Evening star., 1943-12-18
American Forces Continue Gains
In New Britain Occupying Entire
3-Mi|e Peninsula in Arawe Area
Scattered Jap
Resistance
Is Overcome
MAP on Page A-5.)


GEN. MACARTHUR'S HEAD
QUARTERS, New Guinea, Dec
16.-Troops of the American 9Th
Army have occupied the entire
Cape Merkus Peninsula in the
AraWe sector of New Britain Is
land, and are continuing to ad-
vance, Gen. Douglas MacAr-
thurs headquarters announced
today.
This gave the invasion forces
which landed four days ago COM
plete control of the 3-mile neck
of land flanking the Arawe harbor
on the southwest coast of the big
island and leading toward the site
of the presently unserviceable air
strip.
The peninsula and the off lying
Pilelo Island, which was overrun
the first day of the attack, were
described as the prime initial OBJ
Jectives of the seaborne strike
against japanese occupation of New
Britain, their major island base in
the Southwest Pacific area.
Our force near Arawe continues
to expand its position" a head
quarters spokesman said on the basis
Of developments through yesterday.
Battleline Not Set Up.
No distinct battleline has been
established, the spokesman said, but
Americans in intermittent combat
eliminated scattered enemy resist
ance as it was encountered.
The japanese were reported to
have continued their air activity
over the sector in an effort to
hamper American gains, but there
has been no indication of any dam
age caused. The enemy's earlier
aerial retaliation was beaten off
by Allied fighters.
On the second Southwest Pacific
land front across the Vitiaz Straits,
Australians pressed farther north
ward along the shore of the Huon
Peninsula of New Guinea and main
tanned contact with the enemy north
of the Sanga River. The Austria
Aioilo ScPtd1Ca SlIC CllCulN SOdSJdl
supply point of Lakona, IA miles
north of Finschhafen. They killed
many of the retreating foe.
Cape Gloucester Bombed.
Fifth Air Force P-38s and P-4Os.
which downed nine japanese bomb
ers and five fighters seeking vainly
70 attack the beachhead, patrolled
the skies.
While the fighters, whose nearest
New Guinea land base is nearly 80
miles away, protected the beach,
head, two waves of Liberators ham,
mered the enemy air and supply base
of Cape Gloucester, 10 miles north
west Of AraWe, with 232 tons of ex-
plosives Wednesday and Thursday.
Other planes destroyed or dam
aged IS of the barges on which the
japanese rely to supply their New
Guinea and New Britain forces in
the invasion sector. A Liberator
sank a 2,000-ton enemy tanker l2O
miles northeast of Wewak.
On the Soromons approach to
Rabaul, Admiral William F. Halsey
reported 230 more sorties by planes
which monopolized the skies over
Bougainville, pounding its 15O-mile
length with ITO tons of explosives
from BUN on the south to Buka
on the north.
Far to the northeast of the
Solomons, Army 7th Air Force
Liberators raided the mid-Pacifc
Marshalls, 300 miles from the Amer
1can-held Gilberts, for the eighth
straight day. In the latest raid to
be reported, the big bombers pounded
the enemy air base at Vote Atoll at
dusk Wednesday, opposed only by
light anti-aircraft fire.
Northwest of Australia, Liberators
made roundtrip flight of more than
1000 miles to hit Japanese oil
rehnerles at Balikpapan on Borneo.
Closer to Australia, Beaufghters
sank 4,000-ton transport off Timor
These air operations, from Borneo
(Cna "a