Pacific News-Review

Notes And Comment On

The Progress Of The War

From Nov. 13 To Dec. 11

Nov. 13: Allied forces which landed in Morocco and Algeria are pressing on towards Tunisia. The Vichy French have formally capitulated in Morocco and Algeria. Axis troops have taken control of all of Vichy France.

Nov. 14: The Eighth Army, which is pursuing Rommel’s broken forces from El Alamein westwards through Libya, has occupied Tobruk.

Nov. 14: American air troops have landed from British ships and occupied Bona, 150 miles west of Tunis. The Ger mans are rushing troops and equipment into Tunisia, in an attempt to occupy Tunis and Bizerta before the Allies.

Nov. 16; Americans crossed into Tunisia and are marching towards Tunis and Bizerta. French garrisons in Tunisia are resisting Axis troops who landed by air and sea.

Nov. 16; Another big naval battle has been raging off Guadalcanal (Solomons) since November 12. No details.

Nov. 16: Australians in New Guinea have captured the Wairopi Crossing of the Kumusi and are pressing on towards Buna and Gona.

Nov. 16: Tokio claims that Japanese raided New Caledonia on November 13, doing much damage.

Nov. 17: Admiral Darlan, Commander in-Chief of the French Armed Forces, has declared a clean break with Vichy, and announces that he will form a French Colonial army in North Africa to fight beside Britain and America.

Nov. 17: In the Buna area (NE Papua) American and Australian columns, in contact with each other, are jointly mov ing to the attack.

Nov. 18: US Navy claims victory, off the Solomons, in “one of the war’s decisive battles.” Enemy -losses are 11 warships, 12 transports and 20,000 to 40,000 men.

US lost 2 light cruisers and 6 destroyers.

Nov. 19: British and American troops are moving into Tunisia in a three pronged drive. Paratroops are seizing every possible aerodrome.

Nov. 23: Four Japanese warships are off Buna (NE Papua) in a last-minute endeavour to avert annihilation of Jap forces. . Allied columns have driven the Japs back to narrow beach-heads in the Buna-Gona area.

Nov. 23: British First Army, supported by American and French troops, is mass ing for an attack on the Axis hundred miles line in Tunisia.

Nov. 24: Russians have taken the offensive, north-west and south-west of Stalingrad, and in three days have advanced 50 miles, taking 18,000 prisoners.

Nov. 25: Russians’ offensive threatens to trap 300,000 Germans in the narrow corridor between the Don and the Volga, west of Stalingrad.

Nov. 25: The “High Commissioner for North Africa,’ Admiral Darlan, announces that French West Africa, including Dakar, has placed itself under his orders. Con trol of West Africa is regarded as a great military and diplomatic victory for the Allies.

Nov. 26: A great Russian victory is in sight. Stalingrad has been relieved, after a three-months’ siege.

Nov. 26: The ten miles Japanese-held strip between Buna and Gona was sub mitted to a dawn-to-dusk attack by every type of Allied aircraft.

Nov. 27: At least 250.000 Axis troops have been either killed, captured, wounded or dispersed in one week of the Russian’s offensive on the eastern front.

Nov. 27: Japs have lost two destroyers in the New Guinea area, trying to rein force their trapped forces at Buna.

Nov. 28; Practically all of the French fleet was scuttled by the French at Tou lon, when the Germans commenced the occupation of the naval base.

Nov. 30: The Russians have completed the encirclement of the Germans on the Stalingrad front and begun a drive on the central front, breaking the German lines in several sectors.

Nov. 30: The battle for the Buna-Gona beach-head continues, with very grim fighting. Every yard is bitterly contested by the trapped Japanese.

Dec. 1: There are now at least 20,000 Germans in Tunisia. An early clash is expected at Bizerta.

Dec. 1: When Japanese tried to land reinforcements on the Buna-Gona beach head, two enemy destroyers were set on fire and two others fled.

Dec. 2: British First Army in Tunisia is trying to develop a wedge between the Axis forces in the Bizerta and Tunis areas.

Dec. 3: The German winter lines in Russia appear to have been broken right along the Central and Stalingrad fronts.

Dec. 4: Japanese destroyers, trying to relieve Buna, were driven off. Twenty three Japanese raiders were shot down in air-fighting within a few hours.

Dec. 5: Snow is hampering operations on the Russian front and the Red offen sive has slowed down.

Dec. 5: Japan lost two large destroyers or cruisers, four destroyers, two trans ports and a cargo ship last week, when they again attempted to land reinforce ments on Guadalcanal (BSI).

In three separate actions between Nov ember 13 and December 3, American sea and air forces have dealt with the Japs in this fashion; — No. 1 Action—Sunk: One battleship, one battleship or heavy cruiser, six heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, six destroyers, 12 transports. Damaged: Two battleships, one cruiser, seven destroyers.

No. 2 Action. — Sunk: Two large destroyers (or cruisers); four destroyers, two transports, one supply ship.

No. 3 Action: Sunk: One . cruiser.

Probably sunk: Three other cruisers or destroyers. Shot down: Ten planes.

Japan’s total sea and air losses in the Solomons recorded to date (from August *7 to December 3), are; 132 ships sunk or damaged; 647 planes destroyed.

Dec. 5: There is violent fighting in Tunisia. In a 48-hours’ tank battle, both sides lost heavily.

Dec. 7: Axis forces have a strong hold on Tunisia towns, and they still have air-superiority. . Dec. 8: Both Axis and Allied forces are being reinforced in Tunisia and there is grim fighting around Tunis and Bizerta.

Dec. 10: Tank fighting still continues in Tunisia. The Allies are now receiving better air support.

Dec. 10: A fifth attempt by the Japan ese to relieve their forces at Buna has failed. A Japanese convoy was inter cepted off the coast by our bombers and driven away.

Dec. 11: Australians have occupied the Gona beach-head. This is the third occasion that Australian forces have been inside the village—on the two previous occasions they were forced to withdraw.

Australian casualties in New Guinea in the past 12 months were 2,190, of whom 640 were killed in action or died of wounds. These figures exclude sickness.

Over 640 dead Japanese have been buried in Gona.

Dec. 11: The RAF, based on England, made another big raid on Turin last

night—the second in 24 hours. Practic ally the whole of the populations of the big industrial cities of North Italy are now fleeing from the continuing RAP raids.

Dec. 14: Japanese have established a new airfield for land-based planes at Muna, in the island of New Georgia, 150 miles north-west of Guadalcanal, BSI.

The enemy appears to have lost two destroyers in another unsuccessful attempt to reinforce his troops on Guadalcanal.