IN SITUATION IN SOUTH RUSSIA

Wairarapa Times-Age, 28 July 1942, Page 3

IN SITUATION IN SOUTH RUSSIA

Furious Battles Continue for Don Crossings SOVIET TROOPS STILL DEFENDING ROSTOV VIOLENT FIGHTING IN VORONEZH AREA LONDON, July 27. There is no sign of any improvement in the situation in South Russia. The defenders of Rostov are still holding out. On the Lower Don front, in the Zymlyanskaya area, the Germans atfe maintaining’ their bridgeheads on the south bank of the river. Further north, in the Voronezh sector, violent fighting continues. The Russians have thrown back some German counter-attacks. The enemy is bringing up fresh troops. Some ground has been gained by the Russians in the immediate area of the city. On the rest of the battlefront no important change is reported. The Russians report the capture of a strategic height on the Bryansk front, south-west of Moscow, where the Soviet forces have been attacking to relieve the pressure on Voronezh. At Rostov, the Russians are still fighting’ against the Germans who broke through the defences yesterday. The Germans are using their old tactics—massed tanks, followed by infantry with tommy-guns. There is no confirmation in Moscow of a German claim to have captured Bataisk, a railway junction ten miles south of Rostov. Above Rostov, the Germans have succeeded in effecting a crossing of the Don on a broad front. It is pointed out that it is far too early to say whether the Germans will be able to consolidate their positions and continue the advance southward.