aeroplanes

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3.6.41 [George Orwell]

June 3, 2011 in Australia, Crete, Cyprus, Germans, Greece, Latakia, Political, Syria, War-time, aeroplanes, newspapers, press, ships by orwelldiaries

Now that the evacuation of Crete is completed, there is talk of 20,000 men having been removed. Obviously, therefore, they must have begun clearing out long before this was admitted in the press, and the ships sunk were probably lost in that operation. Total losses will presumably be about 10,000 men, 7 warships (3 cruisers, 4 destroyers), [1] probably some merchant ships as well, a good many AA guns, and a few tanks and aeroplanes. And all this for absolutely nothing…The newspapers criticise more boldly than they have ever done hitherto. One of the Australian papers says openly that it is no use trying to defend Cyprus unless we are taking action against Syria. No sign of this, apparently. Reports this morning that the Germans have already landed armoured units at Latakia.[2] Together with this, vague hints that the British “may” invade Syria. Within a few days it may be too late, if it is not six months too late already.

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24.4.41 [George Orwell]

April 24, 2011 in Black Sea, Crete, Daily Express, Dardanelles, Germany, Greece, Italy, Political, Russia, Turkey, War-time, aeroplanes, armistice, blackmail, hostages by orwelldiaries

No definite news from Greece. All one knows is that a Greek army, or part of a Greek army, or possibly the whole Greek army, has capitulated. No indication as to how many men we have there, what sort of position they are left in, whether it will be possible to hang on, and if so, where etc., etc. Hints thrown out in the Daily Express suggest that we have practically no aeroplanes there. Armistice terms drawn up by the Italians evidently aim at later using Greek prisoners as hostages, with a view to blackmailing the British into giving up Crete and other islands.

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24.9.40 [George Orwell]

September 24, 2010 in Barcelona, John Lewis, Political, War-time, aeroplanes, bombs, marble arch, mosquito, oxford circus, oxford street, shell by orwelldiaries

Oxford Street yesterday, from Oxford Circus up to the Marble Arch, completely empty of traffic, and only a few pedestrians, with the late afternoon sun shining straight down the empty roadway and glittering on innumerable fragments of broken glass. Outside John Lewis’s, a pile of plaster dress models, very pink and realistic, looking so like a pile of corpses that one could have mistaken them for that at a little distance. Just the same sight in Barcelona, only there it was plaster saints from desecrated churches.

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