JITOMIR GAINS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 271, 15 November 1943, Page 3

JITOMIR GAINS

FEAT OF COSSACKS

Vast Area Liberated In Western Ukraine N.Z. Press Association—Copyright Rec. 10.30 a.m. LONDON, Nov. 14. The capture of Jitomir by Soviet forces has cut the Leningrad-Odessa railway, the last north to south trunk line in Russia held by the Germans. Marshal Stalin's Order announcing this, which took the Russian public by surprise, described Jitomir as "a most important centre of communication and powerful centre of German defence.' It is some 85 miles west of Kiev, which the Russians captured just a week ago. Jitomir had a pre-war population of 100,000 inhabitants, and its capture means not only the loss of yet another base for German troops during the Russian winter, but also the necessity to switch German reserves by a roundabout route when the Russian attacks develop on either flank of the Kiev area operations. German supply difficulties have also been greatly increased. Further south the Russians are within 20 miles of the railway that links Warsaw with Odessa. lnis, with other advances and the capture of Jitomir, has made the invaders position seriously worse without any compensating improvement. Value of Cossack Cavalry A Moscow correspondent of the British United Press says that Cossacks opened the way to Jitomir by overrunning Korostyshev, which is 17 miles from Jitomir. The Cossacks rode through a forest and cut off the main body of the German defenders at Korostyshev. Co-opera-ting with Red Army tanks which thrust against the centre of the GerSan pofftions at Jitomir, the Cossacks swung around the' enemy's town and participated in street fighting. Red Army cavalry and tank spearheads moved 25 miles in a single dav in their advance from Kiev to Jitomir says the Columbia Broadcasting System's representative in Moscow who adds that fighting in the steppes west of Kiev has proved that desDite the importance of the netrol engine in modern warfare, fflry is still a factor with which a smart general can win battles. A Russian supplementary communique states that large quantities of war material were captured., at Titnmir The Russians, continuing theT offensive, captured Malm, to thl north-east, W Chernyakhov, to the riorfo of Jitomir. The. enemy has suffered e norm ous losses in men and materials.