U.S. forces push to point within 15 miles of Leghorn
Allied armies surge nearer Nazi defense line on entire Italian front
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U.S. troops invade Noemfoor and seize principal airfield
Landing represents 100-mile advance toward Philippines
Double threat to Philippines
Solid arrows point to Noemfoor Island, off New Guinea, and Saipan, in the Marianas, where U.S. troops are fighting for strategic bases. The landing on Noemfoor was announced last night. Open arrows with distance indicators show how these advances form a double threat to the Jap-held Philippines. (AP)
Advanced Allied HQ, New Guinea (AP) –
U.S. troops have invaded Noemfoor Island off Dutch New Guinea and seized its principal airdrome in a 100-mile swoop toward the Philippines.
Headquarters announced today that units of the 6th Army, under Lt. Gen. Walter Krueger, landed on Noemfoor’s western coast at 8:00 a.m. Sunday.
Within two hours, the green-clad infantrymen overcame light enemy opposition and captured Kamiri Airstrip, a 5,000-foot landing field badly cratered by Allied bombs. The troops found 30 Japanese airplanes there, most of them damaged beyond repair.
At last reports, the invaders were pushing toward the island’s two remaining airdromes, one of them three miles away.
Murlin Spencer, Associated Press correspondent, said U.S. casualties were among the smallest suffered in any landing operation in the Southwest Pacific. Only 45 Japanese dead were counted in the first few hours of fighting.
Noemfoor is 1,400 miles southwest of the Marianas, where other U.S. soldiers and two divisions of Marines have taken almost two-thirds of Saipan Island and have killed more than 6,000 Japanese at a cost of more than 2,200 American dead or missing – the heaviest casualties of the Pacific War.
The Americans have surrounded Saipan’s principal city, Garapan, on three sides, and have squeezed the remaining Japanese defenders into the narrow northern end of the island.
There was no Pearl Harbor communiqué for the 24-hour period of July 3, Honolulu Time, indicating that the situation on Saipan had not changed considerably.
Gen, Douglas MacArthur, in an Independence Day communiqué referring to the Noemfoor operation, said:
Our forces landed with practically no loss, either ground, naval or air, and promptly secured the airfield, our main objective, without a struggle.
The seizure of this base will give added breadth and depth to our air deployment and will further dislocate the enemy’s South Seas defenses already seriously shaken by our previous advances.
Noemfoor, 100 miles west of the U.S.-occupied Schouten Islands where two airfields are already in operation, is only 50 miles from Manokwari, strongest remaining Japanese base in Dutch New Guinea. Guarding the entrance to Geelvink Bay, it is closer to the Philippines than either to Darwin, Australia, or Port Moresby, New Guinea. Timor, Celebes, Davao, Yap and Palau are all less than 1,000 miles away.
A dispatch filed yesterday from the flagship said that with the 2nd Marines holding the surrounding hills and advancing steadily in the center and northern part of the city, the fall of Garapan is imminent.
In the face of an American thrust, Japanese troops were declared rapidly abandoning the city and fleeing northward. Thousands of Japanese civilians preceded the troops in flight out of the battered and bombed city which was a mass of ruins.
The 27th Infantry Division pushed forward, bringing itself nearly parallel to more advanced positions of the 4th Marines who have made big strides along the eastern coast.
Gen. MacArthur’s headquarters also announced the capture last Friday of Maffin Bay airdrome on the Dutch New Guinea mainland 250 miles east of Noemfoor. Nearby Wake Island airstrip has been in Allied hands for six weeks. The Japanese still hold Sawar Drome near the Maffin Strip, but Allied planes have denied them the use of it.
New raids on Jap bases
New raids on Manokwari, Timor, Palau, Yap, Wewak, Rabaul, Havieng and other Japanese bases in the Southwest Pacific were listed in Gen. MacArthur’s communiqué.
The Noemfoor landing, Gen. MacArthur said, was made “through narrow, difficult coral reefs generally regarded as impractical for such a purpose. As a result, the attack was completely unexpected by the enemy and his defense preparations were outflanked.”
