THE NAVY'S ACTION

Evening Post, Volume CXXXI, Issue 120, 23 May 1941, Page 8

THE NAVY'S ACTION

ATTACK OFF CRETE

NEWS STILL AWAITED

CRETANS' AID TO DEFENDERS

LONDON, May 22

News is still awaited of the fate of the German convoy which was attacked off Crete this morning by British destroyers and light naval forces. This was the second phase of the German attempt to land forces on Crete from fhe sea.

The new enemy development started last night, and in its initial stages failed when naval forces sank a destroyer escort, two transports, and a number of small Greek boats containing tjjoops. Land fighting between German airborne troops and British, New Zealand, and Allied troops has continued throughout the day.

Messages from Cairo tell of the great part played by the population of Crete, who have risen spontaneously against the invaders. Even when the Germans landed in some remote districts where there were no troops, they have had to contend with every peasant, man or woman, capable of resistance. The messages describe the scene on the island, with the air full of planes and swaying parachutes, and say that it becomes even more fantastic at night, when the sky is lit up with flares and shells and the searchlights of the Navy and the ground defences, which pick out the parachutists as they float to earth.