EARLY EVENTS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 July 1942, Page 4

EARLY EVENTS

LN PRESENT BATTLE PHASE w EffP T ■: (I NG ;n coastal zone & CENTRE. DESTRUCTION OF ENEMY TANKS. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, Noon.) RUGBY, July 16. Yesterday’s fighting on the El Alamein front has been described by a 8.8. C. observer in Egypt. He says: “The limited attack made in the central sector of the El Alamein front in the early hours of Wednesday morning has gone off successfully and yesterday we secured our objectives, on the western end of a small ridge lying about ten miles inland from the sea. This ridge, which is not very prominent and might better be described as an irregular rise in the ground, is nevertheless a useful vantage point, overlooking part of the flat coastal plain. There had been a certain amount of fighting on and around it during the past week, mostly of a mobile character. The object of our attack was to move infantry and guns on to the western end of the ridge, facing the central sector area held by the enemy. The attack was carried out comfortably, according to plan, yesterday afternoon. The enemy counter-attacked on a small scale, but their effort to re-establish themselves on the ridge failed. Later an attack was made in stronger force with tanks and infantry, but our armour came up to help the defending infantry. Tanks clashed, but it was not a major engagement between the armcured forces on both sides, the numbers involved not being large. However there ‘was stiff fighting and the enemy succeeded in gaining a small foothold at the extreme western end. “The enemy did not achieve much by his strenuous, counter-attacks at Tel el Isa, nor is there any reason to believe what he gained is a permanent acquisiticn. He managed to get back into Tel el Isa station, and on to the ridge behind it, but we hold a ridge from which we overlook the enemy positions. The enemy will not find it easy to stay on the ridge behind the station and already has been heavily shelled, bombed and strafed and a number of his tanks have been accounted for in the area.”

NIGHT ENCOUNTERS CONTEST FOR TEL EL ISA. (Received This Day, Noon.) LONDON, July 16. Further details of the fighting'at Tel el Isa, in which Australians were engaged on the night of July 14, are still pouring in from correspondents in Egypt. The Germans apparently made a feint attack on the South Africans’ position, south-eastwards and then swung towards the Australians’ positions. At 7.30 p.m. Stukas swept in, while tanks led at least 500 infantrymen, smashing at the Australian positions. The Associated Press of Great Britain says the Australians stopped push after push. They held the enemy infantry with rifles and bayonets, while Australian, South African and British artillerymen threw down barrages which took heavy toll of the enemy troops and tanks. The German tanks reached their most forward point at 9 p.m., when they were forced out of some ground they had gained. / At least seven tanks were knocked out. The direction of the German attack cut off two Australian infantry companies, which fought their way through to re-establish contact with their own forces. Hand to hand fighting occurred at different times during the night and red spurts from heavy guns, flares and bomb bursts streaked the darkness. The battle died down early on July 15, but at 7 a.m. Stukas were again attacking the Australians and our Bostons were hammering enemy positions. MORE AIR ATTACKS SEVEN ENEMY PLANES SHOT DOWN. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 12.10 p.m.) RUGBY, July 16. A Cairo communique states: “Our planes attacked enemy headquarters in the battle area. Enemy bombing has slightly increased. Our interceptors shot down seven enemy planes and damaged others.”