Cruisers and destroyers under the command of RAdm. William F. Fechteler started shelling Noemfoor’s west coast before dawn. Fighters and bombers of the Far Eastern Air Force joined the pre-invasion attack.
There was some Japanese mortar, and artillery fire at first, and enemy anti-aircraft guns were leveled briefly against the warship. By 10:00 a.m., all enemy mortar and artillery fire had been silenced.
Kamiri Drome had been captured, and the push to the other airfields was on.
New Allied raid on Bonins reported by Tokyo radio
By the Associated Press
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New Hampshire dynamite blast throws thousands in panic
Rumor of enemy bombing of airfield follows warehouse explosion at Bedford
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Five killed, 26 hurt as Sante Fe Chief is wrecked in Arizona
Death toll may rise to 6; 12 cars leave tracks on downhill curve
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Eisenhower pins medals on 24 from Fighting 1st Division
By Don Whitehead, Associated Press war correspondent
1st Infantry Division command post, France – (July 2, delayed)
Heroes of the Fighting 1st Division, who led the American assault on France and lived to cross that hellish strip of beach where so many fell, stood in the shade of the tall Normandy elms today and received an accolade from Gen. Eisenhower.
They had tried to clean the stains of battle from their clothing for the occasion, but still their uniforms showed they had just returned from the front, not far away.
No one cared about spit and polish with these men – least of all Gen. Eisenhower, who pinned Distinguished Service Crosses on the chests of 22 and gave the Legion of Merit award to two others.
These were the elite of the infantry regiment. They had come through a test as great as any soldier ever faced and by their courage and leadership had opened the way for thousands of troops to follow.
On lawn of old chateau
They stood at attention on the lawn of an old gray chateau when jeeps carrying Gen. Eisenhower, Lt. Gen. Omar N. Bradley and Maj. Gen. Leonard T. Gerow halted before their ranks.
Gen. “Ike” jumped out, smiling. He wore a garrison cap. an air force jacket belted at the waist, and his trousers stuffed into parachute trooper boots.
The three generals shook hands with Maj. Gen. C. R. Huebner, commanding the 1st Infantry Division, and an officer began reading the names of men receiving the awards.
“Brigadier General––”
I remembered that thunderous morning of D-Day when this tall, square-jawed man moved up and down the beach with absolute disregard for his own safety organizing the troops and moving them inland against strong points which were pouring murderous lire into our ranks.
“Colonel––”
The colonel had stood on the beach where thousands of men were pinned down by enemy fire and said in a quiet drawl: “Gentlemen, we are being killed on the beaches – let’s move inland and be killed.” His men surged forward and broke the German defenses.
Spearhead of assault
“Lt. Col. Herbert C. Hicks of Spartanburg, South Carolina…”
Troops of his command spearheaded the assault on the Atlantic Wall, and his gallantry and that of his men contributed greatly to D-Day’s success.
“Maj. Charles E. Tetgmeyer of Hamilton, New York…”
Under heavy fire, Maj. Tetgmeyer covered the length of the beach administering to wounded, then went repeatedly into the mine-strewn water to pull out wounded.
“Capt. Victor R. Briggs of New York…”
His unit was the first to come off the beach and he deliberately walked away across a minefield alone to draw enemy fire and give his men a chance to move up behind him.
“Capt. Kimbell R. Richmond of Ventnor, New Jersey…”
His assault boat ground 400 yards from the beach. He and his men swam on in through artillery and machine-gun fire and then attacked.
“Capt. Thomas M. Marendino of Ventnor, New Jersey…”
He led his men in a charge up a slope and overran a German strongpoint under heavy fire.
Took over command
“Lt. Carl W. Giles, Jr. of Gest, Kentucky…”
His landing craft was sunk by enemy fire. He swam ashore, pulled to safety three men hit in the water, and with most of the officers of his unit casualties he assumed command and carried out the mission.
And so on down the list to Pfc. Peter Cavaliere, Bristol, Rhode Island, who went forward to set up an observation post, was surrounded by Germans, shot eight and clung to the position.
As Gen. Eisenhower moved down the double rank, he spoke a few words to each man, asking him his job and where he was from in the United States. After pinning on the medals, he called the group around him.
