A SUMMARY OF THE SITUATION

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 42, 13 November 1940, Page 8

A SUMMARY OF THE SITUATION

Latest news of the lighting in Greece and Albania indicates that the Italians are withdrawing at various points, presumably to enable them to prepare for a fresh attack, which is expected as a result of the appointment of a new commander-in-chief. Tn the meantime the Greeks in the area of the Pindus mountains continue to mop up the remnants of the Italian division, now estimated at 12,000 men, which they annihilated. British planes continue to bomb Italian and Albanian ports. 'l'he declaration that Hitler is a military objective has been made bv the Secretary for Air, Sir Archibald Sinclair, in reply to a question prompted by the R.A.F.’s appearance over Munich on the night of the Fuehrer’s recent speech. He said that Hitler was com-mander-in-chief of the German forces and that the K.A.F. would bomb him and Nazi commanders wherever possible. He briefly summarized Britain's bombing policy and promised Italy more and more attacks. . . . Italian bombers learnt a bitter lesson when they attacked a Drittsli convov. Hurricane pilots, doubtless welcoming the change ol fare from’the more elusive German lighter-bombers, shot down 13 ol them in double-quick time. The Germans lost I2_ planes, so the day’s total was 25, compared with an R.A.F. loss of two. American newspapers are concerned at the magnitude ol Lie problem facing Britain in protecting her merchant shipping against attack. One correspondent points out why the difficulties are so great. An interview given by Mr. Joseph Kennedy, American Ambassador to London, is bound to have attracted considerable attention, but Mi. Kennedy later asserted that he had been speaking entirely unofficially and that the published version of his statements conveyed an impression different from what he would wish. Though German observers predict important results from M. Molotov's visit to Berlin, they do not appear to expect full Russian partnership in a pact with Axis countries.