FIGHTING MAGNIFICENTLY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 January 1942, Page 3

FIGHTING MAGNIFICENTLY

Australian Troops in Malaya SITUATION STILL EXTREMELY SERIOUS LONDON, January 16. The Australian. Prime Minister, Mr Curtin, has announced in Canberra today that Australian troops have been in action in Malaya. He added: “Later reports indicate that the Australian Imperial Force is fighting magnificently and has. the situation in hand, but it remains difficult owing to the absence of air support.’’ It is learned from Singapore that the British and Indian troops who have fought since the invasion began, together with fresh British and Indian troops, are now fighting side by side with the Australians, some of whom have been in training for nearly a year in Malaya for this battle. Heavy rains have fallen, affecting movements in the fighting area. “The Times,’’ London, this morning stated: “There can be no doubt that the situation in Malaya has become extremely serious. ’ ’ The enemy has moved at a rate of 100 miles a week down Malaya since reaching the southern border of Thailand and has given the retreating troops no respite, it continued. The tactics of the Japanese have undoubtedly been resolute and by no means lacking in skill, and the British and Indian troops have had constantly to fight without any air support whatever. Nearer to Singapore there will certainly be more resistance in the air, and the Japanese are likely to be confronted with a defence altogether more formidable than they have yet encountered. The newspaper emphasised that the defenders had not yet tried to fight a decisive battle, and in the withdrawals the great bulk of the forces suffered no crippling loss, but the time now approached when that strategy was no longer of avail. “Singapore is so valuable that.the thought of sacrificing it cannot be entertained without coming to a decisive stand,’’ it added. “The battle must be fought with the whole heart and without reservation.”

In the engagement in which Australian troops took part yesterday, in the latter stages of the action, six enemy tanks were destroyed and heavy casualties were inflicted on the enemy. Although the Japanese were supported by fighters and bombers the Australian casualties were comparatively slight. On the western front in Malaya the general situation is unchanged. Some contact is reported with the enemy. During a Japanese raid on Singapore yesterday it is now confirmed that one enemy fighter was destroyed. One other fighter was probably destroyed and three more damaged. This morning our fighters shot down one enemy plane over Singapore. British aircraft attacked and sank a number of barges in Malaya and damaged several others. Other aircraft attacked targets on the north-west coast of Malaya, but owing to bad weather the results were not observed/ This morning British aircraft attacked concentrations of enemy transport and rollingstock 30 miles north-east of Malacca. Several vehicles were set on fire and a number of rolling stock damaged.