Wairarapa Times-Age SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1942. NORTH AFRICAN PROSPECTS.

Wairarapa Times-Age, 14 November 1942, Page 2

Wairarapa Times-Age SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 1942. NORTH AFRICAN PROSPECTS.

doubt the recapture of Tobruk, which is announced today, • was one of the “many tilings going to happen in the next few days” mentioned by Mr Churchill in the House of Commons on Wednesday.’ It is likely, however, that the British Prime Minister also had in mind further and speedy extensions of Allied mastery over those parts of North Africa still held by the enemy. His mention of coming events followed immediately upon references to the victorious advance of the Eighth Army into Libya and the movement eastward of the Allied forces in Algeria.

On the facts meantime disclosed, the Allies appear to have excellent prospects of quick success in occupying not only Tunisia, with its important and commandingly situated port and naval base' of Bizerta, but Tripoli as well. The whole situation and the possibilities it holds have been transformed by the successful occupation by the Allies of Morocco and Algeria.

In spite of its magnificent success in virtually destroying the large and well-equipped force commanded by Marshal Rommel, the Eighth Army admittedly would have been faced by a tremendously formidable task had it been called upon to drive unaided into Tripolitania. The better part of a. thousand miles of mostly desert territory separates Tripoli from the Egyptian frontier zone. An advance on Tripoli, against the opposition of an enemy able to use it as a base and as a depot for the reception of reinforcements, inevitably would have been a slow, costly and difficult undertaking. This, however, is not the situation that has to be faced today.

While the Eighth Army, in its swift advance from Egypt, is hard on the heels of Rommel’s broken remnant of an army, with Allied aircraft still raining destruction on the enemy transport, Allied forces advancing through Tunisia will be well placed to attack Tripoli at comparatively short range. Factors not now visible would have to be introduced to give the enemy any prospect of withstanding these concerted advances from east and west.

German air and anti-aircraft units, numbering it is said at time of writing about 2,000 men, have been sent to Tunisia and have occupied an aerodrome near Tunis. It- seems most improbable, however, that these units, even if they receive further airborne reinforcements, will be able long to resist the onset of the Allied land and air forces. Good grounds appear for hoping that the Allies soon may be in control of the whole of the southern shores of the Mediterranean. Incidentally, Rommel’s chances of extricating any considerable part of what is left of his army appear to be very poor indeed.

With events taking this course, the conflict in the Mediterranean will be far enough from being at an end. It will remain to be seen, for example, what the enemy can do to hinder or prevent an Allied attack on Italy by the use of air forces based on Sicily and Sardinia, by an intensive U-boat campaign and in other ways. Importance attaches also to the possible developments in Spain and Portugal which have been mentioned in recent news messages. Much depends, too, on what happens to or is done with the strong French fleet stationed at Toulon. Admiral Darlan is reported to have suggested to the commanders of the fleet that they should take their ships to North Africa. What this is worth remains to be seen, but it is tolerably certain that unless the French fleet is already out of their reach, the Nazis will lose little time in laying hands on it. Their alleged readiness to rely on a pledge by the French naval chiefs that the fleet will resist attack from any quarter does not inspire confidence.