ITALIAN FORCES BEGIN THE INVASION OF ETHIOPIA

After a year of recriminations and accusations between the two countries, Italian forces have recently begun a slow advance toward Addis Ababa from the northern and southern borders of Ethiopia. Last December, Italian and Ethiopian troops clashed at Walwal on a disputed section of the Ethiopian-Somaliland frontier. While Mussolini has demanded an apology and reparations from Ethiopia, Emperor Haile Selassie I has continued to insist on an investigation by the League of Nations in order to resolve the issue of responsibility . The Ethiopians have so far avoided a pitched battle, but the Italians have brought into play the full power of their air force. Ethiopia has accused the Italian army of indiscriminate bombing of civilian targets and the use of poison gas. It has asked for a resolution condemning Italy for violations of the Geneva Convention and has also requested the application of economic sanctions against Italy by the international community for acts of unprovoked aggression.

INCIDENT AT MARCO POLO BRIDGE
SPARKS SINO-JAPANESE CONFLICT

Four years after a League of Nations' Commission of Inquiry found that the Japanese occupation of Manchuria violated international law, an incident during night maneuvers along the disputed border near Peking has provoked bitter fighting between Japanese and Nationalist Chinese combat troops. Initially vastly outnumbered by the Chinese army, the Japanese have escalated the incident into a large-scale campaign by sending an additional three combat divisions to bolster their forces in northern China. The fighting has spread rapidly and has led to a full-scale naval blockade of the entire coast by the Japanese navy. In retaliation for the blockade, General Chiang Kai-shek has ordered the Chinese air force to begin bombing Japanese warships, and a major land battle has erupted around the port of Shanghai. The Chinese government has asked for a resolution condemning Japanese aggression and sanctions to stop the unrestricted bombing of Chinese cities by the Japanese air force.

WAR BREAKS OUT BETWEEN NATIONALISTS
AND LOYALISTS IN SPAIN

Civil war has broken out in Spain. After the new leftist majority in the Spanish Parliament proclaimed complete separation of Church and State and granted itself the power to confiscate church property, it declared King Alfonso XIII guilty of high treason and sentenced him to death. The King fled Spain, stating that he would await the expression of popular sentiment before formally abdicating the throne. Elements of the Spanish army at military bases in Morocco rose in support of the monarch; the Republican government declared a state of national emergency in response and united in resistance. This has led to armed conflict throughout Spain. The leader of the Nationalists, General Francisco Franco, is supported by the army and air force as well as conservative elements of the Catholic Church and large landowners. Recently, other nations have also begun intervening in the conflict, and Spain has become a battleground of rival ideologies. Italian and German "volunteers" have joined the insurgents, while Russia and America are suspected of supplying the government with equipment and advisers. Both sides have accused the other of atrocities and numerous violations of the Geneva Accords.