GRIM CONFLICT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 30 April 1943, Page 3

GRIM CONFLICT

FOR TAKROUNA PINNACLE HEROISM OF SMALL GROUP OF MAORIS. •POSITION SHELLED BY BOTH SIDES. (Official War Correspondent, N.Z.E.F.) ARMY FIELD HEADQUARTERS. April 24. Climbing hand-over-hand 600 ft. up a sheer-sided pinnacle into the mountain strongholf of Takrouna, a small group of Maori infantrymen began one of the fiercest episodes of close-quarter fighting that New Zealander have known in this war. Acting on their own initiative, the Maoris set out and, on the way up, intimidated into submission about 100 Italians occupying points on the cliff face. Throughout the day the enemy shelled the pinnacle but could not dislodge the Maoris. Takrouna was then in the strange position of being shelled at the same time by both sides, for the enemy still held the remainder of the village on the lower slops to the north. Toward dusk the Maoris of the original storming party were relieved and fresh troops took up the struggle, to hold on against overwhelming odds. That night the Germans somehow reoccupied part of the area; they came well armed with mortars, machineguns and grenades. Then, in moonlight, bitter fighting for full possession of the pinnacle began at close quarters. Everything was thrown in—grenades, automatics, bayonets, and even rifle-butts. Men were hurled ovei’ the brink of the cliff on to the flat hundreds of feet below. All through the night the crashing of grenades and stuttering of ma-chine-guns echoed across the hills. In daylight the next morning the final blasting of the enemy from the the pinnacle was handed over to the New Zealand artillery.