AXIS ANXIETY

Grey River Argus, 31 May 1943, Page 5

AXIS ANXIETY

East Mediterranean

FORTIFYING AND SPYING.

(Rec. 9.10) NEW YORK, May 30 The New York “Times' Istanbul correspondent who gained his inioimation from foreign intelligence sources says: Japanese naval and military experts, accompanied by. technicians specially trained in the construction of island defence in the Pacific ;thei ater have flown to German-occupied islands in the Mediterranean to inspect their fortifications against an Allied invasion. The Japanese mission included a high ranking naval officer, who was detached from active service in the Far East for a special inspection tour of Crete, Salamis and other islands and the Grecian coastline Herr Todt’s reorganisation workers are already feverishly making adaptations, conforming to the Japanese recommendations, rhe close co-operation of the- Japanese and German intelligence services has been recently redoubled, with frequent icurneyp of personnel to Sofia, which has become and Axis espionage' centre for information as to invasion. The Germans also have trebled their reconnaissance from Crete and Rhodes. .... ... ~ According to reliable information the Germans are conducting a merciless spy hunt throughout Crete in an attempt to plug the leakage of intelligence to the Allies. There have been daily, and nightly executions ot Cretan patriots suspected of being spies. The Germans have been offering fantastic sums for information about' Allied invasion plans. However, takers have been extremely scarce, because traitors are swiftly assasinated by a magnificently-organ-ied underground force, which recently clandetinelv distributed a list of 528 “liquidated” traitors. Most obvious evidence of extreme Axis uneasiness over possible developments in the Eastern Mediterranean at the outset of summer has been seen in a large increase of Italian, German and Japanese Embassy and consular staffs in Turkey, who are frantically, determined to cultivate Allied nationals in an effort .to elicit a hint or catch an unguarded word about Allied intention. The correspondent says he personally knows three nonTurkish neutrals who last week received offers of small fortunes lor “part time work” for the Axis, consisting of mixing in Allied society to elicit "information of invasion plans.