The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-10-18
The War On
MonYFronts
CBy United Prsssl

(By United Pressl
Allied armies In Italy hacked
through tough Maxi rear-gnuard
today, moving slowly toward Rome
as fresh forces poured across the
Volturno river TO prepare for
heavier offensives.
The Germans punched back with
continual counter attacks TO stall
for time while the bulk Of their
troops moved into new defense
tines. ~
Three more towns were captured
by American and British forces Of
Lieut.. Gen. Mark w. Clark's Fifth
Army, which faced increasingly
heavy enemy artillery FIRE from
higher ground past the volturno
valley.
Each Of the three were major
German strongpoints and their
capture facilitated the seizure Of
seven villages In the Volturno area.
Morrone, three miles north Of
the Volturno and 20 miles inland,
fell after three NaM counter
thrusts were beaten on, and Cam
cello and Ruviani also were seized.
On the British Eighth Army
front In eastern Italy, Allied patrols
moved forward i've miles to run
into o battle at thetown Of Monte.
cilfone, which they had to abandon.
Clarks forces were moving to
close pincers In the Volturno area,
squeezing the Germans back along
the mani road to Rome running
northward from Capua.
The next Nazi line was expected
to be on the Qarigliano river, 10
miles above the Volturno and the
best defensive positions on the
route northward.
New Troops
Cairo radio said that additional
British troops had been alnded at
the mouth Of the Volturno, where
a bitter struggle with the Germans
has been In progress for several
days.
In Russia the Red Army preached
the German Dnieper river line at
two points In force. Near Krem-
enchug, q 28-nile gap had been torn
into the Naz defenses and Soviet
troops were pouring through in a
great rush designed to isolate ethe
enemy forces southwark in the
Ukraine and in the Crimea.
Another hole was ripped near
Gomel, which was outflanked and
may be captured shortly. At Me-
litopol, street fighting approaching
that Of Stalingrad ragged for the
seventh day while Moscow dispatch
es indicated that the Red Army
was slowly investing Kiev.
The air offensive from Britain
went back on full scale. Mosquito
bombers harassed Berlin with a
night raid, 84th on the Reich CAPT.
tai since the war started, and BY
daylight big fleets Of Allied bomb
ers roared over the coast on the way
to bomb the continent.
The daylight raids were the first
In three days and the Mosquito at
tack on Berlin was the first night
operation for the Royal Air Force
since October Q.
German planes made token raids
on England, some penetrating to
the London area, but no more than
Is enemy planes were involved and
one was shot down.
In JugOslavia
In Jugoslavia, the partisan army
Of Gen. Josip (Tito) Brozovich was
reported In control Of one-third OF
the country and to be slashing at
Axis lines from Albanian to north
east Italy.
The fighting In the occupied
country centered on the zagreb-
Ljubljana railroad line, which the
partisans controlled In part. The
Guerrilla forces were driven from
the industrial city Of zenica by re-
inforced German troops but the
Nazis had failed 50 far In attempts
to regain the Adriatic coast.
In the Pacific, British troops were
disclosed today to have launched
the first thrust Of the new Allied
offensive against Burma with an
attack on Japanese forces ~
Maungdaw.
A new Delhi communique said the
attack started Saturday night un-
der cover Of aerial patrols and
Maungdaw, go miles above Akyab.
was blasted with mortar fire IN q
successful" foray.
Size Of the attack was not dis
closed but It was the first which
amounted to more than patrol cal
iber since Admiral Lord Louis
Mountbatten, new southeast ASIA
commander, arrived In the Far East
TO prepare for an offensive to drive
the Japanese from Burma.
Royal Air Force planes helped the
ground forces in attacks expanding
through Sunday and bombers raid.
ed Akyab and enemy-operated ran
and water supply routes.
In the southwest Pacific, Gen.
Douglas MacArthur's flyers secur-
Cd their control Of the New Guinea
coastal area in operations Friday
and Saturday which cost the jap
anese from l04 to lat aircraft de-
stroyed In combat or on the ground.
OF the total, 90 fell in fighting,
including the bulk Of an enemy
fleet of "a that tried to raid ORC
Bay. The Allied cost was two planes.
Some Of the victims fell to Amer
- tho VAAPfh.