FIERCE NAZI ATTACKS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 76, 27 October 1941, Page 5

FIERCE NAZI ATTACKS

FRESH TROOPS THROWN IN WEDGE DRIVEN IN AT ONE POINT SERIOUS POSITION DEVELOPED ißec. 11.30 a.m.) London, Oct. 26 Moscow radio says that a serious situation has developed in one sector in the central front, where the Germans, throwing in more and more reinforcements, forced Soviet troops to abandon two villages. The Russian command decided to occupy a new position on the other side of the river bank, which presents an excellent defence line. A war dispatch to “Pravda” says that the Germans in the past 24 hours made several attacks on the southern sector of the Moscow front, but failed The enemy arc throwing in new troops all along the bank of the river Oka wher** it flows along an impoi\ant road ! running south-east of the capital in the hope of finding a weak point and reaching the highway. At one point nnlv The enemy succeeded with fresh divisions in driving a wedge into the Soviet positions, pressing back our troops slightly Artillery fire and bombing stopped any further enemy advance The Red army repulsed several attacks in the Makeevka section, j A fierce battle continues at Kalinin. where the fight for the possession of j b large granary is proceeding. THE DONETZ BASIN j A German communique states ; “The occupation of the Donetz Basin continues and offensive operations are proceeding on other sectors of the eastern front. The Luftwaffe destroyed parts I of the Murmansk railway line and j barracks on the Ribachi Peninsula During night raids on Moscow hits were I scored <>n the Kremlin ” j The Rome radio states that the soviet has, recalled Marshal Bluecher

I I rom Chungking for a special task at! Sverdolf.sk. ( A I’TUK E OF Kll \RKOY NOT CONFIRMED Direct news of the position is still very scanty in London. • The German claim to have taken Kharkov is not confirmed from Russian, .•onroes hut it is known that a thrust in i | this direction has been carried out for some time past. There is also no inch ration of the truth of the German claim to be within 35 miles of Moscow, but it is possible that a small force may I have penetrated as far from Mojaisk. 1 FEROCITY OF FIGHTING Messages received by Russian newspapers all emphasise the scri- | ousness of the position and the ferocity of the lighting. Instances given of the stern Russian defence include ‘ the fact that on the Malo-Yaro-slavctz front the enemy was only able to occupy one village after whole days of fierce attacks, while in the Kalinin area fighting for a single barn lasted a whole day. I In the important Rostov area enemy pressure is reported to be increasing. | hundreds of tanks and were repulsed ! after losing fourteen of them, six guns, | and a battalion of infantry. The battle i here, however, is likely to become! ! fiercer with the appearance of new GerI man forces. HEAVY GERMAN LOSSES REPORTED j “Pravda” says that a new German oi- ! fensive was launched on Friday against I Moscow. The Reichsweir attacked on i the whole front after a heavy artillery infantry. The paper estimates that in the first three weeks of the first offenI sive against Moscow the Germans lost ! 300.000 men. Messages from Kuiby- j jshev state that new reinforcements! j which the Germans brought up for their i new offensive against Moscow include ; j troops brought back from the northern i . front and Finnish and Rumanian j troops. The Germans are said to have | lost in the first day of the new offensive j |7O tanks. 200 lorries and two infantry | battalions—U.P.A. and 8.0. W.