Evening star., 1941-02-10
II Killed and 226
Injured in Port
Bomburdment
BACKGROUND

lh CuttCf uHCuft ftuo OttoHtC It't~
ter of European 1Uar activity
since Italians inUdded Greece last
tall and Britain launched her
ofenSiue against the Italian
possessions in Africa. German
1UarpIdneS haUe been sent to
Italy'S help and are stationed
on the Island OF Sicily, British
fleet continues to hold command
OF the Mediterranean, hotCeUer.
By the Associated Press.
LONDON, Feb. 10-BritiSh
bombers and fighters were re-
ported to have made a lightning
daylight attack on the German
held French coast today, streak
ing across the Strait of Dover in
springlike weather and returning
within an hour.
In Mediterranean naval action
yesterday British warShips at
tackled the great Italian naval
base at Genoa while English
warplanes bombed Pisa and Leg
horn. farther down the Liburian
seacoaSt.
In Rome the Italian high COM
mand admitted the Genoa bonn
bardment had killed 70 persons
and injured 226, but contended no
military objective was hitD
British bomber formations. es-
corted by fighters. attacked Dun
kerque and Boulogne. an official
announcement said, and shot down
two German planes.
A Ministry of Information an
nouncement said:
1T is learned in London that
two forma tions of Royal Air Force
bomberS. accompanied by a strong
force of fighters, carried out an
offensive sweep over DunkerQue and
Boulogne today.
Bombs were dropped on docks
at Dunkeroue. According to an
early report. two enemy fighters
were destroyed by one of our
squadrons.'
The weather was springlike.
Watchers at a Channel port re-
ported seeing large force of R. A. F.
warplanes winging across the strait.
Destroyer TorpedOed.
This daylight operation followed
an early morning assault in which
their Air Ministry said small force
of R. A. F. bombers attacked "ob-
jectives in Northwest Germany in
the early hours of this morning"
and daylight raids yesterday in
which an enemy destroyer" was
torpedoed by planes off the Nor
Wegian coast and oil tanks at
Flushing, III the Netherlands, were
bombed.
Informed sources in Berlin
said British bombers which pene-
trated Northern Germany were
kept from military targets by
anti-aircraft fire.
A small force of bombers attacked
industrial targets in Manneheim
Germany, Saturday night. the Air
Ministry said, and single planes
bombed objectives at the Nazi-
occupied ports of Rotterdam and
Flushing during daylight hours.
Two spitfires raided the Calais
area across the channel yesterday.
the ministry said. One was said
to have "Shot up an enemy anti
aircraft position in a field and ma
chine-gunned troops. Both were
said to have raked ships.
300 Tons of Shells Hurled.
Sweeping boldly to the very top
of the italian boot, British warships
hurled more than 300 tons of shells
into the Genoa base at dawn yester-
day, the Admiralty reported, DANA
ging power plants, factories. ware
houses, oil tanks, docks and shipping.
At the same time, British naval
planes were said to have dumped
tons of bombs on Pisa and Leghorn,
hitting the airdrome and railway
junction at Pisa and raining bombs
on Leghorn refinery called "one
of the largest and most important
oil plants in Italy"
Prime Minister Churchill, in tell
ing the empire by radio of the
Genoa exploit, described the she'll
ing as "shattering" and declared
Genoa to be a naval base from
which perhaps a Nazi German ex-
pedition might soon have sailed to
attack Gen. Weygand in Algeria or
Tunis."
French May Be Cheered."
II the cannonade of
Genoa, rolling along the coast, re-
verberating in the mountains, has
reached the ears of our French
comrades in their grief and misery"
Mr.. Churchill declared, 1T may
cheer them with the feeling that
friends. active friends. are near and
that Britannia rules the waves"
To reach Genoa, site of big
merchant marine and naval con-
(See RAIDS. PAGE A-3)