NAZI PRESSURE

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20638, 19 August 1941, Page 5

NAZI PRESSURE

SOVIET COUNTERS NIKOLAYEV RETREAT ODESSA STILL HELD (Elec, Tel Copyright—United Press Assn.l (Reed. Aug. 19, 11 a.m.) LONDON, Aug. 18. . There are indications that Germany pas resumed the thrust towards Leningrad in the Estonian sector on the axis of ’ the, : Tallinn-Leningrad railway, north of Lake Peipus. the withdrawal of the Russians is continuing in the Ukraine west of the Dnieper, and experts in London await news as to whether Marshal Budenny has been able to withdraw his forces actoss the Dnieper, where a great deal df defensive work has been carried out, and it should be possible to make a stand on a very strong line behind the half-mile wide river. Odessa is still in Russian hands and there is still no indication as to whether ;the,Russians intend, to use it,, as; suggested in some quarters, as another. Tobruk. No change is reported in other sectors; and the Russian midday communique states: “During the night of August' 17-ld our troops continued to wage battles along the whole front.” A Russian communique reveals the ab’ahdontnent of Nikolayev after blowing lip the great system of docks from which the Ukraine corn is exported, and Krivoy-Rog. The communique stated: "The Russians continued to fight the enemy fiercely along the entire front yesterday and relinquished the towns after stubborn battles. According to incomplete data on Saturday 19 enemy planes. were . brought down in air combats. Twelve Russian planes were lost, Russian submarines sank two large Rumanian transports in the Black Sea,”, ‘ Soviet Counter-Attacks A dispatch to the Red Star from the front reports that Soviet counterattacks have driven the Germans back six to bight miles from a Ukrainian city referred to as “K.” The Russians are Said to be continuing the advance. The Red Star also reports that the Germans lost 20,000 killed and . wouhded in the operations' leading to the evacuation of Nikolayev and Krivoy-Rog. .ft was stated yesterday that Marshal BUdenny had not succeeded in stemming General Rundstedt’s open- 1 ing drive, .but the Russians’ greater manoeuvrability might still enable them to encircle the advancing Germans- if the Russians were able to muster numerically strong enough forces. , The correspondent of The Times on the Germah frontier states that General Rundstedt commands four separate German armies totalling 40 to 50 infantry divisions, in addition to four to six panzer divisions and '4O to 50 Italian, Hungarian, Rumanian arid Slovakian divisions. The correspondent stresses the ominous nature of the approaching winter for the Germans and give the opinion that the German High Command has - realised the impossibility of maintain-.-ing”simultaneous offensives over the whole froht and is faced with the imperative necessity of economising in men and materials. German Unit Destroyed It was reported yesterday from Moscow that Marshal Timoshenko’s forces encircled and destroyed a large German, unit during a strong counterattack on the central front. GUerrllla detachments in the rear of-the Finnish and German troops in the past’ few days have blown up eight abridges, engineered 11 train clashes, destroyed 45 planes and 18 tahks, and killed- 25- officers and 480 men. j-The Finns, after the passage of wbeks Without any real progress, , clriim to have captured Sortavala with practically no damage to the town. it is reported from Stockholm that the Russians are complete masters of Lake Ladoga and should be able to effdet successful withdrawals from the whst side of the lake if necessary. A Berlin/communique states: “The Luftwaffe, reports new and considerable successes on the eastern front. Orir bombers, dive-bombers, and fighter formations from Novgorod to the. BlaCk Sea dealt heavy blows on the eneihy. They hit armament factories, industrial works and aerodromes,, dispersed troop concentra- '■ tipns/ and destroyed railways and transport trains. Also in the area east of Lake Ilmen they bombed many industrial plants and railways in addition to Armament.works. During air engagements south of Lake Ilmen they shot down 13 planes. They also attacked aerodromes in the Novgorod area and destroyed 52 planes on the ground.”