With more prescience than some Soviet officials (who refuse to believe it even after it's started) The Hong Kong Sunday Herald headlines a likely German attack on the Soviet Union in the next 48 hours.
In fact Operation Barborossa, the biggest military campaign in history, begins at about 4 a.m. this morning. Roughly 4 million Axis soldiers, 3 million of them German, attack the Soviet Union along a 750 mile front from Finland to the Black Sea.
For once Adolf Hitler is right:
The world will hold its breath.
Meanwhile conflicts over war preparations continue in Hong Kong.
Governor Sir Geoffrey Northcote quashes rumours that he's about to lift the Evacuation Decree.
In the teeth of opposition from medical practioners, the Government announces that previously ineligible doctors, surgeons and midwives can seek temporary registration.
And there's a reminder that top-level decisions will soon be in new hands. Rex James publishes a photo of the next Governor, Sir Mark Young on his 'Incidentally' page. He provides a brief CV for Sir Mark and remarks on his 'meteoric' progress through various colonial appointments, but tells his readers that the exact day of his taking office is not known.
Sources:
Hong Kong Sunday Herald:
Northcote: page 4
Medical: page 4
James: page 6