He said:
I’m not going to make a speech, but this simple little ceremony gives me opportunity to come over here and through you say thanks. You are one of the finest regiments in our Army.
I know your record from the day you landed in North Africa and through Sicily. I am beginning to think that your regiment is a sort of Praetorian Guard which goes along with me and gives me luck.
I know you want to go home, but I demanded if I came up here that you would have to come up with me, You’ve got what it takes to finish the job.
If you will do me a favor when you go back, you will spread the word through the regiment that I am terrifically proud and grateful to them. To all you fellows, good luck, keep on top of them, and so long.
Eisenhower chats with young sergeant, his Kansas cousin
At the 2nd Infantry Division command post in Normandy, France (AP) –
Two kinsmen and soldiers – one a four-star general and the other a sergeant – met along the front recently and swapped Kansas hometown gossip.
They were Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower and a relative who works in his expeditionary force – George T. Etherington, 24, of Abilene, Kansas.
During a tour of the Normandy battlefront, the commander’s English aide brought up the sergeant, who saluted and then shook the general’s hand while bystanders looked on curiously. In a moment they were trading the latest news from relatives.
Gen. Eisenhower said:
Let’s see, you’re my first cousin once removed. I had a letter from Florence (the sergeant’s mother) three weeks ago saying I’d run into you somewhere over here.
“Yes, sir,” replied Sgt. Etherington, who let the general do most of the talking.
He showed Gen. Eisenhower a copy of the Abilene Reflector Chronicle which had a picture of the general and his brother on the front page.
“I will send a message telling your mother about you,” Gen. Eisenhower promised. “How about your Uncle Will?”
After Gen. Eisenhower drove away in a jeep following a farewell handshake, someone asked Sgt. Etherington, “Why didn’t you ever tell anyone you were related to Gen. Eisenhower?”
The sergeant looked about in frustration before replying, “I did, but nobody would believe me.” Then he wheeled about on a small group of his buddies and demanded: “Well, now will you all believe I am related to him?”
Gen. Quesada leads flight opening drive
An advanced U.S. 9th Air Force fighter base, France – (July 2, delayed)
A dive-bombing mission of such unusual importance that the commander of the 9th Tactical Air Force, Maj. Gen. Elwood Quesada of Washington, DC, led the flight, was carried out late today by a dozen fighter pilots in advance of the big American push.
The 39-year-old general led the flight down to the deck, flying within a few feet of the ground to loose 500-pound delayed-action bombs. He said details of the mission could not be disclosed for several days.
Gen. Quesada said:
It was a fair flight. We really beat up the place. On the way back we went down and strafed a concentration of troops and supplies near Saint-Lô.
With him on the mission was Col. Dyke Meyer of Kirkwood, Missouri. There was a tense air of expectancy at this base when it became known the general was coming in on a special mission.
“This is really going to be hot,” he told the other pilots. “We are doing a job of extreme importance – unusual importance.”
A few minutes later, they took off. Quesada said on their return:
We beat hell out of the objective. It was bad weather and our bombing could have been better, but they landed close enough. Man, it’s good to get away from the desk for a change. Meyer and I are old men compared to the youngsters, but we’re not too old to get in a lick.
U.S. heavy bombers attack Romania and airfields in France
London, England (AP) –
Up to 500 U.S. heavy combers from Italy struck Romanian oil targets for the second consecutive day today, while an equal force from Britain smashed anew at German airfields in France.
Improving weather permitted the first heavy air action in France in several days. Airdromes in northern and Northwest France were bombed by instrument through heavy cloud layers. Headquarters did not specify targets. Lightnings, Thunderbolts and Mustangs flew with the bombers through varying intensities of flak, which felled two bombers and four fighters.
Refinery left in flames
Objectives of the Mediterranean forces were at Brașov, 85 miles north of Bucharest, and at Pitești, due west of Ploești, the Romanian oil capital. Flying Fortresses bombed the Photogen refinery at Brașov, leaving it enveloped in smoke.
