Evening star., 1944-07-09
War Review
B.29s Mark Japs' War
Anniversary
By HOward p. Bailey

Friday was the seventh anniver-
sary of the Japanese attack on
China which launched the war be-
tween those two nations.
Friday the American Goth Air
Force. composed of the giant B-29
Super FortreSses, did most of the
celebrating of the anniversary which
has turned sour for the enemy.
Sasebo. Japan's third largest naval
base; Yawata, known as the Pitts
burgh of Japan which was bombed
by the B-29s on June 18th, and
Omura. also an industrial city, were
bombed with excellent results in
the second attack on the important
japanese home island of Kyushu.
Although placed on notice June
18th that the superbombers are now
available for use against Japan s
main islands, Fridays raid was car
ried out without serious resistance
from the japanese and all the
bombers returned safely to their
base after giving the naval base
an especially heavy blasting. Little
fighter opposition was met and anti
aircraft fire from the ground was
weak.
While later reports must be
awaited to weigh the full results of
the raid. 1t is apparent with the
serious damage being consistently
served out to the japanese fleet,
that any Gripping of naval repair
facilities will have serious infiu-
ence on the future effectiveness of
the enemy's navy or what is left
of it.
Sicily Landing Anniversary.
Sasebo, facing the Sea of Japan.
is the closest base among the home
islands, to those units of the Japa-
nese fleet serving in the Southwest
Pacific.
The previous raid on Yawata
brought an American claim that
fully one-flfth of Japans heavy in
dustry had been wiped out.
Friday also was another anniver-
sary, the first anniversary of the
landing of Allied forces on Sicily. 1t
marked the start of a campaign
which now finds the Axis on the
way back on all fronts save in China
proper and even there the enemy
received a serious setback on Friday
at Hengyang.
In France. American troops seek
ing to dislodge the Nazis from their
line along the marshes at the base
of the Cherbourg Peninsula, made
steady progress all week and yes
terday the anchors of the line, which
is about 80 miles long, were flanked
at La Haye du Puts and St. Jean
de Daye, the latter of which was
captured later.
Open Drive Southwark.
With Cherbourg completely in
American hands, the 1st Army Mon
day began the drive southwark, scor-
ing two and a half miles of gains in
the initial attack, which jumped off
along the west coast. Tuesday the
British and the Canadians joined
the offensive along their end of the
battle line and the movement for
ward was slow but steady.
BY Wednesday the Americans had
penetrated La Haye du Puts. cap
ture Of the railway station being
claimed and. inland, advances of
more than two miles were recorded
Rommel, throwing many tanks
against the Canadians, attempted
to break up an offensive which
gained possession of part of the
Carpiquet airfield southwest of Caen
and forced the Canadians to give
some ground though they still ,clung
to the hangers in the northern Sec
tions of the airfleld.
Hitler, making his second speech
within a week Wednesday. told the
German people that enormous
courage and strength Of nerves are
necessary to stand up in these
times" Saturday he called a gen.
eral military conference.
Friday a sudden thrust by the
Americans after one of the heaviest
artillery barraoeS of the war. carried
them across the Wire Niver whose
main bridge the enemy apparently
was too dazed to destroy Desperate
German counterthrusts all along the
line from the badly battered city of
La Haye to the Carentan marshes
were broken up and the movement
forward was steady.
10000 Buzzbomb Casualties.
Only serious news from France
was the admission by Prime Minister
Churchill that 10000 persons had
been killed or injured in London by
the so-called buzzbombs and the
question he raised as to whether
larger and longer-ranged bombs
might not now be in preparation.
Allied techni4 les in combating
the bombs are improving and even
the night fighters are now reported
shooting them down over the water.
However, London once more is TAX
ing to the bomb shelters which have
hunks for 100000 people. and chill
dren again are being evacuated from
the capital
Seeking to smash the launching
bases of the rocket-b bombs. Allied
aircraft used the new 10000 pound
block busters for the first time 1t
was stated that pin-point bombing
in the Pas-de- Calais area had
crippled the enemy's facilities to
some extent. but still the buzzbombs
continue to fly over England to drop
with their ton-loads of explosives
indiscriminately on civilian estab-
lishments and military objectives
Oil Refineries Bombed.
Slowed up considerably by bad
weather, Allied aircraft nevertheless
continued slashing away at German
transportation facilities and at re-
fineries and other industrial objec-
tives. Budapest rail yards were
raided both Sunday and Monday
Tuesday airfelds in France and a
refinery in the Ploesti oil field area
of Romania were blasted, the re-
finery raid causing a very satisfac-
tory blaze. Rocket-bomb nests in
the Pas-de-Calais area and airf1elds
in Holland and Belgium were
smashed Wednesday and Flying
Fortresses, completing a three-way
shuttle bombing by way of Russia
and Italy. hit rail wards in France