23/12/16 Blowing a gale today and very cold. A bessoneau shed at Chipiloy aerodrome which belonged to the 4th Bde RFC was blown down, but no machines were inside at the time. It has also affected a little destruction to our billet but No. 3 billet where I resided for some time when I first arrived here, was severely handled and is partly a wreck. After finishing work at 8.30 am this morning, I cleaned myself up and proceeded to my usual place at Pont-Noyelle where I stayed until dinner time. The afternoon I spent at my recent acquaintances down the road. On duty 5 pm until 9 pm. Might record here that about 4 weeks ago there was instituted a system of wireless interception stations in our army (better late than never I suppose). They are apparently doing a good deal of work and I will here reproduce a facsimile of a message from wireless 7 of todays date timed 6.20 pm and addressed to Intelligence 4th army. It is written of course in German cipher senders number 36. Commences Intercepted BB to Ba begins 0900 ZIF 12 FOQOB YPAHP AH ends aaa IC to IB begins 1345 CHI 20 SZYOB NFLAK QYBKY ESENP AM AP JAMMED ends. .------------------------------------------------- Other War news on this day in 1916: Western Front Hostile activity in Champagne. Eastern Front Fierce struggle for Moldavian frontier positions. Russians from Dobruja retire to Bessarabia, leaving some troops at Macin (Braila). Southern Front Bad weather last fortnight on Italian front. Two successful British attacks along Doiran front (Macedonia). Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres British capture Magdhaba (Sinai), destroying practically whole Turkish force of 3,000. Further success to the south at Mitla Pass and Abu Aweigila. Naval and Overseas Operations Hostile naval night-raid in Straits of Otranto. No material damage. Political, etc. Count Czernin succeeds Baron Burian as Foreign Minister (Austria). .------------------------------------------------- The Battle of Magdhaba (officially known by the British as the Affair of Magdhaba) took place on 23 December 1916 during the Defence of Egypt section of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the First World War. The attack by the Anzac Mounted Division took place against an entrenched Ottoman Army garrison to the south and east of Bir Lahfan in the Sinai desert, some 18–25 miles (29–40 km) inland from the Mediterranean coast.This Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) victory against the Ottoman Empire garrison, also secured the town of El Arish after the Ottoman garrison withdrew. .------------------------------------------------- Pictures: 1: Painting depicts mounted troops of the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade with the Egyptian town of Magdhaba in the distance, 23 December 1916., 2: Troops laying the railway across the Sinai
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 07:25:00 +0000
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