SOVIET RELIEF DRIVE

Southland Times, 16 October 1942, Page 5

SOVIET RELIEF DRIVE

ARMY NEARS STALINGRAD GAINS SOUTH OF CITY (Rec. 7 p.m.) LONDON, Oct. 14. After a further advance northwest of Stalingrad troops of Marshal Semion Timoshenko’s relief army are now within sight of the city. The Russians have also made new gains south of Stalingrad and recaptured five large buildings and a school within the city. The Moscow correspondent of The Times says' the Germans are still exerting pressure against the northwestern outskirts, where short, sharp battles with thrust and counterthrust are taking place along the battered streets. Fierce hand-to-hand struggles are occurring in the factories and other buildings. The Germans launched tank attacks, supported by planes, in the open country fringing the city, but these attacks were repelled. Operations in the Caucasus are characterized by a marked increase in German air activity and the beating to a standstill of their ground forces. The Luftwaffe is attacking strongly in the Novorossisk and Mozdok areas. Large bomber formations are attacking installations behind the Mozdok front Twenty-six of 70 bombers in one formation are reported to have been destroyed. The Russians maintain silence regarding the Germans’ claims of progress along the Taupse road. Paris radio stated that the Germans have reached the Black Sea coast and are now only 12 miles from Tuapse. GERMAN LINE BROKEN Moscow radio declared that the Russians north-west of Stalingrad captured several heights from which the Germans were shelling the roads along which the Russians were bringing up supplies. Russian infantry and tommygunners broke the German line after several hours’ fighting, fanned out and liquidated the German resistance point by point. In the Northern Caucasus the Russians are reported to be making extensive use of armoured trains in coordination with the cavalry, the infantry and the air force. In one battle an armoured train operating with the cavalry killed 1300 Germans and in another engagement two trains killed 1400. At a plenary meeting of the Stalingrad Communist Party held in the city, M. Chuyanov, chairman of the City Defence Council, reported on the situation. The meeting appealed to all communists to strengthen further the city’s defences and gave a pledge to defend Stalingrad at any cost and to rout the enemy. The meeting praised the work of the communists at the tractor plant and also at the “Red October” and “Barricades” factories. It paid a tribute also to the railway and water transport workers.

BOTH SIDES USE ARTILLERY RUSSIAN POSITIONS CONSOLIDATED (Rec. 7 p.m.) LONDON, October 14. The big guns of both sides are pounding at each other across the wastes of Stalingrad where tank and infantry fighting has been on a small scale in the last 24 hours. In the north-western suburbs, however, fierce street fighting is proceeding. The Russians are consolidating the positions which they recaptured from the Germans yesterday. There are clear signs that the Germans on the Stalingrad front are preparing to dig in for the winter. It is believed they will establish a winter line from outside Stalingrad south along the Yergent Hills, linking up with the Axis forces on the Terek river. German official reports now either admit or imply that German operations in the Stalingrad area have assumed a defensive character. Berlin says that the Russians are planning to free Stalingrad by an encircling movement from south of Moscow. RUSSIAN ADVANCE ■ Today’s reports state that the Russians’ south of the city captured a German strong-point and are holding it against all counter-attacks. The Russians advanced on one sector south of Mozdok and beat off attacks in the other Mozdok area sectors. Axis reports again mention Russian offensive concentrations in the Rjev and Smolensk area. A German communique states that the German Army, supported by the Luftwaffe, captured more dominating chains of heights on the highway from Maikop to Tuapse. They repulsed several Russian counter-attacks and thrusts from Stalingrad, also on the Don front. NEW MESSERSCHMITT Moscow reports the German use of a new type of Messerschmitt, the 109 G, which is equipped with cannon firing shells. The Russians say this new plane is faster and better armoured and flies at a greater altitude, but is less manoeuvrable and can be shot down, as has been proved at Stalingrad. A second new type of plane is the Henschel 129, which corresponds to the Stormovik. The Tass News Agency (Moscow) is quoting reports from Geneva that Field-Marshal Fedor von Bock has been arrested. Several German generals, the heads of motorized and infantry corps, have been dismissed and others have been reduced in rank.