EASTERN MANYCH CROSSED

Dominion, Volume 36, Issue 98, 20 January 1943, Page 5

EASTERN MANYCH CROSSED

Donetz Town Entered LONDON, January 18. A special Soviet communique issued on Monday evening states that the Russians on the south-eastern front crossed the northern Donetz River and occupied the railway station of Kamensk. Righting in the town of Kamensk Is in progress. On the southern front the Russians crossed the Manych River and occupied the town and railway station of Divnoye, CO miles south-west of Elista. The Russians on the Voronezh front routed the Fourth Italian Army Corps and occupied the railway station of Kamonka, 30 miles west of Kantemirovka. The town of Ostrogorsk is encircled.

The number of prisoners captured on the Voronezh front on January 8 was 31,000, comprising 22,000 Hungarians, 7000 Italians, aud 2000 Germane.

The offensive on the Voronezh front has rolled back the German lines 50 miles

west of the Don along the railway to Kharkov, says the Moscow correspondent of the Associated Press. At least one German division is reported to be virtually encircled between the Don. and the new front line.

The Axis forces are hurriedly retreating and vainly struggling to mount a counter-offensive to gain time to consolidate their new positions. Near Donetz Industries.

While the Russian front is still in motion in many areas between Voronezh and the Caucasus (says British Official Wireless), the latest and most striking development appears to be that since capturing Millerovo the Russians have gone on to reach the Donetz River on a front of some 50 miles on both sides of Kamensk.

At the westernmost point, this brings them only about 20 miles from the great Donetz industrial country, and it is probably somewhere between there and Kamensk that they crossed the river. East of Kamensk, too, the Russians have captured villages on the Donetz from which they command the lateral railway running eastward into the Don bend. South of the Don a further advance has been made along the railway to the neighbourhood of Proletarskaya, while in the Caucasus the pursuit of the enemy along the main line has continued to nearly half-way from Georgievsk to Armavir. As a result of the fall of Millerovo the Russians’ hold on the railway from a point 50 miles south of Voronezh is now secure up to 50 miles west of the river. Therefore, nearly 200 miles of this important lateral railway can be used for the transfer of troops and supplies from one position to another. Moscow radio reports that the Germans have lost several more heavily fortified lines near Stalingrad. Their troops in the western part of the area have been split. Today’s Moscow communique reports the killing cf more than .1000 in the Stalingrad area, and pays that 856 prisoners were brought in and much booty was captured.