Current Events May 19, 1943:

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY MAY 19, 1943:

Japanese forces on Attu Is l a nd are r e t r e a t i ng u n d er

pressure of s t e ady advances by two A m e r i c an for c es

Wh i ch a re execut ing a ' p i n c e rs movement, t he N a vy

r eve a l ed today.

It s a id a d v a n ce patrols of the two American columns

f i n a l ly h a ve j o i n e d.

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill'

today told the American Congress that his country will wage war

against Japan, "side by side" with the United States, "while there-is

breath in our bodies."

JAPS ON ATTU RETREAT AS U. S. TROOPS DRIVE AHEAD
ADVANCE PATROLS

OF U.S. UNITS JOIN

IN PINCERS MOVE

Enemy Withdraws Toward Harbor Of

Chichagof—Meeting Of 2 American

Columns Presages Drive To

Clear Island Of Jap

By SANDOR S. KLEIN,

United Press Correspondent

Washington, May 19.— Japanese forces on Attu

I s l a nd are r e t r e a t i ng u n d er pressure of s t e ady advances

by two A m e r i c an for c es Wh i ch a re exe cut ing a ' p i n c e rs

movement, t he N a vy r eve a l ed today.

It s a id a d v a n ce patrols of the two American columns

f i n a l ly h a ve j o i n e d.

The J a p a n e s e, a c o m m u n i q ue said, have been cleared

f r om a vital pass t h r o u gh a rocky ridge where entrenched

enemy h ad held up t he Ame r i c an for c es f or s eve ra

days. "On ly snipers" we re l e ft b e h i nd to harass the adv a n c i ng U. S. troops.

The N a vy r e v e a l ed yest e r d ay that the Japanese had f inally been driven f rom the rocky r idge, as the b a t t le for possession

of the westernmost of the Al e u t i an Islands we nt into its second week.

Today's c o m m u n i q ue said the enemy was w i t h d r a w i ng toward

Chichagof Harbor, and t h at the Ame r i c an a t t a cke rs we re m a k i ng

use of "several" thr e e - inch sntia i r c r a ft guns wh i ch they had captured from the J a p a n e s e.

The patrols whi ch joined were advance units of a column advanc ing nor thwa rd f rom the Massacre Bay a r ea and a n o t h er column

moving inland f rom the Holtz area.

SAYS BRITISH WILL,

WAGE WAR ON JAPS

C h u r c h i 1 l Promises To

Battle "Side By Side"

With U. S.

Washington, May 19. — British Prime Minister Winston Churchill'

today told the American Congress that his country will wage war

against Japan',' "side by side" with the United States, "while" there-is

breath in our bodies."

Answering suggestions that "the British are more interested in the war in Europe, Churchill "defied they were equally .concerned with the war against Japan.

And I am here to tell you that we will wage that war.

  THE STARS AND STRIPES

Daily Newspaper of U.S. Armed Forces in the European Theater of Operations

        New York, N.Y.—London, England Wednesday, May 19, 1943

USAAF Down 121 Nazi Planes In 3 Day

120,000 Left

Homeless by

DamAttacks

American Planes Take

Huge Toll in Raids

During Last Week

Bulletin

American planes destroyed 121 enemy fighters

in raids over Germanoccupied territory last

Thursday, Friday and

Saturday, the U.S. Eighth

Air Force announced late

last night.

An estimated 120,000 Germans were homeless yesterday in the heart

of Hitler's war industrial Ruhr after an RAF-made flood which a Harvard

scientist said was the greatest dam disaster the world had ever known.

He was Dr. Kirtley F. Mather, of the university's geology department,

who estimated that the flood-waters racing down the R u hr and Weser

Valleys were three times the size of those which caused 2,209 deaths in the Johnstown flood of 1889. RAF and U.S. Eighth Air Force fighters followed up the. Sunday night

attack wi th fighter sweeps over France yesterday. A formation of P47s shot

down one Me 109 wi th the loss of one American plane over Belgium. One other

German forma t ion refused to give battle. RAF Spitfires escorted Boston bombers

to Abbeville, France, yesterday, shooting down an FW190 as they covered the bomb

attack on the German airfield there.

Another German plane was damaged, returning pilots said.

Earlier in the day Typhoons raided Poix and caused fires in the dispersal area of

the airdrome there. Five British planes were lost during the day.

Yanks Driving

for Main Jap

Position onAttu

Warships, Planes Support

Attack as Resistance

Becomes Stubborn

WASHINGTON, May 18—One of the main Japanese centers of resistance on

Attu Island, a ridge where the enemy was holding up a two-pronged U.S. advance

on the main positions round Holtz Bay, has been smashed, Secretary of the Navy

Frank Knox announced tonight, breaking a three-day silence on detailed reports of

operations on the Aleutian island.

The capture of the ridge has now made possible a big pincer move by U.S. Army

units against the main Japanese position on the island.

Warships are supporting the land forces on the island with bombardments of the

Japanese whenever possible, Col. Knox stated.

A few hours before Knox made his announcement, the Navy Department stated

that the Japanese were entrenched on this ridge and were putting up stubborn resistance to the Americans' two-pronged drive. The ridge runs east and west south of Holtz Bay.

The Japanese are reported to have been aware of the American plans until the

ladings actually took place. "Then we

met with very serious resistance," Colonel Knox stated.

In spite of this resistance, however, American casualties have been much

lighter than was expected.

Australia's Anger Over Centaur

ALLIED HQ, Southwest Pacific. May 18 (UP)—Anger rose in Australia today

as the full story of the willful sinking by Japanese of the hospital ship "Centaur

became known.

"The Commonwealth Government,"the Prime Minister said, "is bound to regard

the sinking of the Centaur as an grossly inexcusable act, undertaken in

violation of a convention to which Japan is a party and of all the principles of.

common humanity."

First news of the sinking of the Centaur, which went down with the loss of 288 lives,

42 miles east of Brisbane, was given earlier today, when it was revealed that

the ship was sunk by a Japanese submarine last Friday morning,

The ship was brightly illuminated, red being prominently displayed on

the side of the hull and funnel and on the top. Brilliant lights along the side of hull showed up the green band which circles hospital ships.

Battle Against Submarines

Improving,Knox Discloses

BOSTON, May 18 (AP)—Secretary of

the Navy Frank Knox said today that the submarine situation was improving for

the United Nations. "Generally the picture is improving," he said, "although it

is subject to ups and downs. "March was very bad. April was a good

month, and May is satisfactory so far.

Unlike the Germans, the Japs were using their submarines as

their submarines as part of their fleet," Col. Knox added.