RUSSIANS BREACH GREAT WATER BARRIER

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 219, 15 September 1943, Page 3

RUSSIANS BREACH GREAT WATER BARRIER

BRYANSK OFFENSIVE

Further Strain On German "Elastic Defence" X.Z. Press Association—Copyright Rec. 11 a.m. LONDON, Sept. 14. The Red Army, following up its victory at Bryansk, which the Germans "evacuated on Sunday, is now widening its bridgeheads on the western bank of the Desna River, the great water barrier, on which the Germans hoped to build a defence line from Smolensk to Kiev. South of Bryansk converging Russian columns are making forced marches and fighting incessantly toward Roslavl. The capture of Roslavl would cut the one escape railway to Smolensk.

Red Army units, under clouds of smoke from blazing buildings, are fighting at Bryansk, wresting the final control of the city proper from the Germans, says Reuters Moscow correspondent. German demolition troops are racing from street to street carrying lighter torches and setting fire to buildings and supply dumps. - „ In the last phases of the Bryansk battle the doomed German garrison struggled to beat off repeated Russian tank attacks across the Desna River, says Reuters Moscow correspondent. The Russians are persistentlv widening the Desna bridgehead in face of terrific opposition. The onlv escape railway from Bryansk to Roslavl remains in German hands. Roslavl is already threatened by another Russian column driving down from the central front. This force in the last 24 hours has made good progress through forest country, which is cut by numerous rivers. Berlin Radio Claim Berlin radio said the Russians advanced cautiously against Bryansk, which was covered only by rearguards, all goods and machinery having been evacuated a fortnight ago. "The installations were so thoroughly destroyed that the Russians put their hands into an empty pocket. This shows that the Germans are pursuing their aim of drawing the Russians after them in a large disengagement movement. They are doing so faster than the Russians may like." "The last word on the German retreat," comments The Times, "may not rest with the Germans." German sources, shortly after the announcement of the evacuation from Bryansk, said that the Russians had opened a new attack north of the city with strong artillery and tank forces, and claimed that the attacks failed before extremely stiff resistance. , Correspondents say that three major battles are being fought between Bryansk and Dnepropetrovsk. The first is for Nyejin, the second for Priluki and the third for the reduction of the German salient south-west of Kharkov covering Poltava. . The capture of Nyejin and Priluki would give the Russians the keys to Kiev outposts. Nyejin, which is being invested from the north and east, is already under shellfire. Stiff German resistance around Romny, west of Sumy, is holding up the drive against Priluki. The Russians are investing Romny from three sides and are closing in from the east and along the railway from the north and south. The German defence south-west of Kharkov, after weeks of steady hammering, is beginning to crumble. The toughness of the fighting can be gauged from the fact that the battles continue still only 25 miles west of Kharkov. Reuters Moscow correspondent says that the Russian success in forcing the Desna River has dealt a heavy blow against the entire German defence system.

Successes Further South

It now appears that the German "elastic defence" will have to be more elastic than ever. Elastic defence has proved completely unsuccessful in the south, where the Germans are falling back upon the Dnieper bend. The Russian Army paper Red Star states the Germans are rapidly retreating towards the Dnieper bend across the Dnepropetrovsk steppe. The Russians have reached Sanzharovsky, less than 60 miles from Zaporozhe, on the Dnieper. . ' The Germans retreating to the Dnieper bend are trying hard to break contact, but the Russian pursuit continues relentlessly. The Germans have reported that the Russians are attacking along the Roslava-Moscow and Smolensk-Mos-cow highways. They have admitted their retreat in the Smolensk area and added that local breaches elsewhere have been "evened out" by straightening the German line.

To-night's Russian communique says that the Russians west of Stalino, advanced 12 to 15 miles and captured over 150 inhabited localities. The Russians advanced up to nine miles along the Sea of Azov and captured 20 places, including district centres in the Stalino region. The Russians in the direction of Pavlograd, east of the Dnieper bend, advanced thre to six miles and captured over 70 inhabited localities, including a district centre in the Kharkov region and two important railway stations.

In the direction of Priluki the Russians have advanced up to nine miles and captured 17 inhabited places. They have also continued their offensive in the direction of Nyejin, advancing between three and five miles and capturing over 20 localities, including a district centre in the Chernigov region.

South-west of Kharkov the Russians fought offensive battles and advanced in some sectors one and a half to five miles. They captured several inhabited localities.

A German High Command communique reports heavy street fighting in Novorossisk.