Evening star., 1941-04-17
Drive Into Greece
Reaches 10 Miles,
Germans. Declare
Troops Have Taken Servio
After Crossing AIiokmon
River, Command Says
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
BERLIN, April 17-Nazi troops,
continuing their advance into
Greece, have captured Servia after
sweeping across the Aliakmon River,
the high command announced to-
day, in q drive aimed at the east
flank of the reformed British-Greek
defense line.
The Germans declared they were
taking many prisoners in their ad-
vance, which has carried them near
ly 10 miles southwark from the
frontier in this sector, west north
west of Mount Olympus.
Earlier reports said the Nazis had
come to grips with the British ex-
peditionary force south of Mount
Olympus in an engagement which
military circles said might develop
into a major battle.
In Africa, authorized sources said,
the Germans and Italians have re-
pulsed repeated attempts of British
armored cars to break through an
axis ring around Tobruk, and have
LAAllAtOCd GCll llS 1OoSCo OIl Vic DIN
Latest reports from the noun
famous section of ThesSaly, in
Greece, said German motorized
units had pushed deep into enemy
columns, forcing the Greek and
British troops to fight"
Official quarters gave no details
of the action except to say that the
British, attempting to withdraw I'M
der cover of rear-guard action, had
been compelled to make stand to
meet the pressure of fast Nazi mo-
toriZed units.
CThe Greek high command said
today that German forces were
in action in the vicinity of Gre
vena and were trying to advance
toward Kalabaka, which is about
10 miles north of Trikkala on
the central sector of the 'front.'
The German air force was said
to be beating out a path for the
Nazi advance, concentrating heavy
attacks on airports at Larisa and
Trikkala and hammering British
Greek communication lines.
Twenty-Five enemy" planes were
destroyed on the ground and II
more were shot down in air fights
yesterday, the Germans declared.
German warplanes also were re-
ported to have sunk 10000 tons of
shipping in the Gulf of Volo on
the Greek east coast and to have
damaged another 1000 tons near
Khalkis. The Nazis acknowledged
the loss of only two planes in op-
erations yesterday.
Surrender Acclaimed.
An official announcement, mean
while, that the second Serbian
Army had capitulated to German
troops at Sarajevo was acclaimed
by the Nazi press as indicating the
final breakdown of the Yugoslav
military machine-estimated at l.
100000 men when hostilities began
II days ago.
This surrender, the Germans said,
eliminated the last of the five army
groups which the Yugoslavs put
in the filed.
Besides taking uncounted num-
bers of Yugoslav prisoners, the Nazi
forces were reported to have seized
thousands of tanks, armored cars,
automobiles and motorcycles. Most
of these, the Germans declared,
are in serviceable condition and are
being put to use at once by the
German armed forces.
Capitulation of the Yugoslav Sec
ond Army gave rise to new specu-
lation whether an armistice with
Yugoslavia might be expected, but
informed sources said this was un-
likely.
Cite Lack of Army Control.
"It takes two to make an arni-
stice," they said, each side agree
ing under certain conditions to stop
fighting. But there doesn't seem to
be any Yugoslav government left
and certainly the army isn't under
unified control So there is no Serb
competent or with authority to make
an agreement about anything in be-
half of the Serb people"
CA German radio broadcast,
heard last night in London, said
six high Yugoslav dignitaries.
members of the government or
royal family, had been killed IN
a plane crash in Rumania while
zen route to the east with i'm
portant documents
Reports from the North African