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• US Navy intelligence estimated that the German submarine sailing for New York City waters off the east coast of the United States, U-869, would arrive in early Feb 1945. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• Japanese forces in Burma began organizing counterattacks against the latest Anglo-Indian offensive. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• USS Guitarro arrvied at Mios Woendi, Biak Islands, Dutch East Indies and received repairs. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• Roza Shanina wrote a letter to a friend, in which she noted that she might be on the verge of being killed in combat as the numbers of her battalion dwindled. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• Salonika in Greece was occupied by British troops. ww2dbase [AC]

• USS Puffer arrived at Guam, Mariana Islands, ending her sixth war patrol. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• The encircled Axis garrison in Budapest, Hungary withdrew across the Danube River to Buda. ww2dbase [Main Article | TH]
• Raoul Wallenberg was transferred out of Budapest, Hungary for Moscow, Russia by the order of Joseph Stalin's deputy Nikolai Bulganin. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• USS Shamrock Bay completed her duties off Luzon, Philippine Islands and set sail for Ulithi, Caroline Islands as a part of Task Group 77.14. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]
• USS Wake Island was detached from Task Group 77.14. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

• After crossing the Warthe River, Soviet troops expanded their bridgehead to 160 miles wide and 100 miles deep, causing the Germans to evacuate Warsaw, Poland (which would soon be occupied by Soviet forces) and Chelmno Extermination Camp; on the same day, Soviet forces also captured Kielce. Angry at the abandonment of Warsaw, Adolf Hitler sacked General Smilo von Lüttwitz and General Walter Fries. Meanwhile, Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev received orders to move toward the Upper Silesia region. ww2dbase [Main Article | TH]
• 67,012 prisoners were present at Auschwitz Concentration Camp's last evening roll call; they would soon embark on the Death March. Meanwhile, Nazi doctor Josef Mengele began to destroy his laboratories at sector BIIf of Birkenau camp; he would soon evacuate the camp with records of his experiments on twins, dwarfs, and disabled people. ww2dbase [Main Article | Facility | CPC]

• USAAF XX Bomber Command launched 90 or 92 B-29 bombers from Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China against Shinchiku Airfield in northern Taiwan; 78 or 79 of them made it over to the target area, damaging hangars, barracks, and other buildings. This was to be the final B-29 mission against Taiwan. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]
• Commander N. C. Gillette, Jr. piloted a PBY-5A aircraft of US Navy squadron VPB-71 from Lingayen Gulf, Philippine Islands for an offensive reconnaissance mission over the Takao region of southern Taiwan. He found Takao harbor alert, thus turned away. He then flew over the unsuspecting Japanese seaplane base at Toko (now Donggang township, Pingdong county), Taiwan and dropped two 100-pound bombs on the base, starting small fires. This was the first time the US Navy attacked Taiwan using non-carrier aircraft. He returned to Lingayen Gulf at 0750 hours Tokyo time on 18 Jan 1945; the mission lasted over just over 14 hours. ww2dbase [CPC]

• Submarine Mero was launched at Manitowoc, Wisconsin, United States, sponsored by the wife of Henry G. Taylor. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]
• Henry Arnold suffered his fourth heart attack. ww2dbase [Main Article | CPC]

17 Jan 1945 Interactive Map