Pacific News-Review

Notes And Comment On

The Progress Of The War

From Nov. 16 To Dec. 14

Nov. 16: After hard fighting on the eastern front, the Red Army on the Gomel sector captured Demiche, thus cutting the railway to Gomel, where there is a large German garrison.

Nov. 17: American Liberator bombers attacked Japanese air bases in the Gil bert Islands and the Marshall Islands over the week-end. Their base has not been disclosed.

Nov. 16: The Allies made the New Guinea war’s heaviest raid on Madang.

There was no enemy interception.

Nov. 18: Leros (in the Dodecanese) captured from the British and Italian garrisons by the Germans.

Nov. 18: Rabaul again raided by RAAF Beaufort bombers, and an 8,000-ton transport sunk. In the Ramu Valley, 20 Japanese planes destroyed by Kitty hawk fighters.

Nov. 19: A great battle has opened along the tip of the Russian salient near Jitomir, where the Germans have launched large-scale counter-attacks de signed to halt the Russian advance west of Kiev, and south-west towards the River Bug.

Nov. 20: The Germans re-captured Jitomir, Further north, the Russians captured Ryechitsa and Koretsen, off setting the German gain, to some extent.

Nov. 20: In New Guinea, the Austra lians made further gains after heavy fighting in the area round Satelburg.

Nov. 20: In Bougainville, US forces enlarged the defence perimeter round Empress Augusta Bay, but are meeting stiff resistance.

Nov. 22: The Red Army made another crossing of the Dnieper, 160 miles to the south-east, at Cherkasy, and smashed a large gap in the enemy defences.

Nov, 22: Following up twin raids on Berlin on Thursday night, the RAF on Friday night smashed Leverkusen (centre of German poison gas produc tion). These raids are part of the Anglo-American plan to (a) hit German war-production where it is most effec tive; (b) stretch German fighter plane strength to snapping-point; and (c) destroy German morale.

Nov. 22: Australians, near Satelburg, New Guinea, surprised the Japanese by using “Matilda” tanks. The settlement is being approached from two sides, despite enormous difficulties of terrain.

Nov. 23: Covered by an “air umbrella” and powerful units of the US Fleet, US Marines landed on Makin and Tarawa Islands, Gilbert Islands, on Saturday, November 20. There was strong resis tance at Tarawa and fight resistance at Makin.

Nov. 24: American forces in the Gil berts occupied Abemama, south-east of Tarawa. Marines at Tarawa are still facing stiff opposition. Liberators on Sunday bombed Nauru, and the Marshall Islands, as a diversionary measure.

Nov. 24: Berlin had its heaviest RAF raid on Tuesday night, when nearly 2,000 tons of bombs were dropped. Vast fires were started.

Nov. 24: Important progress is being made by the Russians in their offensive south-west of Kremenchug.

Nov. 25: On Tuesday, Berlin had a second devastating raid within 24 hours, when 3,300 tons of bombs were dropped.

Sweden reports that parts of the city were “blown off the face of the earth.”

Nov. 26: The great tank battle west of Kiev is still going on. The Germans made a slight gain.

Nov. 26: The US Navy sank four small enemy warships off Bougainville, in the Solomons.

Nov. 26: US forces now have captured Betio islet (Tarawa atoll, Gilbert Islands) and are mopping up on Makin and Abemama atolls. They lost over 1,000 killed and 2,500 wounded on Betio. At least 6,000 Japanese defenders were wiped out.

Nov. 27: Gomel, the German fortress on the banks of the river Soj, has been captured by the Russians. The Russians are exploiting a break-through in White Russia, 120 miles north of Gomel. The Germans are bogged down in their coun ter-offensive west of Kiev.

Nov. 28: Berlin has been raided for five nights in succession by the RAF, and a third of the city is reported in ruins.

Casualties after the fourth raid were estimated at 81,000. The populations of two entire Dutch cities, Utrecht and Eindhoven, have been ordered to move out, in order to make way for bombed out Germans.

