THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH, MONDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1950.
Queen's Road between Ice House Street and Pedder Street still looks as if an earthquake had hit it. The process of raising the level of the highway, which has been continuing for over a fortnight, is expected to go on for several weeks, and it will be some time before pedestrians can use this stretch of road in anything approaching comfort.-Staff Photographer.
Serious Israeli
Clash And
Im Desert Of Arab Troops
Tel-Aviv, Dec. 3.
EVACUATION
OF
PYONGYANG IN PROGRESS-
Tokyo, Dec. 3. Explosions rocked doomed Pyongyang all day today as the retreating United Nations forces blew up key installations preparatory to a general evacuation.
North of the city a thin line of British and American troops moved slowly back in a 30-mile arc screening, the withdrawal from the former, Communist capital.
Pyongyang, held by the United Nations for six weeks, will be the first major prize of the Korean war for the Chinese.
+
They had little contact with the Communists on the front and flank but the almost invisible pressure of the mass forces of the Chinese drove them back.
in the North-East corner. These include the large force uf British, Turks and Ameri- can Marines and infantry who have been fighting five days to extricate themselves from the grip of at least six Chinese divisions in the Chosin Reser- voir area.
An American spokesman said yesterday that such installa- tions as power stations and waterworks would be left in the same condition as the Allies found them but nothing would remain of military value.
Smoke from burning equip- ment and installations rose into the chilly air throughout the day.
The Army had arranged to
today in blow up vital bridges and
Jordan and Israeli' light guns fought a duel the barren desert around Wadi Araba after a "cold" frontier
dispute had turned
into a bloody clash.
move ammunition dumps.
Tonight a thousand Korean civilians moved hospital patients south across the Taedong River and the town authorities plan- ned to evacuate about 1,500 more civilians whom they fear- ed
the Communists might execute if they left them in the
Standing procedure provides for an emergency meeting to be called when a serious breach city. cars
of the peace occurs.
Colonel Benner de Ridder, the Israeli forces removed the request was declined by Colonel acting United Nations Chief of block, as they did an earlier one Ridder, who suggested mediation Staff in Palestine, called for a last night, unopposed by the on his part instead. cease-fire this afternoon, Israel watching Arab Legionnaires. agreed on condition that normal Later in the morning according Jewish traffic was
allowed to to an Israeli military spokesman, pass along the disputed Arab Legion armoured Beersheba-Aylat road,
opened fire on an Israeli convoy Wadi Araba is near the Arab | from Jordan territory cast of the Legion post of Gharandal, 50 road. miles rouil of the Dead Sea,
Troops
tonight with- drawing to the lines marked by Colonel Ridder.
were
The flare-up began this mor- ing who the Arab Legion re- erectedi black on the road, which is Israel's 'lifeline" to the
:7
North-Eastern Red Sea port of
Akaba.
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SERIOUS CLASH The half-tracks had crossed the disputed section of the road twice without being molested, but were fired on the third time. With the two forces facing each other on each side of the road, the clash became serious with light guns and machine-guns in
action.
On the Arab side two- pounders mounted on armoured cers aimed mainly at the four half-tracks only 200 yards away, but Israeli guns mounted over- night on improvised sites scored direct hits on the Arab vehicles, setting them ablaze.
The cease-fire was to be cffective at 5.00 p.m. local time. No Arab reply had been received at the United Nations Head- quarters
Au emergency meeting of the Isreel-Jordan Mixed Armistice Commission has been called by Colonel de Ridder for Monday. Israel demanded an emergency meeting last Friday but the
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General William Riley, the United Nations Chief of Staff in Palestine, is expected here Thursday when he will resume supervision of the Palestine truce.
United States transport planes--in one of the most | dangerous air operations in the Korean war-had already fer- ried more than 1,200 casualties. out of Communist-encircled Hagaru, on the southern tip of the fozen reservoir.
Chinese troops fired on twin-engined Dakotas as they landed on a primilive airstrip improvised from а 3,000-foot Arthur's communique stated to- long pasture, General Mac-
day.
the
Some of the planes were hit but were patched up and con- tinued their mercy mission.
The bitter struggle was still. raging today with two regiments of American Marines fighting against tremendous odds to re- join the rest of the group inside.. encircled Hagaru.
POSITION PRECARIOUS Hopelessly outnumbered, the United Nations troops were still fighting though their position became hourly mone
HEAVY CASUALTIES precarious.
