June 9, 1942  

The town of Lidice, Czechoslovakia dies. On the direct orders of Hitler himself, the small mining village of Lidice was ordered obliterated from the face of the earth. The SS moved into the city in the early morning yours. The women, 198, and children, 98, were put onto trucks and shipped to death camps. The men, 105, were lined up and shot. All the livestock and dogs were killed. Every building was destroyed; the entire village was completely and utterly obliterated. All of this was done in retaliation for the death of the pervert Heydrich.

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June 10, 1942

After two days of heavy fighting, supplies dwindling to nothing, the Free French position at Bir Hakeim was abandoned. The Frenchmen, after two weeks of valiant struggle, capped their amazing defense by bringing the bulk of their forces out of the encirclement in tact. However, half of the Gazala Line was now in Rommel's hands. The 8^th Army still held a strong position in the north and had extended their defenses along an east-west axis toward Tobruk. The battle was far from over.

The Germans open up a offensive in the Kharkov area to secure jump-off positions for the coming summer campaign. Thirty-three divisions, five of them Panzer Divisions, strike the Volchansk Front which gives ground almost immediately.

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June 11, 1942  

The German U-boat U-373 begins laying mines off Massachusetts, Delaware, and the Chesapeake Bay.

A young 25 year old German officer, Michael Kitzelmann was executed in Orel. The winner of an Iron Cross for valor in combat, Kitzelmann had the audacity to question the persecution of citizens in the conquered terrirories.

American bombers hit Japanese positions at Kiska in the Aleutians.

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June 12, 1942

In a desperate attempt to reinforce their positions in the central Mediterranean Sea, British convoys set sail from Alexandria and Gibraltar. Axis aircraft sink 6 merchants and 6 escorts. The Italians sortied the cruiser Trento which was sunk by British planes.

The climax of the Battle of Gazala begins as a massive melee of German and British armor clash. Casualties are heavy.

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June 13, 1942

The battle royal between the tanks of the Afrika Korp and the 8^th Army behind the Gazala Line ends with heavy losses on both sides. However, the British XIII Corp is threatened with being surrounded and the British armor is decimated. The British are down to their last 75 tanks.

Albert Speer and 35 other Berlin big shots went to a demonstration at Peenemunde. They saw the first launch of the A4 (aka V-2) rocket. The 20-ton rocket with the 1-ton warhead launched well but fell to earth a mile away.

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June 14, 1942

General Ritchie, commander of the British 8^th Army, orders a general retreat from the Gazala Line. The battle that started with a foolhardy advance by Rommel and came close to complete disaster for the Desert Fox ends in victory.

Elements of the elite 22^nd Air Landing Division take Fort Stalin in the Sevastopol defenses.

German U-boats land saboteurs near Amagansett, Long Island and Jacksonville, Florida. Editor's Note: This is the incident which led to the capture and execution of these men as spies and is being used today to persecute Taliban soldiers at Camp X-Ray.

US Marines begin landing in New Zealand.

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June 15, 1942

While the rest of 8^th Army retreats into Egypt, Tobruk once again prepares for an extended siege. The Commonwealth forces defending the vital North African port include the 2^nd South African Division, remnants of the 32nf Armored, 201st Guard and 11the Indian Brigades. The wealth of supplies stockpiled In Tobruk border on the embarrassing. However, the defensive perimeter has fallen into considerable disrepair as there are several gaps in the thinned minefield, many of the anti-tank ditches are filled in and gun emplacements no longer in place.

U-boat ace, Erich. Topp (U-552), sinks 5 ships of convoy HG84.

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1941 Archive:
  June | July | August | September | October | November | December

1942 Archive:
  January |  February | March  | April | May

Special Editions:
Pearl Harbor | The Doolittle Raid | Midway

Editor's Corner Archive:

The Past Through Tomorrow "It is quite frightening to realize just how similar our nation's actions have been and appear to be heading when compared this way..."

Afghanistan and Vietnam: When the "war against terrorism" began, many knowledgeable people warned that our operations in Afghanistan would turn into another Vietnam.

Want to Win - Think Before You Lash Out - "If we are serious about taking the war to the enemy, it is time to look ..."

The First Fight Against Fascism - We must remember the Spanish Civil War also.

Arguing Victory - "... Each nation who fought against fascist tyranny in WWII brought with it part of whole needed to defeat that evil..." 

War, Glory, Honor and Remembrance - "War is a brutal and savage insult on human society..."

The First Casualty... in time of war, those in power are even more inclined to hide the truth, since that truth is often manifest in the most gruesome and terrible acts.  

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