ANZACS IN PALESTINE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3100, 2 June 1917, Page 7

ANZACS IN PALESTINE

A DESERT DASH

TURKISH RAILWAY DESTROYED

,(Hec. June 1, 10.10 p.m.)

London, June 1. Mr. Massoy, war correspondent, reports that General Chauvel, in charge it tho Engineers' and mounted men of the 23rd Itogiment, dashingly destroyed twenty miies of railway south-east of. Beersheba. Tho Anzacs and Imperial cavalry were covering tho raiding detachments, which reached to within five miles of Beersheba, repulsing the attack of two brigades of Turkish cavalry. Telegraphing from tho neighbourhood of Gaza on May 24, Mr. Massey Bays the Turks again felt tho force of a British cavalry stroke. The British commander decided to destroy the majority of the railway eouth-east of Beersheba, and the mounted troops of a desert column, under General Chauvel, by another of those dashing raids which have characterised these columns in their operations since Christmas, simultaneously, attacked twenty miles of tho railway and destroyed it beyond repair. Tho operation was of the most important nature, because thp Turks; owing to shortage of materials, havo lately been obliged to take up old lines in order to lay now ones. Tho two columns moved out on tho Jiight of May '_ 22. The Camel Corps marched thirty-two miles to Audja, and destroyed the bridges and culverts along tho entire line to tho eastwards. Meanwhile the Engineers and the Anzac and Imperial mounted men, after special training in destructive methods, attacked the railway between Asluj and Hadaj. These men, with their splendid horses, marohed thirty miles on an extremoly dai-k night, through a dust-storm that obscured tho stars and obliterated tho tracks, over sharp, jagged stone ridges. One party reached Asluj at six o'clock in tho morning, tlui otheV reached Hadja at seven, and they worked toward each other, completing the destruction of ten miles of track and three lons bridges, substantially built of stone and concrete, in three hours. Not a length of rail and a single bolt was left intact. While the Engineers blew up tho railway tho cavalry mado a strong demonstratiou against Beorslieba. They aro now within five miles of tho town, and destroyed i.ho railway bridge- to the northward, and repulsed two Turkish clival ry brigades uoulh of Bccreheba. They returned to the bivouacs in tho afternoon.