VON ARNIM A PRISONER

Wairarapa Times-Age, 13 May 1943, Page 3

VON ARNIM A PRISONER

AXIS COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF IN NORTH AFRICA Captured on Cape Bon Peninsula ' REMAINING ENEMY FORCES CLOSELY HEMMED IN INCREASING WEIGHT OF AIR ATTACKS ON , SICILY AND SOUTHERN ITALY LONDON, May 12. The German commander-in-chief in Tunisia, General von Arnim, is a prisoner in Allied hands. He was captured on the Cape Bon Peninsula this afternoon. Von Arnim is a panzer expert and is a fanatical Nazi. He was commander of a panzer division in the early days of the Russian war. In March he succeeded Rommel as commander of the Axis forces in North Africa. A correspondent states that there is no likelihood of any more fighting in the Cape Bon Peninsula. The Axis forces cut off outside the peninsula have no chance of getting supplies and have no way of escape. A French communique states that French armoured and motorised units east of Zaghouan have now joined up with British troops coming down from the north. More than 25,000 Axis prisoners, with all their equipment, have fallen into French hands in this area. There is still a pocket of enemy resistance in the hills to the west of Bon Ficha. British and French units are closing in on all sides and the enemy forces are nearing the end of their tether. Already fires can be seen blazing behind their lines, an indication that they are burning their equipment. In Northern Tunisia all fighting has ceased. The number of prisoners taken in this area by the Americans and French is 37,998. All except about 4,500 are Germans. The complete total of prisoners for the whole battle area is expected to be well over the 100,000 mark. Allied aircraft are stepping up the weight of their attacks with further raids on Axis harbour and other installations in Sicily and Southern Italy. 150,000 PRISONERS TAKEN Organised Resistance At An End / ■■ A special announcement from Allied North African Headquarters states that organised resistance in Tunisia, except for isolated pockets of the enemy, has ceased. It is estimated that the total number of prisoners taken in the last week is 150,000. Vast quantities of guns and war material of all kinds have been captured, including guns and aircraft in serviceable condition.