BUDAPEST ENTERED

Greymouth Evening Star, 29 December 1944, Page 5

BUDAPEST ENTERED

RUSSIANS SPLIT DEFENCE GERMAN REIGN OF TERROR LONDON, December 28. “Marshal Tolbukhin’s forces, attacking Budapest from the western bank of the Danube, have captured the suburb of Kelenfeld, one mile from the Royal Palace in the heart of the city, reports Reuter’s Moscow correspondent “Marshal Malinovsky, who is driving a wedge across the Danube from east to west, has split the defenders of the capital into two isolated groups. A new reign of terioi appears to have been established inside Budapest. No one is allowed m the streets after 5 p.m., and a German punitive detachment is roaming the town with orders to shoot at sight. Appealing for order and discipline the German commander declared that anyone spreading rumours likely to create a panic will be shot. In the suburbs of Budapest, on both sides of the Danube, Russian assault troops are making a block-by-block advance towards the heart oi. the city. A Moscow supplementary communique says that on Wednesday more than 3000 Germans were killed in the Budapest area. Fifty-five enemy tanks and self-propelled guns were destroyed or disabled and 24 tanKS were captured. THOUSANDS OF GERMAN DEAD LONDON, Dec. 28. “West of Budapest the southern frosts are riming thousands of German dead, whose bodies are glittering on the blackened bulks of scores of knocked-out German tanks,” says the Moscow correspondent of the “Times.” Russian artillery, obscured from observation posts on Buda Hills, is cross-checking the accuracy of its ranging with Soviet spotter aeroplanes. The Russians are able to see their enemies—little antlike figures in greyish-green uniforms —scurrying from street corner to street cor“As the siege of Budapest rises to its full fury, powerful units of Marshal Tolbukhin’s army are heading west towards Vienna. This is the beginning of a general advance into Austria, in Which, the Germans are going to feel bitterly the loss of their Budapest grouping." Reuter’s correspondent says two Soviet spearheads, both pointing to Vienna, are emerging from the welter of local battles. The northern push, under Marshal Malinovsky, is developing towards the Bratislava Gap,, and the second thrust, under Marshal Tolbukhin, is driving towards Gyor round the Vertes mountains. Both groups are within 109 miles of VienThe correspondent of the British United Press in Moscow quotes the. Moscow military commentator (Colonel Akimov), who says Marshal Tolbukhin is now in a position to launch an offensive on Austria across the eastern frontiers through which run the main German communications with Italy and Jugoslavia. The Berlin radio’s commentator (von Hammer) admits that the Soviet columns west of Budapest are threatening German supply lines. “The Russian forces operating west of Budapest have deepened the breaches to the north,” Tie said. “So far it is impossible to ward off the the threat to the German supply lines.”

NEW GOVT. DECLARES WAR

RUGBY? December 28

While the garrison in the Hungarian capital is being relentlessly hemmed into the city itself, Hungary is changing sides. The Provisional Government at Debrecen is reported to have declared war on Germany and has asked for the Allies’ armistice terms. The Government as a whole can be regarded as a representative and respectable body whicn should be able to rally the national forces against Germany as the Russians chase them out. NEARING AUSTRIAN BORDER BUDAPEST’S FALL IMMINENT (Rec. 11.40 a.m.) LONDON, Dec. 28. While Russians ,to-day, began block by block, to advance into Budapest, forces under Tolbukhin left the Budapest battle far in the rear. They are reported less than 55 miles from the Austrian border. Gyor, on the sduth side of the Danube, nearly 70 miles west of Budapest, is their immediate objective. The Moscow radio says: Germans turned every house in Budapest into a strongpoint and every block into a defence base, but judging from the losses suffered, to the defenders yesterday and prisoners and materia* captured, it becomes clear that Budapest’s last hours are slipping away. • , , The Budapest radio announced that, General Ivan Hindy, Commander-in-Chief of the Hungarians defending Budapest, was killed in action. Lieu-tenant-General Zoltan Meszaros has been appointed to succeed him. The British United Press correspondent says: Soviet battle veterans, who fought at Stalingrad, are helping to wipe out the Germans defending Budapest. They travelled a hard road lor 1500 miles after the slaughter at Stalingrad, where Tolbukhin and Malinovsky both fought. Conditions at Budapest are now to their liking, It is. Stalingrad all over again. The Germans are fighting for every street, and house as the Soviet infantry, screaming a battle-cry, pour into the city. Riding tanks, they fan out from the tanks and storm every enemy strongpoint encountered, while the tanks rumble on towards the centre of the city. Russian, tommy-gunners often have to chai;e Germans from one floor to another before capturing the building. At times it is easier to blast down the whole building wuh self-propelled guns. The corresDondent adds; South oi Buda, Tolbukhin’s tanks and infantry are advancing towards the centre ol Buda, between Lake Valenczei ana the Danube. They arc forcing back to the city Germans who held the line along the railway embankment between " Valenczei and Budapest. Malinovski’s forces are attacking the German perimeter from the east in great strength along a semi-circular front. The enemy suffered bloody losses when it tried to break out oi the encirclement north-west of BudaDCSt. Reuter’s Moscow correspondent says that small Russian stormingparties, each accompanied by tanks or mobile guns, are working their way through streets on the city s fringe. Burning German supp.y dumps glowed all night. Stray Jnnkers supply planes—notorious harbingers of disaster —are appearing over Budapest, seeking aid for the encircled German strongholds. The Exchange Telegraph Agencycorrespondent says; The changed attitude of the Germans and Hungarians defending Budapest is shown by the use to which the Hungarian civilians are now being put. They were originally conscripted to dig trenches. The Germans have now decided they can be more usefully • employed in digging graves. Russians on the outskirts of Budapest found houses demolished by the Germans as punishment for di'-ob-.’diei't citizens. LATEST CAPTURES j A Soviet communique says: The I Russians north-west of Gyongyos captured the railway station of Szecseny. eighteen miles south-west of

Lucenic. Russians north-east of Sahy occupied a number of localities, ana completely cleared the area between the Ipel and Hron Rivers southwest of Sahy. Our troops reached the Hron River. Twenty-two hundred Germans and Hungarians were taken prisoner yesterday between the Ipel and Hron Rivers. > The Russians in Budapest, continuing the liquidation of the encircled enemv group, captured suburbs two miles' north-east, and three miles east to three miles south-east of Budapest. Simultaneously our troops continued to fight for the annihilation of the encircled enemy forces in tne mountainous wooded region ol tne Danube bend north of’ Budapest, and occupied an inhabited locality twelve miles north-west of Budapest. We captured six hundred Germans an d Hungarians including a general and eight colonels. North, of Szekesfehervar, we occupied a number of places and also the railway station of Folgards nine miles south-west of Szekesfehervar. Our troops in this region yesterday captured 694 Germans and Hungarians. , , The Berlin radio commentator, von Hammer, says: The might of the Russian Army veered westward from Budapest is now hammering at the gates to the plain south-east of Kommaron, forty-five miles from the Austrian frontier and forty-seven rmles west north-west of Budapest. Extremely fierce battles are raging south-west of Felsogal, twenty-seven miles west of Budapest. Von Hammer adds that the battle for Budapest is at the peak. As far as is known the enemy has broken into the western suburbs. He launched simultaneous attacks from the northeast and south-east. Hand to hand fighting raged for hours for the southern railway bridge over the Danube.