Air Operations, Europe

German Ju-88s drop 1,800-kg 'block-buster' bombs on the besieged fortress of Brest-Litovsk, in former Russian-occupied Poland. The garrison surrenders the next day.

Battle of the Atlantic

• U-146 sinks the Finnish steamer Pluto (3496t) 100 miles north-northwest of Butt of Lewis with the loss of 3 crewmen. 36 survivors are picked up by the British anti-submarine trawler Northern Duke.
• The Italian submarine Da Vinci sinks the British tanker Auris (8030t) west of Casablanca with the loss of 32 of her crew. 27 survivors are picked up by the British destroyer Farndale.
• The British steamer Barrhill (4972t) is sunk by German bombing northeast of Norwich with the loss of 5 crewmen.

Diplomatic Relations

Albania declares war on the Soviet Union.

Eastern Front

Troops of Army Group Center push on and threaten Minsk. Soviet troops fall back to new positions.

Fierce Red Army counterattacks against Daugavpils fail after savage fighting in the town. The Red Air Force fails to destroy the bridges over the Dvina. To date the Northwest front has lost 400 tanks and 200 artillery pieces.

As the Minsk Pocket is reduced, XXIV Panzer Corps reaches Bobruisk. Stalin removes Pavlov and replaces him with Gen Andrei Eremenko.

Kirponos' armored attack has failed and he tries to withdraw his forces. The IX Mechanized Corps does manage to inflict heavy casualties on the 13th Panzer Div near Rovno.[MORE]

Indochina

The Japanese penetrate into Indochina. Vichy co-operation with Japan disturbs the Americans, who are taking an increasingly pro-China stance in the Japan-China war.

Mediterranean

The British submarine Severn sinks the Italian steamer Ugo Bassi (2900t) 5 miles from Capo Monte Santi in the Gulf of Orosei.