Liberators bombed railroad repair shops and a rail bridge at Pitești on the Bucharest-Belgrade trunk line. Convoying Mustangs and Lightnings destroyed an undesignated number of interceptors over Brasov. The other U.S. formations encountered few fighters.
Patches of clouds hung over the Normandy battle area and the ceiling was no more than 3,000 feet in some places, but still the day brought the Allies their best flying weather in four days.
Airfields near Paris hit
Clouds forced most bombardiers to use the overcast bombing technique. One Fortress formation bombed two airfields in the vicinity of Paris. Returning crewmen from that group said they encountered no German planes and only light flak.
The new daylight operations were launched after a night of increased activity which saw RAF Mosquito bombers spread havoc among German rear-line communications south of Paris and attack targets in the German Ruhr Valley for the first time since June 30. Mines were also laid in enemy waters during the overnight forays, which were carried out without loss.
The first improvement in the weather was noted last evening, when tactical air formations based in both Britain and Normandy were able to step up their operations, bringing to 600 the total number of sorties flown during the day.
Georgians vote today in Democratic primary
By the Associated Press
Atlanta, Georgia –
Georgia Democrats combined the Fourth of July holiday today with their primary to select nominees for the Senate, four seats in the House and numerous county offices.
Negro Democratic leaders planned to attempt to vote to initiate legal grounds for a test of the party rule which restricts balloting to white voters only. The first reported efforts of Negroes to vote were in Atlanta, where they were rejected and left the polls without comment.
Senator George, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, was opposed for renomination by John W. Goolsby, a Washington, Georgia, farmer and businessman. It was the only statewide race. Six of the 10 Congressional races were uncontested.
A light vote from the approximately 500,000 qualified white Democrats was expected. Nomination in this state is equivalent to election.
Four with sound truck talk 1,000 Nazis into quitting
SHAEF, England (AP) –
Four British non-commissioned officers, who captured 1,000 Germans in the Cherbourg Peninsula with nothing more than a sound truck, have been awarded the Bronze Star, the first American decoration presented to British soldiers in Normandy.
The quartet, from a British signal unit, had a truck equipped with loudspeakers. They were loaned to the Americans for a particular task.
Trained in this type of work – one spoke German – the four moved forward, telling the Germans in their last resisting stronghold that their positions were hopeless.
Dewey may put off heavy campaigning until after Labor Day
Albany, New York –
A “down-on-the-farm” summer campaign, with political and state business carried on in Albany and speech-writing done on weekends at his 486-acre Pawling farm, was outlined tentatively yesterday by Governor Thomas E. Dewey.
Strengthening reports that his strategists want to keep the Republican presidential nominee “under wraps” until after Labor Day, Governor Dewey told a news conference in his executive office that he planned no major speeches in the next two months, but “may have to travel in the next month,” apparently to a campaign conference with other Republican Governors.
Gov. Dewey would not answer questions about national policies. He gave correspondents instead a detailed account of the historical background of the Quaker Hill community at Pawling (population, 1.446). Neighbors expect to hold a reception for him there Friday afternoon when he leaves Albany for a weekend.
May attend governors’ parley
Although Governor Dewey at first said all he knew about a prospective conference with other Republican governors was what he read in the newspapers, he later conceded he had discussed the possibility of such a meeting with Governor Earl Warren of California.
Governor Warren has promised to head an intensive campaign in California for Gov. Dewey and Governor John W. Bricker of Ohio, the vice-presidential nominee. Governor Dewey would not answer questions about Governor Warren’s refusal to be “drafted” by last week’s convention for the second-place nomination.
Chicago has been suggested as a possible meeting place for the governors. If the conference materializes, that probably will be Governor Dewey’s first trip out of New York since his flight to accept the nomination.
No plans beyond week
The nominee insisted, however, that his plans were not definite beyond this week. He is spending the Fourth of July in the Executive Mansion. working on the “enormous” congratulatory mail he said has stacked up. He had no appointments for visitors this week and said he planned to receive none at the Pawling farm.
“I would like to stay here for the next two months and go down to Pawling week ends.” he told reporters.
He said Republican headquarters would be opened in New York City tomorrow in the “Theodore Roosevelt” Hotel (his quotes), adding that Herbert Brownell Jr., new national chairman, would announce details soon.
