Evening star., 1943-04-02

that Field Marshal Erwin
Rommel's forces in Tunisia
had succeeded in joining the
Axis legions under Col. Gen.
Jungen Won Arnim. There
were no details. The broad
cast was recorded by the AS
sociated Press.
BY the Associated Press.
ALLIED HEADQUARTERS IN
NORTH AFRICA. April 2.-Dis-
patches from the Central Tuni-
sian front today said American
forces of 1t. Gen. George S. Pat
ton, jr., had launched a new at
tack in the Maknassy sector,
where a 30-mile thrust to the sea
would cut off Marshal Erwin
Rommel's escape corridor.
Other American columns were re-
ported to have made tank supported
forays against the Germans farther
south in the Ell Guetar region.
Earlier an Algiers radio report
said the American southern flank
had made junction with the
British 9th Army troops, but this
apparently was prematureD
Axis Forced Back in North.
More than 100 miles to the north.
United States and French patrol
activity has gradually forced Axis
detachments to fall back from the
Ousseltia Valley to the hills on the
east, it~was officially disclosed. The
valley lies between Pichon and Pont
du Fahs.
A French communique broadcast
from Algiers and recorded by the
Associated Press said strong Axis
resistance and difficult terrain
failed to halt French operations in
the Sedjenane area and "in the CEN
tral sector our units continued to
advance east of Ousseltia without
notable enemy opposition"
The personnel of an enemy post
attacked in the Oued ell Kebir VAL
ley southwest of Pont du Fahs, was
entirely destroyed the bulletin
said
Earlier an Algiers radio broadcast
said the British 1st Army in Nor
thern Tunisia had smashed deep
into the Axis defenses near Mateur,
18 miles south of Bizerte.
The radio said 1t. Gen. K. A. N.
AndeJeon's forces were now press
ing on the retreating Germans in
the vicinity of Mateur" after
thrust from Sedjenane, Is miles to
the west.
Sfax Airfield Bombed.
Dispatches told of a 100-plane
Allied assault on the Axis-held Ell
Maon airfleld at Sfax and said that
Gen. B. L. Montgomery 9th Army
forces were maintaining their pres
sure on the new Rommel lines "a
miles north of Gabes
A report from the 9th Army said
'Wlnkling out" was proceeding, which
was assumed here to be Gen. Mont
gomery's way of saying his troops
were mopping up the remaining
enemy pockets of resistance north
and west of Oudref. itself IL miles
north of Gabes, and consolidating
for the next thrust.
A bulletin from Allied headQuar.
ters gave no details of the British
1st Army's advance in the north, but
declared:
Our troops continued to push
northwards and eastwards beyond
Sedjenane."
Good Progress Reported.
British vanguards, spearheaded by
fierce tribal warriors of French Mo-
rocco. were reported to have driven
6 miles east of Sedjenane two days
ago, and yesterdays Allied commu-
nique said Gen. Anderson,s offensive
was making good progress"
Edward Kennedy, Associated Press
correspondent at Allied headquar-
ters, said British and French troops
pushing from Sedjenane toward
Mateur had made good almost the
last of the losses in the fighting a
month ago.
Since that time, Col. Gen. Jurgen
Won Arnim's forces had driven the
British back 30 to 40 miles. o.
Bizerte lies at the northern tip OF
Tunisia, across the Mediterranean
narrows from Sardinia and Sicily.
Today,s war bulletin from. Gen.
Dwight D. Eisenhower's headquar-
tiers said the front was generally
quieter yesterday" but "our patrols
were very active over the whole
front"
An Italian communique said
enemy thrusts were repulsed In the
central sector where American
armored columns have been driving
toward Kairouan and the port Of
Sousse-while the German high
command asserted that enemy at
tacks yesterday were weaker than
the previous day
Even as the lull developed in land
operations. Allied airmen pressed