Israeli bombers attacked an Egyptian air base at El Arish today, an official communique reported. The airfield, located some 50 miles south of Gaza along the Egyptian-Palestine border in the Sinai Desert, was subjected to a seven-ton bombing raid, the communique added.
Earlier, last night, Israeli aircraft bombed military objectives in Cairo for the first time since the war began. Tel Aviv was subjected to a light Egyptian raid last night. There were no reports of casualties or damage. Two alerts sounded in the Israeli capital today, only one of which was followed by sporadic bombing.
Israeli military headquarters reported that Egyptian troop concentrations along the Palestine border were also attacked by the same squadron that raided the Egyptian capital. Cairo is located some 350 miles from Tel Aviv and is now the third Arab capital to have been attacked by Jewish aircraft. Amman and Damascus were raided last June by Israeli planes.
Jewish forces overran the strategic Arab town of Tira at dawn, thus removing the last important Arab threat to the Tel Aviv-Haifa coastal road. The town is situated five miles south of Haifa. A small Israeli naval vessel and several planes participated in the operation which resulted in the surrender of between 700 and 1,000 Iraqi and Syrian troops.
At least 1,000 Egyptians wore killed, wounded or captured in engagements this week on the southern front, a communique said. The announcement also reported that Israeli troops in the north central area were continuing to tighten their circle around Nazareth and had captured two additional villages near Shaffa Amr.
Late this afternoon, an Army spokesman announced that Jewish troops on the tense Latrun front had captured four Arab villages. He listed them as Salbit, Barfiliya, Virmain and Alburg. The spokesman told correspondents that fighting was continuing near Mishmar Hayarden in Eastern Galilee, while there was “little change” in the southern area.
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