Evening star., 1941-01-04
Italian LinesCut.
Greeks Predict
Major Gain
Metuxus Is Confident
Of Victory as VoIono
Drive Is Pressed
Py the Associated Press.

ATHENS, Jan. 4-AS Premier Gen.
John MetaXaS made renewed pre-
diction of a Greek victory today.
authoritative quarters looked for
IAN important development of the
war" against Italy as a direct result
of Greek penetration of Italian de-
fense lines in the central sector.
Premier MetaXas told the news
paper Mkt that Greece's war aim
was to secure the independence and
integrity of our country
Our aim is the free development
of Greece and of her moral and
material forCeS-not, Of course. at
the expense of other peoples the
Premier declared. We will not tOl-
crate, either, any peoples Who covet
our rights to develop freely. These
are the aims OF the war which We
are fighting and which We will gain
until the end-that is tn r"''. p
final victory which, repeat, will be
ours"
Expected TO Speed Up Advance.
Just where the Greek break
through in the Italian lines had
taken place was not announced
But in Well-informed circles the
Greek army was expected to speed
up its advance toward the important
Albanian seaport OF ValOna, and
latest dispatches from the front
spoke of fresh losses inflicted or
Italian forces which attempted tC
launch cOunterattaCkS.
The most important Greek gains
were said to be in the coastal region
and around KliSura, in the central
sector. In both areas the italians
offered strong resistance before they
finally withdrew, it was reported. Ir
some instances, 1t was said, they
were forced back behind the posi-
tions they held when their counter
attacks got under way.
1t is along a road running from
Klisura. westward through Tepeleni
that the Greeks have aimed one OF
two simultaneous drives at ValOna.
The other column is fighting north
ward along the Adriatic coast.
Further Gains on Coast.
Further Greek gains also were
reported north of Chimara. along
the path of the coastal drive toward
Valona.
The spokesman said desperate
counterattacks in the Khsura re-
gion were repuised with heavy
Fascist losses.
Italian tanks, he added, were
driven into ''headlong flight He
said the fighting around Klisura
and Tepeleni had brought that
whole zone under control of Greek
fire.
The Greek high command, main
tanning customary reserve. reported
only: Reduced patrol and artillery
activity"
An Associated Press correspondent
with the Greek Army in the north
reported that Greek flyers told of
throwing sticks and stones and old
boots" at italian soldiers when they
ran out of bombs.
Planes Dodge Around Peaks.
They fly, the correspondent said,
from postage-stamp fields which
would horrify a United States Gov
ernment inspector. and would rather
go alofC in the worst pea soup"
weather than in any other. This is
because bad weather hides them
from superior forces-they some
times find themselves outnumbered
9 to l.
I'VE fly low, about 900 feet, until
we reach the italian positions. one
pilot was quoted as saying. Then
we drop down to 200 feet or less"
The Greek planes dodge in and
out of mountain passes, around
peaks, far below the high-flying
italian planes and screened from
them by mist, the correspondent
said.