NO FURTHER ADVANCE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 4 March 1942, Page 3

NO FURTHER ADVANCE

MADE BY JAPANESE IN JAVA BUT POSITION AND OUTLOOK CRITICAL LITTLE CHANGE IN PHILIPPINES OR BURMA

RESOLUTE OPPOSITION TO NUMERICALLY SUPERIOR ENEMY Situation On All Java Fronts “Still in Hand” DIRECT HITS ON TWO MORE JAPANESE TRANSPORTS NETHERLANDS GOVERNMENT MOVES TO BANDOENG LONDON, March 3. There is little news of the fighting - in Java. A Netherlands communique states that there are no reports of any fur- , ther advance by the Japanese after their infiltration on the first day of the invasion. Fighting is on a considerable scale and it is felt that if the present Allied counter measures fail, positional defence will be difficult. The Dutch are making the greatest possible use of modern equipment in an endeavour to offset the enemy’s numerical superiority. Dutch tanks are reported to have done some good work. Reuter’s correspondent in Bandoeng states that the situation on all fronts is still in hand. The Netherlands East Indies Government has abandoned Batavia as its headquarters and has moved to Bandoeng. The Dutch Minister for the Colonies, in London, states that the Netherland forces had suffered great losses and these losses were still going on. Any country, in Java’s present circumstances, could not hope to hold out indefinitely. They must go on attacking by land and air at all costs. The British land, sea and air forces in Java, which are stated to be small, will continue to resist the Japanese in Java. Allied aircraft report further successes. In an attack on an enemy-occupied aerodrome, ten Japanese fighters were machine-gunned when they were about to take off. All the planes and their crews were put out of action. •Direct hits on two more Japanese transports of 10,000 tons were scored in an Allied air attack. Bombs also exploded among three enemy seaplanes, two of which were destroyed. Bandoeng was raided by 42 Japanese bombers, escorted by fighters. The planes came over in two waves and dropped bombs over the airfield. There were few casualties. In Burma skirmishes between our troops and enemy units are reported. Otherwise the position is unchanged. Fighters and bombers attacked enemy troops and transport. Indian airmen made a dive-bombing raid on Japanese positions in Burma and Siam. In the Philippines the Japanese are landing more troops on the island of Mindanao from a convoy of transports escorted by a cruiser. No change is reported in the Batan Peninsula.