30,000 KILLED

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20639, 15 December 1941, Page 7

30,000 KILLED

GERMAN FORCES RED ARMY TOLL GREAT SUCCESSES FOUR DAYS’ OFFENSIVE (Elec. Tel. Copyright—United Press Assti.) (Reed. Dec. 13, 2.40 p.m.) LONDON. Dec. 12. Big Russian successes on many parts of the eastern front are reported by the Soviet Information Bureau. “General Rokossovsky’s troops are pursuing the Fifth. 10th. and 11th German tank divisions, an SS division and the 35th infantry division have occupied the town of Kistra,” it states. “General Belov’s first guard cavalry corps, having routed the 17th tank division, 29th motorised division and 167th infantry division are pursuing their remnants and have occupied Venev and Stalingorsk. “General Lilushenko smashed the first tank division, and 14th and 56th motorised infantry divisions, capturing Rogachev and surrounding Klin. Defences Broken Trough “General Govorov's forces broke through the defences of the 252nd, 87th, 88th and 268th infantry divisions and occupied the districts of Kylibaykin and Lokotnya. “General Boldin’s forces north-west of Tula routed the third and fourth tank divisions and the S.S. regiment of Germania. Developing their offensive, they pressed on and surrounded the 296th infantry division. “General Golikov’s forces in the south-west are pushing back the 18th tank division, 10th motorised infantry division and have occupied the towns of Mikhailov and Ystisan. “From the beginning of the offensive on December 6 to December 10; our units had reoccupied over 400 populated centres, captured 386 tanks, 4300 lorries, 604 motor-cycles, 305 guns,. 109 trench mortars, 715 machine-guns, and 546 automatic rifles.

“During the same period we destroyed 71 tanks, 655 lorries, 92 guns, 119 mortars, and 131 machine-guns. These figures do not include the material destroyed by air operations. In addition, a colossal amount of other arms have been captured and also ammunition, uniforms, supplies and other goods. The Germans have lost over 30,000 killed. Over 85,000 Killed in Offensive

The Germans began the second great offensive against Moscow on November 16 and, from that date to December 10, we have captured or destroyed, not including air operations, 1434 tanks,' 3416 lorries, 675 guns, 339 mortars and 870 machineguns. Over 85,000 Germans have been killed from November 16 lo December 10.”

The Berlin radio confirmed that General List has replaced General Bock.

The most severe winter in Russian history is forecast by M. Federov, chief of the Russian weather services. The temperature on the southern front is'already four degrees below Fahrenheit and on the Karelian front is 22 below Fahrenheit. Blizzards are raging in parts of Russia. A Moscow communique states that 28 inhabited centres were captured in one sector on the south-western front in three days’ fighting. A large quantity of German equipment was seized.