BATTERING THE ENEMY

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXII, Issue 119, 20 April 1942, Page 5

BATTERING THE ENEMY

OPERATIONS IN RUSSIA. RUG 13Y, April IS

The present operations on the Russian front are described in a Kuibyshev message as a sustained battering oi the enemv defences by the Red Army, with the" Germans vainly trying to stem the avalanche by throwing in reserves. The Eighth German artillery regiment, lighting as infantry, lost 3GO men out of 400 ill the past three days' lighting. ~. , ~ Messages from Kuibyshev say that the Red Army smashed enemy defences on the Karelian front, penetrating several miles and capturing a number of settlements. The Red Army has continued to advance, despite fierce and frequent counter-attacks. Five German generals are among the 11.000 soldiers killed by Russian guer rillas in the Smolensk region in the past nine months, states the Moscow radio. These guerrillas, co-operating with the Red Army, have liberated, completely or partially. 20 districts. A supplement to this, mornings Russian communique, which merely states that no substantial change occurred on the front during the nightsays that in one sector of the Kalinin front during a single day Russians destroyed 35 block houses and dugouts and a great number of enemy weapons. In the rear of the enemy two ammunition dumps were blown up. The enemy lost in killed 700 .officers and men. A Moscow message states that Russian fighters shot down seven bombers and eight fighters who were attempting to raid Murmansk and damaged 12 other planes. The 15.8. C. European service announced that Gener.il von Loeb has been relieved of his command on the Leningrad front. His successor. Marshal von Kuechler, was formerly commander of the 18th German army. The Moscow radio reported yesterday that the Russians are capturing one fortress after another in the Demulov sector 18 miles north-west of Smolensk 'Three German divisions were beaten back with heavy losses in these operations. GUERRILLAS' GOOD WORK.

Guerrillas on the Leningrad front reported a concentration of German planes at a German aerodrome, says the Moscow radio After Russian reconnaissance planes had confirmed that 40 bombers and several fighters were on the runway, Russian planes attacked suddenly and destroyed 12 and damaged 10 German planes. Iwo Messerschinitts took off in an attempt to stem the attack, but both were shot down. . . . , The Russians have imprisoned tne German pilot Wegner, who is reputed to be responsible for the bombing ot Buckingham Palace. The Norwegian Telegraph Agency says that 70 Russian bombers heavily attacked the German garrison at Vardo, killing at least 200. Kuibvshev reports say that the Russians deeply penetrated the enemy lines in the Karelian Isthmus and killed more than 1 1000 Germans.—Official Wireless. .