Gigantic Red offensive at Rzhev.

Taranaki Daily News, 31 August 1942, Page 3

Gigantic Red offensive at Rzhev.

Rec. 10.35 p.m. London, Aug. 29. DEMANDING the seemingly impossible from airmen and soldiers on both sides, yet another week of slaughter has ended on the Stalingrad front with the Germans apparently being successfully held on all sectors. ^ "The Russians are launching ever-increasing counterattacks north-west of Stalingrad continuing to push back the Germans and inflicting severe losses," says the Moscow newspaper, the Pravda. "Thousands of German dead lie before the Russian positions. Our troops on other sectors are successfully repelling German onslaughts. The Germans are doing their utmost to reach the Volga at all costs and are bringing in new tanks and troops, hitting at one place after another, but the strength of our resistance is growing."

The Daily Telegraph's Moscow correspondent says General von Bock is still pressing as hard as ever against Stalingrad but the main shock divisions of his armoured motorised forces were badly battered in the first attempt to break through. While the shock force was regrouping Marshal Timoshenko snatched the chance to strengthen the worst sections by vigorous local counterattacks. He is trying to liquidate the German wedges or build giant belts round them. The air attack by which the Germans tried to blast a path into the city was the most massive ever seen on the Russian front. The defenders were outflanked and completely outweighted in the air but they recovered magnificently. stopped the outfianking move and finally encircled a shock force north-west of the city. , „ ,. The Zurich National Zeitung's Berlin correspondent says the Russian resistance at Stalingrad has literally doubled. The Russians are flinging in huge numbers of tanks. The Pravda reports that General Zhukov's army in the last three days recaptured 13 villages and smashed through the first line of defences around Rzhev. The Russians captured an aerodrome in the area of Rzhev, greatly hindering the assembly of German reserves and supplies. The Germans converted every street in Rzhev into a minefield and piled every crossing high with tank obstacles. The Russian guns continue to pound the network of pillboxes around the town. Great Rzhev Offensive. The Germans describe the Russian offensive at Rzhev as a gigantic effort. General Zhukov is reported to have brought up troops and masses of tanks from depots in central Russia. The situation in the Caucasus continues to develop critically. The Germans have pushed further southward from Prokhladnaya across the Maika and Terek rivers. The Russians are maintaining steady enfilading fire from batteries and pillboxes dug into the cliffs. The Germans claim to have stormed some high passes across the mountains towards Tuapse- and Novorossisk. Clearly a situation of the utmost danger has arisen in this area. Berlin radio to-night stated that the Germans had occupied Lineinoie village, on an inlet of the Caspian 40 miles from Astrakhan, Karpovka, 20 miles due west of Stalingrad, and Gonelnaya, 15 miles from Novorossisk. The fact that the midnight Soviet communique merely reports that no material changes occurred on the front on Saturday indicates that the Russians continued to hold the German offensive against Stalingrad. Meanwhile, the Russians on the central front continue to advance against stiff enemy resistance. | On one sector of this front Soviet troops attacked a strongly fortified region where the Germans had erected a great number of fortifications and laid many minefields. A Soviet unit broke the enemy defence and, despite, strong resistance, dislodged the enemy from one locality and then proceeded to dislodge them from a further six localities. One Moscow message avers that the Germans have not advanced a single step towards Stalingrad in the past 24 hours. In fact, enemy forfces which recently drove a wedge into the Soviet lines north-west of Stalingrad continue to be pressed back by Russian counlerattacks. The Russians are advincing in a semi-circle, inflicting very heavy lossas. German troops broke through the Russian defences at one point near the city but the defending forces quicklv raliied and have practically wiped out ihe remainder of the enemy. The Russian morning communique re-

corded the sinking of two enemy transports totalling 12.000 tons in the Barents Sea. There is no indication of any further German advance in the Caucasus while the Germans who have been .ittempting to retake the lost ground on the Leningrad front have been frustrated after five days of fighting. Tough For Both Sides. The German offensive against Stalingrad and the Russian offensive on the ■ central front have settled down into terrjfic slogging matches, in which both sides are paying a bitter price in men and machines. The Germans now describe Stalingrad as a fortress whose outer defences are proving stronger and deeper than was foreseen. The Russians are finding the going equally tough in the central sector. They are exerting pressure along a 150-mile front between Rzhev and Kaluga, threatening Gjatsk and Medyn. It is not yet clear whether the Russians are aiming at limited objectives or hope to build up a major offensive. The Times Moscow correspondent says that the first attempt to storm Stalingrad clearly failed. The German vanguard in some sectcvs is in considerable difficulties locked within deep Russian defences. This does not mean any general improvement but does indicate the extraordinary toughness of the resistance. The second attempt lacks the surprise element and so is likely to be much more costly than the first.