January 2
Politics, Free French
General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed commander-in-chief of Free French forces in North Africa.

Pacfic, Papua New Guinea
Troops of the US Sixth Army land at Saidor on the north coast of New Guinea as part of Operation Dexterity, cutting off Japanese rearguard forces from their main base at Madang, only 55 miles (88 km) away. The loss of Saidor, a major supply depot, means that 20,000 Japanese soldiers are now sandwiched between Australian and US forces. Their only escape route is through dense jungle.

Lancasters over Germany in early January. At this
time the RAF was sufering losses of up to 10
percent per month

January 3
Air War, Germany
In a large-scale air raid on Berlin, the RAF loses 27 Lancasters out of 383 aircraft committed, plus 168 crew members. The damage to the German capital is negligible.

January 4
Espionage, Europe
Operation Carpetbagger - regular airborne supply drops to resistance groups in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Italy - begins.

January 5
Politics, Poland
The Polish government-in-exile has authorized the Polish underground movement to cooperate with the Red Army only in the event of a resumption of Polish-Soviet relations (the Soviet Union has not yet recognized the London-based Polish government-in-exile).

Eastern Front, Ukraine
As part of the Red Army's plan to recover the western Ukraine and the Crimea, General Ivan S. Konev's 2nd Ukrainian Front launches an offensive toward Kirovgrad. Despite desperate German resistance, the town falls on the 8th.

January 9
Far East, Burma
As part of the Allied attempt to break into Burma, the British XV Corps takes the Burmese town of Maungdaw.

January 10
Eastern Front, Ukraine
General Rodion Y. Malinovsky's 3rd Ukrainian Front launches an offensive toward Apostolovo, but the attack is halted after six days in the face of fierce German resistance.

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