Day 860 January 7, 1942

Malaya. Japanese tanks rout Indian 11th Division defenses at Slim River before breakfast. At 3.30 AM, mortar and artillery bombardment cuts communication lines preventing British artillery from ranging on Major Shimada's tanks and a battalion of motorised infantry as they advance 15 miles and cross both road and railway bridges by 9.30 AM (Japanese have 17 killed and 60 wounded). Shimada probes another 3 miles beyond until stopped by 2 howitzers of 155th Field Artillery Regiment. Allied rearguard areas are stampeded, abandoning 50 armored cars and many trucks. Unsuspecting troops are shot up as they are assembling and Indian 11th Division is decimated (500 killed and 3200 taken prisoner) although some units take to the jungle and remain active until the end of the war and beyond (1 Gurkha will be found in 1949).

Mindanao, Philippines. Japanese invasion force moves on to the next engagement, departing Davao Bay to land on the tiny island of Tarakan for the invasion of Dutch Borneo.

In Washington, President Roosevelt submits his budget to Congress; $29,000,000,000 (29 billion dollars) to build 60,000 planes, 45,000 tanks and 8,000,000 tons of shipping.

Eastern Front. In the first phase of Stalin’s new offensive, Northern arm of the planned giant encirclement of German Army Group Center around Rzhev-Vyazma-Smolensk gets underway. Soviet Volkov Front attacks German 18th Army towards Leningrad. Soviet Northwest Front attacks the town of Demyansk and Staraya Russa 50 miles away where German 16th Army has a large supply depot. Konev’s Kalanin Front attacks German 9th Army toward Rhzev.