NAZIS ADMIT LOSS OF CASSINO

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 198, 19 May 1944, Page 5

NAZIS ADMIT LOSS OF CASSINO

Fight Continues On Heights ALLIES ENTER HITLER LINE

LONDON, May 18.

‘The battle for the Gustav Line is drawing to a conclusion, , and the battle for the Adolf Hitler Line has begun.’ These are the words of today’s communique from General Alexander s herdquarters in Italy. “The advancing troops of the Eighth and Fifth Armies are now in contact with the outposts of the Hitler Line at many point#,” if addsIn the hills north of Cassino the Poles have renewed their attack and after heavy fighting have taken an important hill fea- , ture, it is announced. The communique does not say whether we have captured Cassino. but the Germans report that the town has been evacuated. , , The latest dispatch from a headquarters correspondent says that the Eighth Army troops closing in round the town and Monastery Hill are still meeting with resistannce. The Poles have captured two important hill features north-west of Cassino. 1 heir attack began with a tremendous barrage against the slopes of Monastery Hill, and bitter all-day fighting followed.

One correspondent said that British infantry and tanks last night had smashed on to cut Highway 0, the Cassino road exit, iii the shadow of Monastery Hill. Here and to the south large numbers of British troops are engaged. An announcement from the French headquarters says that French troops have taken the town of Espena (northwest of Ausdnia), one of the outposts of the Hitler Line. American troops are within striking distance of the town of Formia, on the coast. In the past six days Allied cruisers have been shelling the German coastal positions. Our heavy bombers were out again yesterday, attacking bases and ports on both sides of Italy. Planes flew 2000 softies, and 15 were lotet. One enemy plane was shot down. Over the battle area only one German aircraft made an appearance.

GUNS AND PLANES

Terrific New Barrage By Eighth Army LONDON, May 17. The Eighth Army, attacking with tanks and infantry in the Liri Valley, has today been locked in some of the grimmest fighting of the Italian campaign. The battle proceeded with mounting fury as Allied tanks and infantry- went into the attack. The dawn barrage, with even more guns in action than on the opening night, was the signal for attacks by the waiting infantry, and overhead oiir planes swept across the deep German defence zone to begin a day-long offensive which fell on the German gun and mortar positions with paralysing effect. A correspondent at the front says there was hardly a moment of the day when the air' Was not throbbing with the roar of Allied planes. The sky was like the Battle of Britain days, but all the planes aeemed to be ours. , ’, -, Behind this tremendous curtain of.shellfire and bombs, British infantry and tanks were heavily engaged against the German defences spread over (jie scattered of the Liri Valley—earthworks and defence points cunningly concealed in fields; in bankings, and in scores of ruined houses. ’ , Germans Shaken. . It was hard to see what was going, on because a great ye] low dust-cloud blanketed the valley and . the mountain sides. The crash of guns and the crack of small arms told how our men were fighting a desperate struggle against the defenders of Highway, 6, the. vital highway from Cassino to Rome. The Germans have rushed in more guns and troops to hold this northern hinge of their line. A senior officer told a correspondent: ‘•I haven’t seen so many German dead for a long time.” At least one batch ot Germans came in with a white and the state of the prisoners shows the ordeal by fire they are undergoing from our massed barrage. ■ . T • > The German resistance in the lari Valley was less fierce today. Some of the enemv have abandoned their equipment, including anti-tank guns, in the face of the continued Allied advance, cables Renter’s correspondent from the Eighth Army Reuter's correspondent at Allied headquarters reports that the Germans have pushed scratch troops from the reserve and training areas into battle south-west of Cassino. where the British have advanced in face of savage counter-attacks. Prisoners taken on this sector have been identified as belonging to the 90th Grena. diers; which is the famous 90th Light Regiment reformed after the desert debacle. , . « z Audacious Indians.