Governor Dewey refused to discuss the government’s action in severing diplomatic relations with Finland and would not comment on the possibility that foreign policy might be ruled out as a campaign issue.
Illinois Democrats back fourth term
Chicago, Illinois (AP) –
The Illinois State Democratic Convention last night adopted resolutions asking that President Roosevelt be drafted for four more years and urging that Senator Lucas be considered for the vice-presidential nomination in the event Vice President Wallace is not the candidate.
Both resolutions were presented by Mayor Edward J. Kelly, chairman of the Cook County Democratic Committee, who declared President Roosevelt should give the nation “the benefit of his leadership in these trying times.”
Mayor Kelly told the crowd of delegates and visitors at Chicago Stadium, estimated at 17,000, that he did not know whether a change in the party’s vice-presidential candidate was contemplated, but urged that Senator Lucas be considered in case a change were made.
Robert E. Hannegan, National Democratic Chairman, told the delegates that after a tour of more than 30 states he was “confident that President Roosevelt will be renominated and reelected.”
Mr. Hannegan reported:
The actual draft has already taken place and more than a majority of the delegates to the coming convention already have been pledged.
Senator Lucas, a candidate for reelection, urged the session to “draft and reelect” Mr. Roosevelt.
Senator Lucas asserted that the “same Republican old guard leaders responsible for the Hoover collapse controlled the delegates at the recent Republican convention.”
Editorial: Declaration today
The Declaration of Independence never was merely an announcement of a separation of the American Colonies from the British Crown. If it had been designed to serve no other purpose than that of a notice to King George III that his tyrannical rule was rejected, Thomas Jefferson and those associated with him in the writing of the text would not have troubled to explain their objectives so carefully. A simple proclamation of the setting up of a new government might have sufficed, had nothing else been involved.
But larger issues were represented in the proceedings of the Congress in Philadelphia in 1776. A philosophy of human society tracing back for ages was destined to come to practical fulfillment there and then. For the first time in modern history, several millions of ordinary people were to attempt to govern themselves. It was their intention to have “certain inalienable rights” as a common endowment. “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” they said, were included in their conception of their goal. The signers gambled their necks on behalf of their ideal of freedom and security. It was not an afterthought on their part that they appealed to the Supreme Judge of the universe for the rectitude of their aims. Neither was it a secondary idea with them when, “with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence,” they pledged all that they had, not forgetting their sacred honor.
The high objectives of the Declaration, however, were not achieved simply by being advertised to mankind. Indeed, the very fact that they had been published undoubtedly made them for the moment more difficult of attainment. News of their publication stiffened the resistance of the Hanoverian despot in London. The Revolution had been in progress since Lexington and Concord in April 1775; Bunker Hill had proved that “the shot heard ‘round the world” had been fired in earnest; the war had been carried into Canada by Arnold and Montgomery; Howe had been driven out of Boston. Immediately ahead, though, were the defeats in Long Island, at White Plains, on Lake Champlain and in New Jersey. Washington retired into Pennsylvania, leaving the enemy in possession of New York and most of New England. The tide was turned at Trenton and Princeton, yet there were Brandywine and Germantown before Saratoga, Valley Forge before Monmouth Court House, the Wyoming and Cherry Valley massacres and the loss of Savannah and Charleston before Cowpens and Eutaw Springs. A scant year before Yorktown the patriot cause seemed largely hopeless. Likewise infeasible appeared the more comprehensive purposes of the Declaration during the period following the Peace of Paris. From 1784 to 1789, the Colonies quarreled among themselves, suffered the consequences of their isolation, saw rebellion among their veterans, heard threats of foreign aggression. The Federal Constitution was the answer, but a whole decade after its ratification it still was regarded as an experiment almost surely doomed to fall.
