NO RESPITE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 January 1942, Page 3

NO RESPITE

RUSSIANS PRESSING WESTWARD THREAT TO IMPORTANT CENTRES. HEAVY BLOWS AT MANY POINTS. (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) LONDON, January 15. “The Times” Stockholm correspondent says that while the Russians are within shelling range of Kharkov and Kursk, Byelgorod, which is halfway between them, also appears to be already in the fighting zone of Marshal Timoshenko's vanguard, which is pressing westward to cut the railway between Kursk and Kharkov. Further Russian landings are reported from the Crimea, where the Russians hold long stretches of the southeast and south-west coasts, and apparently points on the north-east coast. Small but increasing Russian forces are also very near the Perekop Isthmus.

Marshal Timoshenko's forces are also fiercely battering at the gates of Taganrog, 30 miles west of Rostov, from where the great Soviet counteroffensive began early in December. The Germans were driven beyond Taganrog, but the town was not retaken.

Moscow radio says that Russian warships in co-operation with powerful air units dealt heavy blows to the Germans attempting to hold the Arctic coast against Red Army troops. Russian ships shelled the German antiaircraft posts. Then, while Russian bombers rained down explosives on the German positions, Russian warships blew to pieces machine-gun nests, fortifications and gun emplacements. The biggest battles are still on the central front. The most notable Russian success is the capture of Selizharovo, 90 miles due west of Kalinin. Advance Soviet forces are now 55 miles north-west of Rzhev. VERY DEEP SNOW. Very deep snow has, according to a Kuibyshev message, become the principal factor ruling the operations on the Moscow front, where the Russians continue to attack strongly. While necessarily hindering the Russian advance, the snow is still more impeding the Germans, who depend on the roads for saving their manpower and material as they retire. The ceaseless tide of Russian counter-movement is meanwhile almost daily pictured in more concrete fashion in the supplementary communiques. On Wednesday, states one of these communiques, the Russian air forces destroyed more than 130 lorries with infantry soldiers and army supplies, 125 ammunition carts, five guns with their crews, and one armoured car. They blew up one railway bridge, 13 railway carriages, and three railway engines, set on fire a railway train, and partly annihilated one infantry battalion.

CAPTURES OF MATERIAL. In one of the sectors of the central front one unit, in two days, freed five localities, 500 officers and men being killed. Soviet troops captured one tank, one armoured car, two guns, three machine-guns, and one trench mortar. In another sector of the same front a unit developing the advance occupied several localities and captured much booty, including 10 lorries, several machine-guns, and a number of mines and shells. In an order issued by the German Field-Marshal von Richenau, which came into the hands of the Red Army, the German commander admits the' losses inflicted by partisans (guerrillas). He states that these have killed a regimental commander and two engineers of the headquarters staff, while another group killed five German officers and, further, that a partisan group carried out several raids on German supply columns. It is officially claimed in Moscow that German officers are shooting German soldiers trying to surrender. Despite this more German troops are giving themselves up. SOVIET HEROINE. Moscow radio describes a moving story of a 16-year-old Russian heroine, Tamara Karenina. While she was driving a Red Cross ambulance containing 15 wounded to the rear seven German planes dived to within 45 feet and riddled the vehicle with bullets. In spite of severe burns and wounds she carried the 15 wounded to an adjoining wood and then reported to the nearest post, where she collapsed. She was taken by a special plane to hospital, and her life was saved. She has now been awarded the highest Soviet order—the Order of Lenin.