NEW ALLIED FRONT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 16 April 1941, Page 5

NEW ALLIED FRONT

ADRIATIC TO AEGEAN LINE OF NATURAL STRONGHOLDS UNSUITABLE FOR MECHANISED • WARFARE. THE GREEK WITHDRAWAL. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.22 a.m.) RUGBY, April 15. The rectification of the Allied line of resistance in Greece, which stretches from the Adriatic to the Aegean,, and owes its strength to the fact that the positions occupied are natural strongholds, unfavourable for the tactics of mechanised blitz warfare, was referred to in last night’s War Office communique. Today’s Greek High Command communique confirms that the Koritza region has been evacuated and that there has been German pressure in an area west of Salonika.

The communique says: “In Western Macedonia there has been an engagement between armoured units in the Ptolemais region. German forces pushed toward Klisura, towards Kozani and towards Sitista (Klisura, in Western Macedonia, is not to be confused with the town of the same name in Albania). As a result of the occupation of Southern Yugoslavia by German forces, which opened up corridors leading from Yugoslav territory towards its flank and rear, our army on the northern Albanian front, for operational reasons, was ordered to fall back and evacuate the region of Koritza. The enemy, having observed the withdrawal 24 hours after it had begun, attempted in vain to harass the operations, by advancing motor cyclists. We captured several dozens of them.

“On the rest of the Albanian front the enemy, who attempted offensive operations at several points, was repulsed everywhere, leavihg about 100 prisoners in our hands.”