Perhaps it is characteristic of liberty that it is hard to gain, hard to hold. There are observers who believe that it would not be worth having if it were easily achieved or easily kept. Such a theory is confirmed by the experience of the American community. Each generation in succession must win the nation’s freedom anew. It is a law of the cosmos that struggle is necessary for survival. The sequence of sacrifice runs through the annals of America like the crimson threads in the flag. Possibly it is a comfort to the families and the friends of the fighters now overseas to remember that they are spiritual kin to the heroes of Ticonderoga and Kings Mountain, New Orleans and Chapultepec, Gettysburg and Manila and Château-Thierry. The Declaration means more today because of Tarawa and Anzio and Cherbourg and the glorious promise contained therein.
Editorial: Driving into France
With the great port of Cherbourg won, Gen. Bradley has lost no time in turning about with the American 1st Army to smash southward in a heavy new offensive designed to place the Normandy Peninsula entirely in Allied hands.
Preceded by a mighty artillery barrage, the attack is pressing the Nazis on a 40-mile front stretching from the La Haye area on the west coast southeastward to the Saint-Lô and Caumont sectors. Meanwhile, at the eastern end of the front, around Caen, the British have smashed no fewer than 25 savage counterattacks by Rommel who is reported to be grouping 11 divisions for an all-out counteroffensive in this region. It is a question, however, whether he can strike such a blow, not only because his forces have already been severely mauled but also because the British may beat him to the punch and because he must reckon with our fresh American assault.
In any event, no matter how much strength Rommel may be able to throw Into the developing battle, all the reports from Normandy confidently suggest that It will not be enough. Apparently our British and American forces have everything they need to win over the whole peninsula, so that if the Nazis really commit themselves to a showdown test of arms in an effort to contain us, they may be so shattered as to make possible a swift Allied advance deep Into France toward such great objectives as Le Havre and Paris.
Lacking appreciable air support and having to worry about possible Allied landings elsewhere, the Nazis appear to have more than they can handle in the British around Caen and in our new American offensive. The battle of the Normandy Peninsula, in fact, seems to be shaping up rapidly into the battle of France. Once our forces are able to pour out of their present confined combat area into the big broad maneuverable country, events are likely to move very fast and decisively.
Gould Lincoln: The political mill
By Gould Lincoln
Two weeks hence, the Democrats will be on the eve of their national convention. Today the Democrats have not heard directly from President Roosevelt that he will run again. The same situation existed in 1940, two weeks before the President said he would accept a third-term nomination. He may or may not tell his followers his decision about a fourth-term nomination until the Democratic convention is actually underway.
If he wants the nomination, it is his. He does not have to worry about that. He might worry about another election. And certainly, no man has had as much reason as the President to wish release from the arduous job he has – after approximately 13 years.
The fact remains, however, that he is still to make a formal statement regarding his future political plans. He may feel that he cannot with propriety say whether he will accept a nomination until it has actually been tendered him. But if he has no plan to run for the Presidency again, he is late in disclosing his attitude. Certainly, a sudden declination, made to the delegates assembled in Chicago, would bring about a chaotic situation. No other candidates have been brought forward.
So, it is taken for granted that the President will permit his name to go before the coming convention and that he will accept its decision. Recent visitors at the White House, without quoting Mr. Roosevelt, have come away insisting he will be a candidate. Many weeks ago, Democratic National Chairman Hannegan said flatly he believed the President would run.
The Republicans, having nominated their national ticket – Dewey and Bricker – and written their party platform, are awaiting the results of the Democratic convention. Their campaign and its character will depend on the Democratic nominee and the Democratic platform. All of their platform. All of their speeches, including those at the recent Republican National Convention, have been written in the belief that Mr. Roosevelt will run again. If at the last minute, a new presidential nominee should be trotted out, the Republicans would amend their campaign plans materially.
Far more delegates to the coming Democratic National Convention have been ‘‘instructed” for President Roosevelt than were “instructed” for Governor Dewey before the Republican convention. Yet the “draft” of Mr. Dewey was accomplished with ease. Governor Dewey, like the President, had never said personally he would accept nomination. But some of his closest political friends and advisers went to Chicago, the convention city and issued statements declaring their belief the New York Governor would run if nominated.
