TIMELY BLOW

Wairarapa Times-Age, 7 April 1941, Page 6

TIMELY BLOW

AT HEART OF MUSSOLINI’S EMPIRE . FOLLOWS ATTACK ON GREECE & YUGOSLAVIA. ACHIEVEMENTS OF IMPERIAL TROOPS. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.55 a.m.) RUGBY. April 6. News telling of a British blow at the heart of Mussolini’s East African Empire has this afternoon followed closely on the announcement i of Germany’s unwarranted and unprovoked attack on Greece and Yugoslavia. A Cairo communique states that leading detachments of the Imperial forces have reached Addis Ababa and implies a rapid advance from the Awash River, the crossing of which —some 130 miles east of the capital—was announced last night. The communique reads: “In Libya the concentration of our troops is proceeding smoothly. “In Abyssinia, leading detachments of our Imperial forces reached Addis Ababa last evening. Further south our general advance is continuing and the number of prisoners is steadily mounting. “In Eritrea, after clearing the main road block on the road from Asmara, to Massawa, our movements towards the latter port are again proceeding. Our advance is also continuing successfully on the main road towards Dessye and Gondar.” The part played by the R.A.F., in the advance from the east towards Addis Ababa is outlined in a R.A.F. Middle East communique which states: "Addis Ababa was heavily raided by the R.A.F. and the South African Air Force on the afternoon of Friday. Direct hits with heavy bombs, were registered on hangars, aerodrome buildings and barracks. Large fires were started and the smoke from them was seen over forty miles away. After completing the bombing attack, our aircraft ma-chine-gunned enemy aircraft on the ground, destroying four bombers and damaging several others. Enemy fighters attempted to intercept our air- , craft, but quickly broke off the engagement. "Mechanical transport was attacked west of Hadatta. south-east of Addis Ababa. Petrol lorries, which were ma-chine-gunned blew up and the enemy suffered many casualties. “In. Tripolitania, R.A.F. bombers made a heavy raid on Tripoli on Friday night. Heavy explosions were caused on the south-eastern mole and fires were started among barracks and stores and the power-station was hit. From all these operations our planes returned safely.”

GERMAN REPORTS ATTACK ON “FORTRESS" OF BELGRADE. (Received This Day. 9.10 a.m.) LONDON. April 6. A German communique states: “In consequence of the movement of British troops into North Greece and their co-ordination with Yugoslav forces, the German Army resorted to a counteroffensive. Early this morning the Greek-Serbian frontier was crossed at several points. The Luftwaffe successfully raided aerodromes in Serbia, as well as the fortress of Belgrade and destroyed military objectives.” Another . German communique says Italian planes bombed important objectives in Southern Yugoslavia. ‘German troops are advancing everywhere in Yugoslavia and Greece, after breaking weak enemy resistance, except in the Strtima Valley,' states the I Berlin News Agency. The sccond‘"air raid on Belgrade was a mass attack, which was extremely effective. Strong | bomber formations attacked military objectives in the city and a number of extensive fires were added to those caused in the morning, which were still I burning.”