Rommel Launches Assault On Southern Desert Defences

Taranaki Daily News, 2 September 1942, Page 3

Rommel Launches Assault On Southern Desert Defences

Month-long lull ended by attack 25 miles south of E1 Alamein. By Telcgraph— Press Assn.— Copyright. Rec. 11.30 p.m. London, Sept. 1. TTHE xnonth-old lull on the desert front ended yesterday with an attack by German forces at E1 Himeimat, a 200-foot high hill 25 miles due south of E1 Alamein on the edge of the Quattafa Depression. The first news was given last night in a special statement by the War Office reading: "For some days past there have been signs of renewed activity on Rommel's front and early on Monday morning German forces, including armour, pushed forward against our southern flank in the neighbourhood of E1 Himeimat, where- they were immediately engaged by our light forces and fighting is proceeding. It is not yet certain whether the enemy offenjjive is on a major scale. A weak enemy thrust, mainly by Italihns, against our main front was repulsed with loss to the enemy." A later Cairo communique states that strong enemy columns made the attack and fighting continued throughout the day. Dust curtailed air operations.

A correspondent earlier said that the expected attack in Egypt had apparently begun. Rommel's army had been strongly retaforced and supplied by convoys which had reached him in the summer. Whether the attack was on a large scale was not' yet clear but it looked r as if the Egyptian lull had ended. The scene of the German attack is at the extreme southern end of the British line which stretches from E1 Alamein on the coast to the Quattara Depression. There is no indicgtion of how successful the enemy assault has been but, adds the correspondent, you may take it that the British forces holding the line have not just been marking time while the enemy prepared. An earlier Cairo. communique stated: "Our patrols engaged enemy working parties on Saturday night. On Sunday there was nothing to report from our land forces. On Saturday night our

medium bombers, light bombers and naval aircraft continued their raids in the battle area and on Tobruk. The same night our bombers and torpedocarrying aircraft successfully attacked shipping off the Cyrenaican coast. Three ships were hit, two being left ablaze. "In combats over the E1 Alamein. area on Sunday our fighters destroyed at least three Messerschmitts and damaged others. An enemy tanker in the Mediterranean was left blazing from stem to stern. Two enemy planes were destroyed last night during small scale activity over our base landing grounds." American medium and heavy bombers participated in Saturday night's raid on Tobruk. They also started several flres and ohserved large explosions on an enemy landing ground east of Mersa Matruh. Anti-aircraft flre was moderate and there were no night fighters.' All of our planes returned safely. JL ; ; —