ON ALL AFRICAN FRONTS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 February 1941, Page 5

ON ALL AFRICAN FRONTS

Made by the Imperial Forces SUCCESSFUL LAND & AIR ACTIVITIES MUSSOLINI TRIES TO EXPLAIN AWAY DEFEATS In East Africa, a 8.8. C. broadcast states, the Imperial forces have made further progress on all fronts.’ Yesterday s Cairo communique reported that the British column advancing down the Red Sea coast of Eritrea from the north was making satisfactory headway, while opposite Keren good progress is being made in preparations for the reduction of the enemy stronghold. In Abyssinia another town on the Blue Nile has been captured by the patriot forces, who repelled an enemy counterattack. The Italians left 150 dead ondhe field. In Italian Somaliland, operations east of the Juba River continue to develop to our advantage. South African forces are closing in on an enemy position and units of the South African Air Force are active against the enemy. In Libya the situation is unchanged. Mussolini is reported to have spoken for an hour to leaders of the Fascist Party in Rome. He admitted for the first time that the smashing blow given by the Royal Navy at Taranto was the starting point of the decline of Italy in the war and that Italian forces in East Africa were fighting without reinforcement. ’ He attempted to explain the Italian defeats and gave his reasons for believing the war would end in an Axis victory. Italy, he said, was carrying the weight of attack by a million British and Greek soldiers, but he believed that German armaments were greatly superior and that American aid to Britain would not be given in time to turn the scale. South African and Australian air forces have made successful attacks on the enemy in Africa. In operations by South African planes in Abyssinia, fires were started and troops were machine-gunned. In an engagement south of Benghazi between fighters of an Australian squadron and a number of German planes, one Junkers and one Messerschmitt were destroyed. From all these operations one British fighter is missing.