The Week in Spain From the purely military point of
view little of importance has occurred in Spain during the last week. The Nationalist advance in the Asturias is progressing but slowly. Ribadasella is reported to have been captured, the Navarran brigades to the south have reached the Asturian border and a five mile advance is said to have taken place in the Lillo sector to the west : Gijon must anticipate capture and Oviedo may look forward to relief. The country and the mist are obstructing the Nationalist advance, while the Asturians, fighting bitterly from well-prepared positions, are short of ammunition. The Government offensive in Aragon continues, with varying fortune. The most striking event of the week has been the discovery in Madrid of a con- spiracy said to involve 5,000 persons. Its aims were to enlist technicians in the Administration to act as spies and organise communications with General Franco's forces, to organise a force to co-operate with those forces and to subvert the allegiance of Republican troops and police. A somewhat similar organisation existed in Santander, and the discovery may be a crucial factor in the defence of Madrid.
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