It remains to be seen whether the draft of President Roosevelt for a fourth-term nomination can be obtained with as great unanimity as was the draft of Mr. Dewey. Delegations from some of the Southern states, especially Texas, Mississippi and South Carolina, are inimical to a fourth term. Indeed, a revolt not only against the nomination of Mr. Roosevelt but also against his reelection is threatened in the South.
That the “draft” of Mr. Roosevelt will go through, unless he halts it, is certain. But there are drafts and drafts. His “draft” in 1940 met with opposition in the Democratic convention. His own former chief political lieutenant, James A. Farley, was strongly opposed to a third-term nomination. Mr. Farley is still opposed to a President’s having more than two terms in the White House. It is expected he will have part in any attempted insurrection against the renomination of the President that crops up.
If the President is renominated, two New Yorkers, one a former Governor and the other the present Governor, will toe the mark in the presidential race. This recalls the 1920 contest, between Ohioans, one the late President Harding and the other former Governor Cox. In that presidential campaign, Franklin D. Roosevelt was the vice-presidential candidate on the Democratic ticket with Mr. Cox.
Völkischer Beobachter (July 5, 1944)
Ein ‚deklassierter‘ Kriegsschauplatz
Normandie-Landekopf soll angeblich nur deutsche Kräfte binden
dr. th. b. Stockholm, 4. Juli –
Zu Beginn der fünften Invasionswoche beginnt sich der englischen Öffentlichkeit angesichts der gescheiterten Offensive Montgomerys eine gedrücktere Stimmung zu bemächtigen. Die Erfolge der bolschewistischen Armeen im Mittelabschnitt der Ostfront bieten, obwohl sie im Mittelpunkt des Interesses stehen, keinen Trost. Denn politisch könnten diese Erfolge nur bedeuten, daß England noch zu weiteren Zugeständnissen gezwungen wird.
Mit der üblichen Übertreibung schreibt der militärische Mitarbeiter des Daily Telegraph, Generalleutnant Matin, die „Hauptaufgabe der Westmächte sei es jetzt, soviel deutsche Kräfte wie möglich im Westen zu binden, während die Russen nach Berlin stürmen.“ In dieser Übertreibung steckt ein Körnchen Wahrheit. Der Sinn der Invasion, ohne den sie sich gar nicht gelohnt hätte, war ja, durch eigenen militärischen Einsatz endlich einen politischen Kräfteausgleich zu schaffen. Wenn es jetzt in der englischen Presse heißt, „Weißruthenen sei die ‚dynamische Arena der Entscheidung‘ und im Osten werde sich das Schicksal des Krieges vollziehen,“ so drückt man wider besseres Wissen aus rein agitatorischen Gründen den Brückenkopf in der Normandie, um den bereits so viel englisches Blut vergossen wurde und der bereits so viel wertvollstes Kriegsmaterial einschließlich unersetzlichen Schiffsraumes kostete, zu einem Nebenkriegsschauplatz herab, was auf die englische Öffentlichkeit nur eine tief enttäuschende Wirkung ausüben muß Ein Bericht der Stockholms Tidningen aus London spricht denn auch von der deprimierenden Wirkung des ersten Invasionsmonats.
Zu der niedergedrückten Stimmung haben die fliegenden Bomben natürlich nicht weniger beigetragen als die Meldungen von der Invasionsfront. „Fliegende Bomben,“ so lautete der letzte Reuters-Bericht, sind in dichter Folge über England niedergegangen. Außerdem sind gewöhnliche Flugzeuge den Bomben gefolgt. In einem Gebiet haben die Bomben erheblichen Schaden angerichtet, wenige Minuten später hörte man das Brummen von Flugzeugmotoren, dem kurz darauf vier Explosionen folgten. „In dem Reuters-Bericht wird diesmal nicht ein einziger Abschuß erwähnt. Die englische Abwehr steht also ‚V1‘ immer noch machtlos gegenüber.“
US-Dampfer Santa Elena vernichtet
Der Verlust des 9.135 BRT großen Dampfers Santa Elena wird amtlich bekanntgegeben. In der Verlautbarung des US-Marineministeriums heißt es, daß der Dampfer, der als Truppentransporter in Dienst gestellt war, einem Angriff deutscher Torpedoflugzeuge zum Opfer fiel.