LENINGRAD DEFIANT.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 282, 10 September 1941, Page 5

LENINGRAD DEFIANT.

STIRRING BROADCAST ISSUED. “HITLER'S HORDES SHALL NOT PASS.” ; y LONDON, September 9. ' Two of the latest developments on the Eastern Front are a German claim to have advanced to the Neva river, captured Schluesselburg, and thus completed the encirclement of Leningrad, and a Russian announcement of a victory in the central sector with the recapture of Elnya, 50 miles south-east of Smolensk and the routing of seven enemy divisions. Early this morning, "however, Reuter’s correspondent in Moscow said, that the Germans certainly had not encircled Leningrad. They had approached fairly close only from the south-west, but were not close enough -for practical large-scale shelling. The Russian High Command’s communique issued last night does not bear out the German contention that counter-attacks on the central sector were repulsed. After reporting fighting along the whole front, it says: “In the direction of Smolensk, a 26-days’ battle has concluded with the destruction of the 15th Infantry Division, the 17th Motorised Division, the sth Tank Division, the. 137th. Austrian Division, and the 178th, 197th and 268th Infantry Divisions and with the capture of the town of Elnya, The remaining enemy retreated in a westerly direction.”

Giving details of air activity, the Russian night communique says: “Our air force continued to attack enemy troops and aeroplanes on enemy aerodromes. On Sunday night our aeroplanes attacked Bucharest. During Saturday 62 enemy aeroplanes were destroyed in aerial combats and on aerodromes, whole our losses amounted to 33 aeroplanes.”* The Russians state that Marshal Voroshilov is getting supplies into Leningrad in a steady stream from land and sea.

Leningrad is defiant and a stirring message was broadcast to the whole of the Russian people. It said: “Hitler’s hordes shall not pass. Victory will be with the Red Army. A steel wall has been erected round the city. Welfare a grave danger, but there is no .doubt about the outcome of the battle. We will give our last drop of blood to crush the enemy.”

The Germans admit the intensity of the struggle and the stubbornness of the Russian resistance. They state that attacking German forces are continually thrown on the defensive and credit is given to the accuracy of the Russian fire whether by machine-guns or artillery. One German newspaper report states that the attacking troops are continually being faced with new surprises.