In the Rapido bridgehead masses of tanks, guns and supplies are continuing to. pour across into the Liri Valley. Ihe Adolf Hitler Line, against which these supplies will be used, consists of a series of steel and concrete pill-boxes, protected by barbed-wire, minefields, and anti-tanlc and anti-personnel ditches. There are also natural anti-tank obstacles, for instance. deep gullies, and flooded marsh lands. ' . , Telling the story of the Indians capture of Pignataro. four miles south-south-west of Cassino. a correspondent of ‘The •Times” says: “Pignataro stands on a steep, bock crag which it is barely possible to ascend, and some parts of the rock itself are honeycombed with caves, which the enemy used for his defences. The Indian troops came iii from the east at night time. Tbe Germans were prepared for this move, because they probably considered it to he the onlV possible route. They resisted fiercely, but the Indians slowly but surely advanced in bitter street fighting. , „ “Then, suddenly, the German defences cracked and the enemy retreated to the north-east of the town, where lay ■ the only chance of escape. This collapse was due to a company of Indians who had scaled the rock and surprised the Germans from a direction which they obviously had reckoned was closed against any attacking force. It was an audacious stroke by the Indians. “German prisoners complained bitterly of their lack of air support and the superiority of the Allied guns and tanks. Tbe line below Pontecorvo runs into the Aurunci mountain mass, into which French and American patrols are now thrusting. French—U.S. Achievement. The French gained 4000 yards in their advance from San Giorgio, in the southern part of the Liri Valley, against fierce German opposition. Other French forces, driving west from the Ansonia region, have broken through more mountain defences and occupied high ground 21 miles south of Esperia. Reuter’s correspondent nt Allied headquarters says that the Americans have captured Scauri. on the coast, several miles south-west of Minturno. and also Castellonorato, four miles north-west of Minturno. Many German dead lay in and round Castellonorato after the Americans occupied it. The Americans after scaling abrupt cliff faces attacked downhill into (he town, where they ran into numbers of concrete pill-boxes. Tank destroyers knocked out at least six of these with their 75mm. guns. The Americans found great numbers of dead in the streets. “A great military achievement” is how a correspondent refers to the overrunning

of the German position in the southern part of the Gustav Line. He says that the Fifth Army, in four or five days fighting, has broken clean through the Gustav Line. Most of the German artillery has withdrawn from the liue from the River Liri to the sea. He emphasizes that it is not possible to exploit this break-through quickly. Having forced its way through one tangle of fortified hills, the offensive is now faced by another which is organized for defence as was the Hitler Line. The turning of .the Gustav Line in the south does not necessarily mean that the rest of it is untenable. „ , , .... , From the northern flank of the Allied assault line, in the vicinity of Cassino and its hills, there has been little news so far. but a correspondent says: “M atch this sector; the spotlight is inevitably falling here, for the threat to Cassino ils obvious.” i

WITHDRAWAL FROM CASSINO

Germans* Statement

(Received May 18, 10.35 p.m.) LONDON, May 18. The evacuation of Cassino is announced by the German news agency. “The German defenders evacuated their positions according to plan to retire to shorter lines in conjunction with the movement south of their sector,” says the news agency. “The move was carried out without interference from the British and Americans, who, after all attempts over' two months to force a break-through, had given up all intention of. direct attack against the German positions in the Cassino area. The evacuation of Cassino was so complete that no heavy arms fell into the British and American hands. Attempts to over-run the German rearguards failed with heavy enemy losses in the face of our fierce resistance.” LONDON, Muy 17. German commentators have been emphasizing the severity of the fighting on the Italian front. The German news agency said tonight that Kesselring’s forces have withdrawn 7i miles during today, and adds: “The withdrawal was actually wonted by Kesselring. The Allies have not yet reached the main defence system.”

TROOPS WELL AHEAD OF • COMMUNIQUE

NEW YORK, May 18. The Columbia Broadcasting system’s correspondent in a broadcast from Naples said: “It would be a pleasure to tell you how far we have progressed so far, but the authorities are content to issue one communique a day, which is not only hours, but miles behind the events.” He added: “You should see tile truckloads of dazed and exhausted prisoners, who hardly know what happened.”