Evening star., 1943-12-26

fa1OAllS 0CAI. GsANCA4A4OWCl WAL Nc
command of all Allied air forces W
Gen. Sir Harry Maitland Wilson
succeeds Gen. Eisenhower in the
Mediterranean with 1t. Gen. Anderson
& commanding italy. 1t. Gen. Montgom-
a cry will command all British troops
under Gen. Eisenhower.
Disclosing no exact date for the inva-
sion, Mr.. Roosevelt added that no one
r must be so complacent as to believe that
the war Is already won. He deplored
a tendncy, he said, to assume that be-
cause of the likely early defeat of the
Nazis the bars are now down for parti-
son discussions in this country which
might be detrimental to the prosecution
OF the war.
He reiterated the Cairo statement that
Japan Is to be eliminated as a poten-
tial threat to the world and that just
as a ring of steel is to be drawn ever
tighter around the Nazis, so will the
Japs find themselves pushed backward
until the ultimate defeat which is to be
their portion.
Those who have looked forward hope
fully all year to an end to the war in
Europe by Christmas have been dis
appointed, of course, but the disappoint-
ment has been tempered considerably
by the knowledge that, on all fronts, the
initiative is with the Allies and that the
groundwork is being laid now for heavy
offensives in Europe which, most OBJ
servers believe, will eliminate the Nazis
during the coming year, though the
estimates as to how much of the year
will be required vary considerably.
For Berlin itself, the war is nearly
over with about IS per cent Of the city
now believed to be in ruins. A fresh
attack just before Christmas was said
to have done nearly half as much
damage as all previous raids combined
and the worlds fourth largest city now
Is largely useless to the enemy.
Gen. Marshall, who was at the Cairo
and Teheran conferences with President
Roosevelt, has returned to this country,
his return being accompanied by the
announcement that on his way back, he
visited the various war fronts in the
Pacific. 1t is assumed from this trip
that plans for an au-out drive against
all enemies will be underway before long.
One highly-placed Government official
who insisted upon remaining anonymous
warned the American public that they
may expect very heavy casualties during
the next 80 days. The total may mount
to three times the present figure of
10000, he warned. and the country must
be prepared for the shock.
1t was considered that this warning
was based on the likelihood of an in
vasion of the continent by Allied forces
now in England, campaign which it
has been assumed generally will be
costly in itself but if successful would
lower the total cost of the war in casual
ties materially.
Schweinfurt Flyers Safe.
1t was revealed during the week that
at least 346 of the American flyers who
were shot down in the raid on the
Schweinfurt ball-bearing works in Octo-
Der landed safely and are now German
prisoners. OF the 5S1 in the planes, 1s
are known to have been killed. The
fate Of the other 2l7 is unknown.
While this news was pleasing, q cer-
tain amount of apprehension has arisen
because of the threat of the Nazis to
try Allied flyers who are taken prisoners
on the charge of war atrocities. This
decision came in Berlin as a result of
the Russian trial of war guilty at Karkov
who were accused of wholesale killing
of non-combatants and who when con-
victed were hung.
Generally the German threat is con-
sidered to be an effort to drive a wedge
between the Russians and the other
Allies
Over in Turkey, the war scare is in full
bloom and many Turks are quitting
the European side of the straits. Many
troops with full field equipment have
been seen marching through the streets
and this has added to the belief that
war Is imminent.
The Bulgarian Black Sea port Of
Varna was subjected to a mysterious
closing early last week when all resi-
dents were ordered confined to their
homes. Under penalty of death, the
people were forbidden to look out of
their windows or doors. The order was
in effect for two days and there is
great deal of speculation as to who or
what moved in or out of the port during
the period of blackout.