Project 60: A Day-by-Day Diary of WWII, June 15-28, 1943, BartCop.com

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June 15, 1943

SS Colonel Paul Blobel began work on the mass graves outside Lvov, Poland. Himmler, seeing that Hitler's hold on power was waning decided to eradicate the evidence of the mass murders to be destroyed. Blobel was ordered to dig up the graves and burn the bodies. Concentration camp laborers were forced to dig up the decaying bodies, extract gold teeth from the corpses and burn the remains before reburying.

Germany runs tests flights on the first jet reconnaissance plane in the world - the Arado 234.

The German surface raider Michel sinks 2 ships off the coast of Australia.

German U-boats hit a convoy in the Atlantic but fail to cause major damage after a running battle of 5-days.

The government of Turkey reaffirmed its neutrality in the war by making statements supporting the 1941 German-Turkish treaty of amity and restating it's friendly relations with the Soviet Union.

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June 16, 1943

The Japanese launched a 94-plane raid against Allied shipping at Guadalcanal. 93 of the intruders were destroyed. Six US fighters were shot down. The raid succeeded in forcing two transports to beach and damaged one other.

Operation Husky - the invasion of Sicily begins as the first convoys destine for the Italian island leave American ports.

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June 17, 1943

Preparations for the Allied invasion of Sicily continue as the British battleships Valiant and Warspit are transferred from the Scapa Flow in the North Sea to North Africa.

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June 18, 1943

Field Marshal Sir Archibald Wavell replaced Lord Linlithgrow as Viceroy of India. General Sir Claude Auchinleck took Wavell's old job of Commander in Chief in India. These "promotions" were generally viewed as resulting in a loss of confidence by Churchill in these two generals.

Allied air raids on Sicily begin in earnest in continuing preparations for the invasion.

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June 19, 1943

RAF Bomber Command hits the Schneider armaments factory in Le Creusot.

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June 20, 1943

Bomber Command hits Friedrichshaven in yet another night raid but, for the first time in the war, continued on to Africa in a shuttle raid. The intended target for the attack was the radar facilities and fabrication plants. However, unknown to the Allies, a production line for making V-2 rockets was being built. Damage to this facility forced the line to be abandoned.

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June 21, 1943

American forces of the 4th Marine Raider Battalion land at Segi Point in the southern part of New Georgia in the Solomons. There is no Japanese garrison there.

Bomber Command hits Krefeld in the Ruhr but loses were heavy (44 planes downed).

Himmler orders the elimination of Jewish ghettos in Russia. In Lvov, 20,000 Jews would be murdered over the course of the next week.

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June 22, 1943

US bombers hit the Rhur (the synthetic rubber plant at Huels) for the first daylight-bombing raid in the region.

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June 23, 1943

The attacks in the Solomon Islands continue as American forces land on Woodlark Island.

Churchill orders that air supply for Tito's partisans take the highest priority, promising the delivery of 500 tons of ammunition and supplies a month.

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June 24, 1943

Bomber Command continues its campaign against the Ruhr, hitting Elberfeld in a heavy raid.

Indian nationalist Bose made a radio broadcast from Tokyo stating "civil disobedience must develop into armed struggle."

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June 25, 1943

Allied air attacks on Sicily increase as raids concentrate on airfields around Messina.

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June 26, 1943

An uprising of Jews in the Czestochowa ghetto is crushed as Germans bring overwhelming force against the town. The Germans captured thirty grenades, eighteen pistols and two rifles.

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June 27, 1943

Marines on New Georgia, make another landing up the coast from Segi Point and move inland toward Viru Harbor.

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June 28, 1943

The buildup of forces on Kiriwina and Woodlark islands continues as Seabees begin construction of airfields.

Bomber Command hits Cologne, gutting the famous cathedral in the city.

1943 Archive:
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Special Editions:
Pearl Harbor | The Doolittle Raid | Midway

Editor's Corner Archive:

Hitler's Angel "The story of Prescott Bush and his association with the Nazis begins just before the end of World War I..."

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.

Those wishing to contribute items. stories or comments should contact D.A. Friedrichs

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