1941-03-04 — Page 3

HIDE AND SEEK WAR AT KEREN

Highlanders And Sudanese In Exciting Action

Railway Town

Proving Tough Nut

BLACK-OUT LIFTED AT NAIROBI

re

The black out strictions are being removed In Nairobi and the whole of the highlands area from to-day.

Modified restric- tions will be in force on the coast. Reuter.

U.S. ORDERS GASMASKS

GAS MASKS FOR THE

(By Reuter's Special Correspondent with the

Imperial Forces on the Keren Front)

HIDE-AND-SEEK ARTILLERY DUELS, IN WHICH THE ITALIAN GUNNERS SHIFTED THEIR GUN POSITIONS DURING DARKNESS, CONCEALING THEM WITHIN THE SCRUB AND ROCKY CREVICES, AND THE SUDDEN APPEARANCE IN PLACES WHICH THE ITA- LIANS DEEMED INACCESSIBLE, HAVE BEEN FEATURES OF THE BRITISH SIEGE OF KEREN.

Keren is the railway town in Eritrea which is being found one of the toughest nuts to crack in General Wavell's campaign against Italy's East African Empire.

Keren, 75 indes from Asmara,; The Britesh artillery was signal- the Eritrean capital, ituated on led and guns brought up. peaks rommanded by Ituban ar Later the British troops, crouch- tillery and anti-macraft guns, withing behind rocks in the blazing British artillery stated on one desert sun. heard British shells Lot the other peaks some innes off. screaming overhead to pound the Despite the fact that the bat Italian positions a couple of hun-, teries are invisible to each other, (dred yards further on. The accuracy of the British shooting is remarkable.

Wonderful Shooting

Italy's best forces, including the Savoy Grenadiers, reinførerd by "It was wonderful shooting," one

said. USE extensive artillery, have been es- Highlander

"Our boys

Nurace, at the Moorfields Eye Hospital attending to patients who are settled down for the night in the air raid shelter.

[Copyright, Fox).

OF NON-COMBATANTS INConced in an area which might|plunked the very first shells plunjh AREAS UNDER MILITARY; have been planned by nature as a un the Italians, who soon packed retreated from Barentu to cover

up. Some surrendered. Others re- Asmara and BEEN perfect fortress.

treated,"

JURISDICTION, HAVE ORDERED BY THE UNITED STATES WAR DEPARTMENT.

fact

Disclosing this

yesterday, the War Departinent stated that “a limited quantity" of gas masks had been ordered. Or low cost, the masks would be supplied by five manufacturers.

No further extension of facili tes for the manufacture 01 gas masks is contemplated at present

Reuter.

An Ambush

Recently a party of Highlanders | and Sudanese troops were bushed by the Italians but fough back and drove the Italians up the summit of a neighbouring ridge.

They found, however, that al though they were able to hold the Italians, they themselves were unable to emerge from their positions behind rocks ow ing to withering blasts of fice from italian machine-gun nests.

R-A-F.'S GREAT CONTRIBUTION IN AFRICA WAR

(By Reuter's Special Correspondent at an Advance Air Base on the Sudan-Eritrean Frontier)

BRITISH BOMBERS, South African fight- ers and a special · Rhodesian squadron are leading in the R.A.F.'s contribution to the Bri- tish successes in Eritrea.

For weeks past our airmen have been bombing the Italian air force right out of the sky, so that to-day the British infantry in the most forward positions seldom see an Italian 'plane.

Over Keren, British bombers have been in con- tinuous operation despite heavy anti-aircraft fire. They have not only blown up military objectives.but have also dropped pamphlets and taken valuable low-flying photographs.

The Sudan Defence Force. throughout the campaign, has done brilliant though kittic pu- biicised work, their fast armour- ed cars whizzing

and among around the

Italian advanced positions like fast motorboats, tcattering the enemy in all di rections.

The whole Eritrean campaign has been an outstanding example of Empire cooperation.

Forewarning Of Italian Collapse "The fighting in East Africa is of an extremely intense nature ard it may be necessary for us to make ulterior sacrifices," said war commentators on Rome radio yesterday.

They added the British were using a third of a million men in East Africa and they wore armed with the most modern weapons, tanks and armoured

cars.

"In these conditiont the fight presents an undoubted advantage for the British."

80 Miles Beyond Mogadiscio

In their sweep into Italian So- maliland, British troops have reached a point 80 miles beyond Mogadiscio and have occupied the villages of Duca, Degil and Abruz-

zi.

There is no change in the posi- lion in Eritrea, Libya or Abyssinio, it was reported in yesterday's of- Iicial Cairo communique.-Reuter.

Difficult Conditions

A CORRESPONDENT WITH THE BRITISH FORCES IN ERI- TREA WRITES THAT THE IM- PERIAL FORCES, INCLUDING INDIANS AND A FREE FRENCH 'INFANTRY UNIT, HAVE CON- TINUED THE ADVANCE TO- WARDS KEREN, CAPTURING MESCELLIT PASS WHICH LIES

Dominions airmen, especially, tloned in a forward position in 15 MILES TO THE NORTH OF settle down quickly. to local con- ditions.

Eritrea.

Its mombēra are also com-

fortably established. They even have their own:refrigerators far From civilisation.

I found South African pilots of one fighter aquadron ... which nl-| ready has nearly 80 Italian 'planes to its credit, living in a series of

The constant uppearance of tunnels Sudanese mid huts British bomberse und fighters, around the aerodrome.

zooming in increasing numbers over the heads of 'the advancing They declared: their strange British troops, has been very dwellings are both cool and heartening to these men, ploddingt comfortabla.

through inhospitable and unfami- A Rhodesian squadron is stu- Har country. — Reuter,

THE TOWN.

Conditions, are, terribly difficult as there are no roads fit for me- chanised units. Camels are being used to carry materials,

The rest of the Imperial forces are still in position, four miles Bouth-east of Koren, whose principal defences lle in its 7, 000 feet altitude and road and paths which are hardly nego- |-tiable/

Further south the Italians have

!

Massawa, both which are strongly defended.

إن

The R.A.F., however, have com- plete control of the air in this area, having destroyed all Italian 'planes in the vicinity and wreck- ed

chemy aerodromes. British Wireless.

U.S. AID FOR BRITAIN

"Blanket" authority has been issued for the export to Britain and Northern Ireland of 138 key war products, including alumin- ium and aircraft parts, says Reu- ter from Washington.

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