January 28th, 1944 (FRIDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: London: Official statements concerning the sickening cruelty of the Japanese towards prisoners of war were made today in Britain and the United States. The British foreign secretary, Anthony Eden, said: "Let the Japanese government reflect in time to come that the record of their military authorities in this war will not be forgotten." The House of Commons and both houses of Congress heard blood-curdling accounts of the inhuman conditions the prisoners are kept in - without sufficient food, water or shelter - and barbarous tortures used by guards.
Frigate HMS Halladale launched.
GERMANY: U-1272 commissioned.
CANADA: Corvette HMCS Kitchener completed refit Liverpool, Nova Scotia.
U.S.A.: A memo signed by General Walter Bedell-Smith, Chief of Staff to the Supreme Allied Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower: "It is highly desirable that the [French] division should be composed of white personnel, which points to the second armoured division, which has only one quarter native troops and is the only French division which could be made 100 per cent white."
This is in reference to the French division which will be part of the Allied invasion force at Normandy. (Henry Sirotin)
Destroyer escort USS Le Ray Wilson launched.
ATLANTIC OCEAN:
U-271 Sunk west of Limerick, in position 53.15N, 15.52W, by depth charges from a US Consolidated PB4Y-1Liberator aircraft (VB-103/E, based in St. Eval, Cornwall under operational control of RAF No. 19 (General Reconnaissance) Group, RAF Coastal Command). The PB4Y crew caught U-271 on the surface and dropped six depth charges causing the sub to settle by the stern and sink. 51 dead (all hands lost).
U-571 Sunk west of Ireland, in position 52.41N, 14.27W, by depth charges from an Australian Shorts Sunderland MKIII aircraft (RAAF-Sqdn 461/D, out of Pembroke Dock, Wales). 52 dead (all hands lost). Unlike many U-boats, which during their service lost men due to accidents and various other causes. U-571 did not suffer any casualties (we know of) until the time of her loss. (Alex Gordon and Jack McKillop)