NEW BATTLE CRY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 11 December 1940, Page 5

NEW BATTLE CRY

CHRISTMAS IN TIRANA VICTORIOUS EFFORTS OF GREEK TROOPS. ITALIAN MORALE AT LOW EBB. (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) LONDON, December 9. The Greek advance continues on all fronts. The Greeks advancing up the coast have reached a point 12 miles from Himara, which is on the coast about 20 miles north-west of Argyrokastron. The Athens correspondent of the Associated Press of Great Britain says the entire Italian right wing behind Santi Quaranta has been put to flight. The Greeks captured a series of strategically important peaks in the northern sector. The Greeks have so far occupied onequarter of the entire Albanian territory. “Christmas in Tirana” is the new war cry of the Greek advance guard, which is methodically pursuing the remnants of the retreating Italians, while other troops are strongly garrisoning Argyrokastron and the police are restoring civilian life to normal.

CHARGE AT DAWN. There are now more details of the fall of Argyrokastron. It is revealed that the Greeks were successful only after hard fighting on the outskirts of the town. Mopping-up operations continued throughout the night, and it was not till the Greek troops launched a furious bayonet charge in the early hours of the morning that the Italians were finally driven back from their positions. The Italians are said to have left behind them a number of booby traps in houses, some in the nature of hand grenades, so that they were easily exploded. A statement by the spokesman of the Greek Ministry of Information says that the Italians destroyed as much of their supplies as possible, but despite this the Greeks have captured large quantities of armaments. He said that the greater part o fthis material was good enough to be used against the enemy. A correspondent of “The Times” at Koritza says that the Italian morale is appalling. All along the front it is possible to behold machine-gun nests which any British company could have held for a long time and which were abandoned by the Italians, some times without fighting. The Greeks are expert in mountain warfare, of which the Italians evidently understand surprisingly little. The Greeks, even those in the front line, are beginning to recognise the amazing results of the R.A.F. activity, of which the most impressive evidence is the almost entire absence of enemy planes on the Koritza front for seveial days. DUCE’S GREAT MISTAKE. Imprisoned Italian officers and soldiers say that the war has been Mus- 1

solini’s great mistake. They did not know the cause of the war or why they were fighting. The capture yesterday of Argyrokastron is dismissed in a 'brief sentence in the Greek communique on Sunday’s fighting which says: “During today our troops occupied important positions in the interior of Albanian territory, and Argyrokastron has been occupied.” An Italian official communique dealing with operations in this area states: “The Eleventh Army completed its retreat without less of men and material, and in full order, to a line north of Argyrokastron and some smaller localities.” Authoritative circles in- Athens report that the Greeks are advancing beyond Delvino in pursuit of the Italians, who have abandoned valuable war material of all descriptions. Further north, it is added, local defeats have been inflicted on a new regiment of Italian alpine troops. War material captured at Argyrokastron is reported to include twelve complete batteries of artillery. Bitter fighting is reported from the central front, where the Italian resistance is increasingly fierce. The latest Greek communique says: “Fighting continued during the day, with success for our troops. On the northern front the Italians have been withdrawing from strategic points and are retiring in confusion.” In reference to picked Italian troops who wet a reported to be entrenched o'n this front, an Athens report says that the Italian defeat in this sector has been so complete as i.u make any successful counter-attack impossible.