Nov. 29: The Japanese are retiring from Satelburg area, New Guinea, after the capture of the settlement on Novem ber 25. The Australians have cut their main supply and escape route on the Bonga-Wareo trail.

Nov. 30: The Eighth Army has launched a new attack in Italy. New Zealanders are in action there again.

Dec. 1: After 36 hours’ continuous fighting, the British Eighth Army in Italy has pierced the German winter defence line on the high ground north west of the river Sangro.

Dec. 1: The Russians are attacking on three fronts: North-west of Gomel, south of Kremenchug, and near Nikopol (inside the Dnieper Bend).

Dec. 2: President Roosevelt, General Chiang Kai-shek, and Mr. Churchill concluded a conference in Egypt, where plans against Japan were agreed on, and have left to confer with Marshal Stalin in Persia.

Dec. 4: Berlin again attacked by the RAF, and large fires started.

Dec. 4: British and Americans have made progress on their two separate fronts in Italy, against strong German resistance.

Dec. 7: An historic communique issued on the four days’ conference between Marshal Stalin, President Roosevelt and Mr. Churchill, at Teheran, says that the three leaders reached complete agreement on the scope and timing of operations against Germany, which will be under taken from the east, the west and the south. It was further stated that 1944 was meant to be “the definite year” in the war against Hitlerism.

Dec. 8: Mr. Churchill and President Roosevelt are now conferring with the President of Turkey (General Inonu) and the result is expected to be a more defi nite expression of Turkey’s friendship to the Allies in the form of war aid.

Dec. 8: The Russians have switched their main attack to the Dnieper “Bend and yesterday broke through the German lines south of Kremenchug and are now within reach of Snamenka (the key rail way junction through which enemy sup plies for the Dnieper Bend must come).

Dec. 8: Strong American force of car rier-based aircraft on Saturday attacked several Japanese bases in the Marshall Islands. They destroyed six Jap ships and 72 aircraft. .

Dec. 9: In biting snowstorms, two fierce battles are being waged in Russia one near Kremenchug. where the Rus sians are on the offensive, and the other where the Germans are making some gains in their second counter-attack, with 1,200 tanks, against the Kiev bulge.

Dec. 9: While the Australians push on

in the Huon Peninsula, in New Guinea, Allied bombers are maintaining their attacks on Cape Gloucester and the barge starting points along the New Britain coast.

Dec. 11: The Australians in the Huon area of New Guinea have taken Wareo, Japanese supply and communication centre.

Dec. 11: US Naval units in the Central Pacific attacked Nauru Island with naval guns and carrier-based aircraft.

Dec. 13: The Red Army is advancing in the northern part of the Dnieper Bend, following the capture of Sna menka. Fierce fighting is going on south of Malin, which the Germans have reached in their counter-attack against the Kiev bulge.

Dec. 13: In a daylight raid on the Emden naval base, in Germany, United States Air Force shot down 138 enemy fighters, for the loss of 17 bombers and three fighters.

Dec. 14: After a month on the defen sive, the Red Army has taken the offen sive in the great tank battle for the Kiev bulge, and thrown the Germans out of several villages near Malin.

General opinion is that the German counter-attack now is exhausted and, if the Russians produce the necessary reserve strength, the Germans on the eastern front may face grave disaster.

With the exception of those serving with the French military forces or employees of the Administration, all male French citizens in New Caledonia, between the ages of 18 and 45, were required to fill in a censorship form by December 1.

News has been received that former Noumea Magistrate, Andre Petre, an offi cer with the New Caledonian contingent of the Pacific Batallion, and son of one of the heads of departments at Noumea Post Office, has escaped from an Italian prison camp and rejoined the Allied forces. The Petre family played a lead ing part in rallying New Caledonia to General de Gaulle.

A New Caledonian soldier serving overseas has been appointed French Pacific representative of the assembly which has been formed in Algiers by the French National Liberation Committee to organise and support French metropoli tan resistance against the Germans. He is M. Roger Gervolino, who left Noumea with the first contingent, May, 1941.