FIGHTING FLARES UP ON RUSSIAN FRONTS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 91, 17 April 1943, Page 5

FIGHTING FLARES UP ON RUSSIAN FRONTS

GROUND HARDENING

German Attacks In Kuban Driven Back N.Z.P.A. and British "Wireless Rec. noon. LONDON, April 16. The pitch to which the Russians and the Germans are keyed on the eastern front is shown by the flaring up of fighting immediately the weather shows the least sign of permitting sizeable action. A slight hardening of the ground brought a strong German counter-attack yesterday in the lower Kuban, where activity is still centred. Moscow dispatches state that this German counter-attack was mounted with large infantry forces backed up by 46 panzer formations. The Germans pressed hard, but the attack was abandoned in the face of strong Russian defence. A powerful night attack by the Russians, swept back the Germans. Reuters says the Russians who are battering against the Germans' bridgehead on the Taman Peninsula are only 60 miles from Kerch Straits. The Germans in the counter-attack mentioned lost 23 tanks and nearly 1000 men. The Donetz Fronts Fighting in the middle and upper Donetz fronts, which hitherto has been comparable to the scale of j activity in the Kuban has become intermittent clashes with the Russians holding on to vital bridgeheads on the west bank of the Donetz. The Russians threw back an attack north of Chuguyev, after which they coun-ter-attacked and improved their positions. A Soviet communique states that yesterday units of the Soviet Air Force on various sectors of the front destroyed or damaged 40 lorries, wrecked a railway train and silenced eight artillery batteries.

On the Leningrad front enemy infantry and tanks attacked Soviet positions several times, but all the attacks were repelled. One infantry company was wiped out. Six German planes were shot down at the approaches to Leningrad by Soyiet planes and anti-aircraft batteries.