HISTORY RECALLED

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20959, 5 December 1942, Page 3

HISTORY RECALLED

MOSCOW_RETREAT REDS STILL ADVANCE SOME SLOWING DOWN (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) LONDON, Dec. 3. Snowstorms of almost blizzard ferocity, like those depicted in classical prints of Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow, are sweeping the central Russian front. They are undoubtedly slowing down the Russian offensive but progress is reported from all sectors. The Moscow paper Izvestia reports that the Germans are unable to take their machines with them and are abandoning them in the snow-drifts. The Germans threw the first strong alpine units into the breach on the central front against big Russian detachments of ski troops and tanks. Tank clashes and hand-to hand fighting marked a sharp battle in the snow in the region of the Velikie Luki railway junction, which is reported to have been encircled, but which the Germans still hold. The Moscow radio announced that the Russians south-west of Rjev continuing their advance, smashed an important enemy centre of resistance. Fighting was very stiff. Russian Tommy-gunners, supported by artillery and tanks, penetrated the outei defences and caused havoc in closequarters fighting. Most Violent Battle The Moscow paper Pravda describes the central front battle as most violent. The whole front line is one unbroken wall of fire. The Germans launched furious counterattacks, but were forced to fall back under the Red Army pressure, abandoning strong-points that they had held for a whole year. Despite the stiffening German resistance on the Sthlingrad front, .the Russians continue To advance in both the north-western and southern sectors. The Russians north-west o. Stalingrad continue to break up German troop concentrations inside the Kalach - Kachalinsk - Stalingrad triangle. The advance along the railway south-west of Stalingrad has momentarily paused a few miles from Kotelnikovo. The Red Army is digging in and fortifying positions captured in yesterday’s advance. A Moscow message says that the Germans are ceaselessly attacking a recently-captured section of the Rjev-Viazma railway without success. The Russians are said to be continuing their slow advance, while the air force is intensifying its attacks on enemy reserves which are being moved up in the hope of retrieving the situation. Resistance Overcome

To-night’s Soviet communique states: 'Our troops in the Stalingrad area and on the central front continued tht offensive to-day, overcoming stubborn enemy resistance. The Soviet air force yesterday destroyed 50 German planes. In the factory area of StalinI grad, the Russians dislodged the enemy from some more buildings ana wiped out one enemy infantry com pany. In the southern outskirts, the Russians occupied a fortified poin. after fierce fighting. The enemy •left hundreds of dead on the battlefield. Elsewhere in the Stalingrac area, a great number of enemy dug outs and pill-boxes were wrecked anc heavy casualties inflicted. On the central front, many' enemy counterattacks eastward of Velikie Luki were repelled. Tlie Russian advance wes, jf Rjev continued. Enemy defence fines were penetrated and a railway station occupied.” A supplementary communique records fighting in northern Stalingrar. and the capture of a fortified heigh. 3f the city, destroying a whole enemy oattalion. South-west of Stalingrad, the Russians are chiefly engaged ir consolidating their positions. West of Riev. a Russian tank unit had a successful engagement. The slowing down of movement in the Stalingrad area is .thought in London to be due to wet weathei and the natural tendency for active jperation to slow down after a while There is still no report of any German counter-attack. The statement chat a German division has been withdrawn from Stalingrad is easily explained by the size of the so-called German pocket which contains its own airfields and plenty of room foi manoeuvre.

In the Caucasus, where the Russians are still attacking on a moderate scale, snow on the mountains and -,ain in the valleys is having an effec; in operations.