in North Africa, reporting that General Eisenhower is throwing in fresh reserves in the Slerno bridgehed, add: —‘The Mediterranean is alive wita ships and planes carrying reinforcements.” Berlin radio declared this evening: “The Anglo-American invasion has collapsed, and the fate of the whole operation is already sealed. The greater part of the landing troops have been either killed or taken prisoner. Victory in the battle for Naples goes to the German arms.” A German communique states: “Fierce fighting is going on north ol Salerno with British divisions which are defending themselves desperately. We repelled enemy attacks south of Eboli early yesterday, after which we went over to the offensive on a broad 1 front, and the enemy was driven back to his landing point. Hard battles are in progress south-east of Eboli. The , British and American casualties are very heavy.”

To-night there is a flood of contradictory and confusing reports from Allied and German sources. While some Allied correspondents state that the Allies are attacking steadily and have firmly established the coastal area, the German news agency claimed that Gorman tanks and grenadiers, advancing from the hills to the plain, reached the town of Salerno ana the coast. The news agency added that the Germans caught up with and surprised strong Alied units which they cut off from the landing places. “The Germans are now engaged in breaking down the last remnants of disorderly resistance in the streets,” it said. ! Vichy radio declared that the town ! of Salerno has changed hands several | times in the latest fighting. I The Berlin correspondent of the 1 Stockholm newspaper Aftonbladet I states that Allied forces have started a ' withdrawal by sea from Salerno. [ Reuter's Algiers correspondent says i that the Fifth Army is fighting magI nificently, with complete confidence m ! its strength. General Eisenhower k making a determined bid to thro.-. I back the enemy’s powerful counter- , , thrusts, which have been going on fo; more than JOO hours. There is no ' slackening in the terrific tempo of the struggle along the 24-mile bridgehead. General Clark's troops still hold important passes north and south o; Sal-erno. Field-Marshal Kesselring’/ men are firmly installed in the hills a few miles inland, and th? Allies are making great efforts to dislodge them. The pattern of the battle remains almost unchanged. Reuter's correspondent adds that accurate information about casualties is not available, but because of the fierceness of the fighting they arc likely to be heavy on both sides. (Berlin radio claimed that between 8000 and 10,000 American troops were killed in the Eboli fighting and a similar number taken prisoner). Reuter says that the landings in North Africa and Sicily were child’s play compared with those on the i Salerno beaches, which the German artillery was able to cover. An Allied spokesman described the ligating as “certainly the most bitter encountered by any landing force during the war. The Associated Press of Great Britain says that Field-Marshal Kesselring is "using panzers and infantry in an ehori. to nurl the British and Americans back to the sea, wjiile overhead hundreds of Allied fighters are engaged against an increasing I German air effort. Germans on th? mountain slopes delivered a murderous artillery fire towards the beaches and launched counter-attack after counter-attack. The British United Press agrees that the German counter-attacks are serious, especially around Salerno itself and along the Sele River, which runs inland from the coast south ot the town. Bloody struggles are raging along thy? front, and although the Fifth Army has been forced back at a number of places its troops have penetrated inland for a considerable distance at several points. Our troops a; ? trying to reach a low line of hills which command our present positions. Once these are reached we shall not only have eliminated the worst artillery fire, but will command the enemy away to the east. The enemy at present is able to sweep our landing beaches at. many points. Three crack divisions face the Fifth Army, namely, the 15th. and 16th. panzer divisions and the Hermann Goering division. They escaped from Tunisia and then from Sicily. They are undoubtedly tough fighters. Berlin radio continues to claim that "the Germans have achieved a great victory in the Salerno-Eboli sector. “The American formation in the bridgehead south of Salerno has been in disorderly flight to the coast to reach its ships since late yesterday,’ it says. “In the circumstances the position of the British in the SalernoAmalfi sector has become untenable. It can be only a matter of hours before they take flight. The battle is not yet finished, but it can safely be concluded that we have inflicted a defeat comparable with Dunkirk and Dieppe.” According to Berlin radio big Canadian forces are participating in the Salerno offensive. Captain Sertorius stated that the Americans had had little fighting experience and that their casualties were partly to be explained by the fact that for the first time they were making their acquaintance of German weapons which had so far been used only on the Eastern Front. Claiming that the Ffth Army had largely been wiped out. Berlin radio said it consisted of the 36th. and 45th. American infantry divisions, and the First United States Tank Division, and that forces of the British 10th. Army Corps, which are attached to the Fift. Army consist of the 45th. and 55th. British infantry divisions and the First British tank division. Paris radio's commentator. Jean Paquls, referring to one German counter-attack, said that as a last re-