The past week has been a fine one for Great Britain and her Allies, emphasized by the British occupation of Benghazi by British and allied troops, and the smashing defeat of a desperate Italian counter-attack in the neighbourhood of Klisura by the Greeks In this connection a boast of Signor Gayda on November 16, may be recalled, when he stated that "The Italian nation and the army remain intact, and are playing a most important part in the war." The nation may still remain intact: its Empire does not, nor do its armies, and Italy is playing the important role at the present moment of being Hitler's whipping boy. Viewed in the light of what is happening, periodicals arriving from Britain containing articles girding at Mr. Winston Churchill for apparent inaction in north and north-east Africa can be read with very considerable amusement, The critics have been completely confounded by the Libyan campaign which in the short space of two months has brought Cyrenaica completely under the British, except for a few isolated units in the interior which appear to have been fighting with greater stubbornness than the ten divisions which have now been destroyed. There seem to be about five divisions still extant heading for Tripoli-tania, but these must obviously be in a wretched condition thanks to the hammering they have received.
Benghazi it is reported was taken by surprise, the British forces, taking advantage of a sandstorm, advancing rapidly and capturing the position without very great resistance from the enemy. The fact that the British can use their mechanized and flying units in such circumstances suggests that they have been able to surmount the problems presented by. the fine sand of the desert, and can operate at a-time when the Italians apparently cannot. This also appears to account for the large numbers of Italian aeroplanes reported destroyed on the ground, which in all probability were kept there because of the penetration of sand into the machines which rendered them incapable of immediate use. Be that as it may, the years of study which the British command has devoted to the problems presented by desert warfare are now proving very fruitful. The British advances into Eritrea and Abyssinia continued during the week, and already ce siderable progress has been made, and as in the case of Cyrenaica there is every prospect that the Italian forces there will meet with the same degree of extinction that their troops in Libya are experiencing.
For the moment all eyes will be turned towards France, where matters are rapidly approaching a crisis, if that has not already arrived. The German news agency, carefully quoting an alleged neutral source, states that it has actually occurred, but in the absence of confirmation that needs to be accepted with some reserve. That Hitler is subjecting Marshal Petain to enormous pressure is apparent from the fragmentary reports to hand of an endeavour to force him to accept a government dominated by Laval and his followers, who have been so aptly dubbed "Lavalistes" a name which should serve to distinguish loyal Frenchmen from those who would further sell their people into slavery. The report that Hitler wants the French navy, and a colonial naval base has brought forth a declaration from General Weygand that France does not intend to give up her naval base at Bizerta. That denial does not cover the French navy in home ports for the obvious reason that General Weygand is in no position to control it from where he is stationed.
It would undoubtedly serve Hitler's book for the reported revolution to have broken out in Vichy, for he would claim it as justifying German occupation of the whole of France. If, however, he goes to that length, and Marshal Petain and Admiral Darlan succeed in getting the French navy into colony ports Mitler will have been foiled of his main purpose. The re-entrance of the French Colonial Empire into the war, with the French navy would be the heaviest blow struck against Germany since its success in France, and would create such a change in the naval situation as might almost bring the war to its turning point. Developments which are confidently expected during the next few days may with very considerable certainty be accepted 2s a means of measuring the degree of Hitler's desperation. If he fails to secure what he wants he will indeed be in a bad position.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.