The people's voice., 1943-05-21
review OF
A week OF
The WAR
BY owl

WASHINGTON Pinned down on
the plains and against the hills OF
| Northeastern Tunisia, the last rem
nants of the Axis armies in North
Africa collapsed with stunning sud-
denness on May H. The coupe de
grace was delivered after the ragged
Africa Korps and Italian Satellite
troops were split into two segments,
with the larger isolated on Cap Bon
and the smaller surrounded in the
Zaghouan area further west
Surrender of both groups followed
the execution of a brilliant manuever
by the British Eighth and First ar
mics. Gen Sir Harold Alexander sent
three divisions of the Eighth army
from the south Tunisian front to the
sector west of Tunis where they
joined the British First army. The
combined forces swept swiftly across
the base of Cap Bon from Hamman
Lif south to Hammanet, cutting the
Axis forces in two. Patrols made
complete circuit of the peninsula and
troops of the Sixth armored division,
pressing down from the north, eff
fected a junction with the Eighth
army north of Enfidaville.
AT the same time, French troops
before. .Zaghouan and Ste Marie Du
zit kept up their attacks and on May
II enemy resistance in this area col
lapsed General Won Arnim, com
mander-in-chief of the Axis forces in
North Africa, was captured at Ste.
Marie du Zie along with $4,000 of his
troops in the area. Won Arnim was
captured without a fight but refused
to sign terms of unconditional sur
render.
No Dunkerque Possible
Early in the week it became appar-
ent that it would be impossible for
Won Arnim to stage Dunkerque. For
three days before the surrender, large
forces of heavy and medium bomb
ers, escorted by fighter planes, swept
across Cap Bon and the surrounding
waters to hammer Marsala and Ca
tania in Sicily and Pantellera Island,
to prevent the bringing up of either
reinforcements or evacuation trans
ports. Nearly 200 bombers, accom-
panied by more than 100 fighters
at Marsala, starting fires
visible from the African coast. Other
air attacks on Sicily were carried out
earlier in the week by 400 American
planes.
The blockade of the Axis armies
was completed by naval forces off
Cap Bon. Intense naval activity pre-.
vailed off the coast all week, supple
mented by air attacks on enemy trans
ports off Cap Bon. One detachment
Of light naval vessels sank three small |
craft in the Gulf of Tunis and among
heir prisoners took a German general
officer who was seeking to escape.
In all, 10000 Axis troops were
:aptured in Tunisia. Masses of equip
nent also fell into Allied hands. On
Maya II, a communique issued at
Allied headquarters reported that
900 guns, $50 tanks and many thous-
lnds of motor vehicles had been
ounded up by Allied troops.
Clashes in New Guinea
From General MacArthur's head
quarters there came word that while
,ad weather restricted air activity in
he New Guinea theater of action,
hree patrol clashes had taken place
n the jungle trails between Salamaua
nd Mubo An Allied detachment
art of the forces working to extend
aims up the New Guinea northeast
its way out of an at
empted Japanese incirclement II i
niles east of Salamaua and resumed
ontact with it's main force. Other /
ghts occurred near Komiatum, where i
Japanese patrol was ambushed, and :
ear an Allied-held village five miles I
'om Salamaua. t
Early in the week American dive Ir
ombers and torpedo planes scored G
its on Japanese anti-aircraft posi- g
ons in the Munda area. American c
lanes also bombed Japanese posi-
ons on the southwest coast of Kol
mbangara Island in the Central Solo Ia
IONS On the morning of May IL, b
roup of army flying fortresses bomb a
l Japanese installations at Kahili on b
ougainville and at Shorthand Island. e
ater an attack was made on Rekata r
ay on Santa Isable Island. These t
70 all strategic Japanese-held posi- b
ons, an existing threat to all Allied n
'rces in the southwest Pacific. t
During the week the Navy reported a
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