The daily monitor. (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1940-1942, 1941-06-18
War
Continued from Page ~

oCAAoAiASs
The London reports said that
there appeared to be nothing in
the proposed agreement for the
passage of German troops across
Turkish territory, however, and
that Turkey had resisted Nazi
demands for reversal Of her
policy of friendship with Great
Britain.
Germany and Italy reported
complete and overwhelming
victory" today in smashing q
British counter-offensive after a
violent 3-day battle in the des-
ert around Salum, Egypt:
THE enemy, overwhelmed, is
retreating," the German high
command said.
An Italian war bulletin de-
clared the British had thrown
"ponderous masses Of tanks
supported by the best part of
the middle eastern air force"
into the conflict-only to be
rushed by the "overpowering
impetus" of Axis counter-at-
tackS.
BRITISH WITHDRAW
British middle east headquart-
ers acknowledged that British
advance forces which had
knitted as deep as 40 miles into
Libya-had withdrawn to for
ward positions" on the Libyan
front.
This presumably meant that
the British had fallen back to
their original positions from
which the drive was launched.
The withdrawal was executed,
the British said, to avoid an en-
circling movement by German
endorsements rushed from the
Tobruk area and because 1--WE
had accomplished our object" of
making the Germans disclose
their strength.
Stefani, the official Italian
news agency, said the British
used hundreds of American
tanks" mostly the newest type
known as mark two"
The news agency said the
British also used strong forces
of motorized troops and great
quantity of artillery and air
strength.
NAILS CAPTURED
Capture of several hundred
German prisoners" and the de-
struction of large numbers of
Axis tanks and guns was offic-
tally reported by the British.
The Fascist communique as
serted that Gen. Sir Archibald
P. Wavell's counter-offensive
had been broken" with British
troops retreating under heavy
fire by Axis land and air fore
es.
The communique declared
that severe losses had been in
flicted on the British, especially
in tanks, and that the battle
was ended.
In Berlin, the Nazi war bulle-
tin pictured the British offens-
i've as an attempt to rescue the
siege-bound British garrison al
Tobruk, 30 miles inside Libya,
where British troops have been
encircled for nearly 10 weeks
A Nazi spokesman said that
Gen. Wavell had thrown large
panzer reserves" into the battle
and that heavy fighting ragged In
the Halfaya C"Hell-Fire") pass
sector, east of Salum, but that
the battle was over, with a com
plete Axis victory.
TANKS DESTROYED
The Germans claimed destruc.
ton of more than 100 British
tanks since the Imperial Army
of the Nile began its offensive
Sunday.
On the middle east war front
the British reported that Allied
Columns we're attacking the
town of Mezze, three miles west
of Damascus, the capital of Sy'
ria, and that Allied patrols hac
reached a point only IL miles
from Beirut, the Lebanese CAPT
tai.
Gen. Charles De Gaulle's Free
French troops were said to b
exerting strong pressure on thu
1O-mile road from Kissoue Il
Damascus, south of the city.
Elsewhere, the British ack
nowledged that counter-attack
ing Vichy French troops bat
recaptured the Syrian towns o.
Merdjayoup, six miles from thu
Palestine frontier, and kuneit
ra, south of Damascus.
ATTACK STOPPED
The British declared that thu
French countcr-attack. carric<