Overwhelming
Snow and poor visibility was Communist
hampering air said to number wounded and frost-bitten strag forces, now
support,
but half a million men, were still Jordan complained over a
pouring down the mountainous after crawling across the frozen
gers continued to reach Hagaru:: week ago to the United Nations spine in the peninsula, swing-reservoir from Commission that a small sectioning right towards Pyongyang where they ran into an ambushi
northeast, last week.
The Beersheba-Aylat road runs along the Israel-Jordan frontier for some miles in the southern part of the Negav De- sert.
On Wednesday
CEASE FIRE
of it passed through Jordan ter- and left towards. the east coast ritory.
in two large encircling move- her forces ments. set up a roadblock, which Israeli spokesmen have called in
With the Communists closing on all sides, British and a flagrant violation of the Australian troops were battling Armistice agreement, Reuter. shoulder to shoulder with the Americans to hold a thin 40- mile line north of Pyongyang, as Amman, Dec. 3.
General MacArthur tried to pull Israeli and Arab Legion out and regroup his forces, now troops who clashed
by on a dis-spreadeagled
the new- puted road in the desert around Chinese onslaught. Wadi Araba today ceased fire later
Snow and a low ceiling blan- on the orders of Mixed Jordan-Israeli Armistice air action
the keted the whole area, crippling
Commission,
when it was must needed. Casualties were sustained on both sides in the clash. Reports here said that the clash occur- red when an Israeli armed con-
MIDDLESEX IN ACTION
was
munist
the
The nearby town of Shin-. hungni was blitzed by American Marinje aircraft yesterday,.it announced here. Com- casualties were heavy, Further to the south the American 7th Division repulsed a midnight attack at Majon- dong, 16 north-west of Ham- hung, on the cast coast.
American 7th Division troops who had earlier reached | Hysanjin, on the Manchurian border, were understood now to be pushing south to escape- encirclement.
United Nations Air Intelli- gence reported seeing now Chinese Communist convoy's
The Middlesex and Australian and roops columns moving voy tried to force its way along battalions of the British south into Korea from Man-
a three-mile diversionary road Commonwealth 27th Brigade pojin, the Yalu River town 85. which the Israelis constructed
in what is
territory,
The Arab
were fighting with the Ameri- miles north-west of the Chosin considered Jordan cuns west of Songchon, 30 miles Reservoir.
trespassed into
LINE AT SARIWON
north-east of. the former Legion, consider-Northern capital. Inig that the Israelis had And the Argyll and Suther- Military sources in Tokyo Jordan ter- laud Highlanders were Cx-said that the next Allied defen- rory, deployed an armoured pected to be thrown into the sive line helow Pyongyang contingent and blocked the front line today.
would be in the Sariwon area, about 30 miles north of the 38th Parallel.
road.
The United Nations armies in
Whet the strongly Mortar shells from raiding escorted Israeli convoy reach- guerillas began to fall on ed the roadblock, it was report- Pyongyang as the evacuation ed here, it warned the Arab began today. The retreating Korea were yesterday stated to Legion of 15
intention to Eighth Army was expected to number 150,000 men, Nearly force its why through within curry out a limited scorched 80,000 of those were
was removed.
The Arab Legion ignored the "ultimatum,"
tied up
the front lines whereupon,
The advancing Chinese armies were known to have brought up some artillery.
and
30 minutes unless the block earth plan before withdrawal-dealing with more than 20,000 destroying anything rebuilt guerillas, imainly bypassed since the city was captured on North Korean troops scattered October 20 but leaving the in-behind stallations as found,
threatening car supply lines
General Lawton Collins, the United States Army Chief of Staff, accompanied by Major- One column of the big Chinese General Charles P. Cabell, the force driving southeast towards Air Force Director of Intelli- The Jordan Government in the Sea of Japan was belleved❘gence and an unnamed naval formed the acting Chairman of to have linked up with North representative, are, expected in the mixed Armistice Commission Korean guerillas operating Tokyo tonight from Washington, that it regarded the Israeli at- against the United Nations General Collins was officially
it was said, the Israelis tried to shoot their way through. Their fire was returned. On report tonight said that both sides were rushing reinforce- ments to the locality.
MARINES THREATENED
tempt to force a passage across troops around Wonsan, on the the Jordan territory as a ila east coast. grant, wilful violation, inasmuch as the construction of the road drversion itself constituted an inifflagement. Therefore it re- solt to defend its integrity, Reuter.
A link-up here would cut off the considerable; scattered forces of the 10th Corps battling
stated to be coming to obtain a personal view on the general situation, to confer personally- with General MacArthur and to determine by what means the Department of the Army can best assist General Mic- Arthur's Command-Reuter.