BROKEN AT LAST

Evening Post, Volume CXXXIV, Issue 131, 30 November 1942, Page 5

BROKEN AT LAST

SOVIET SILENCE ON NEW DRIVE

LONDON, November 29. v A special Soviet announcement states: "A new blow has been struck against the enemy. An offensive has begun on the central front. "A few days ago Soviet troops in the area east of Velikie Luki and west of Rzhev overcame stubborn resistance by a stronglyfortified defence zone. In the area of the town of Velikie Luki our troops broke the enemy front on a line 20 miles wide. In the area west vof Rzhey our troops broke the enemy line in three places to a breadth of 12, 10, and six miles.

"In all these three regions Soviet troops made an advance of between eight and 20 miles. Our troops cut the railway between Velikie Luki and jNevel, between Velikie Luki and Novo Sokolniki, and between Rzhev and Vyazma. "The enemy, in attempting to' stem the advance, is making strong counterattacks, which have been repulsed with heavy losses to the enemy. "In this offensive our troops have liberated more than 300 places and de-! feated four infantry divisions and 6ne| tank division. In three days our i troops captured 400 prisoners, 138 guns, 110 mortars, thousands of small arms, several ammunition dumps, and stores of food and military equipment, and destroyed 106 guns, 180 mortars, 300 machine-guns, and 50 tanks. ! "The enemy left on the battlefield more than 10,000 dead." WAVES OF TANKS USED. The German hews agency reported that new waves of Russian tanks and infantry attacked numerous points in the Toropets region early yesterday. The Russians, as customarily, maintained complete silence in the opening stages of their big efforts. The latest example was, the Stalingrad push, which began early on November 19, but was not mentioned by Moscow till the night of November 22.

The "Daily Telegraph's" Stockholm correspondent says that snowstorms are raging on the central front, where General Zhukov's offensive is developing on a 240-mile front .between Vyazma and Lake Ilmen.

German sources state that massed waves of Soviet tanks are attacking under cover of a terrific artillery bombardment The Germans threw in stukas and heavy bombers, regardless of cost, south-west of Kalinin, also south of Toropets, where the Russians were attempting to smash down the Dvina River to Vitebsk.

According to Berlin, General Zhukov aims to swing south from Toropets towards Smolensk, thus trapping the Germans between that area and the Rzhev-Vyazma area.

; By special arrangement. Rtutor's world service, In addition to other special sources of information. Is used in the compilation of the overseas intelligence published in this issue, and all rights llierein in Australia and New iZoaland are reserved.