BRISK FIGHTING

New Zealand Herald, Volume 80, Issue 24613, 18 June 1943, Page 3

BRISK FIGHTING

ACTIVITY IN RUSSIA GAINS EY RED ARMY REGION OF OREL BULGE LONDON, Juno 17 Russian and German sources arei giving prominence to the fighting between Orel and Kharkov,, which each side is suggesting may be a pra* ludc to the summer offensive. Reuter's Moscow correspondent says the fighting in the Orel bulge, about' 200 miles south of Moscow, is mors intense. Tho Russians in tho past few days have mado a valuable improvement in their positions in tho Mtsensk sector, north-east of Orel, which forms the 'eastern tip of the salient. The Russians, after crossing the river, captured the first lino of German trenches on this front. The Germans counter-attacked, vigorously several times and suffered heavy losses but failed to recover the. ground. The new positions gained by the Rus-; sians straighten their line in the area.ivhich is about 30 miles north-east of Orel and takes in a horseshoe bend, which the Germans have been fortifying? for a year. Activity elsewhere on the Russian front is confined to local skirmishes. The Berlin radio states that Russian troop movements in the Kursk region, have increased considerably in the pasfcfew davs. - ■

The latest targets of Russian longrange bombers were Roslavl, about halfway between Briansk and Smolensk, two places on the railway line running south-west from Briansk to Gomel, and an important junction in the Crimea. The Moscow, radio says the Russian planes caused big lires and explosions among troop trains. All the Russian planes returned to their bases. The Germans attempted another raid on the Russian base of Saratov, 200 miles up the Volga from Stalingrad. Only a few enemy planes got through and two were shot down. In a surprise raid on an enemy-held northern port, Soviet bombers sank a German transport, also several cutters and other auxiliary craft, and set fire to harbour buildings. Escorting fighters shot down two Messerschmitts. No Russian machines were lost. Moscow reports the sinking of a Üboat in the Black Sea and an enemy transport and a tanker in the Barents Sea.

BACK FROM MOSCOW

AUSTRALIAN MINISTER ' (Reed. 10.30 p.m.) SYDNEY, June 17 The Russian leaders and people showed a real interest in Australia and respect for her war effort, said the Australian Minister to Moscow, Mr.. William Slater, who has returned home because of ill-health. His future plans depend on his recovery and medical advice.

In the short time he was in Russiasaid Mr. Slater, he quickly becaia« aware of the tremendous sacrifices being made by the Russians. The Soviet leaders impressed him by their earnestness and capacity. All were confident of the ultimate victory of the Allies, although none minimised the power and ruthlessness of the German military machine and were naturally anxious about the opening of the second front.

CHINESE OFFENSIVE

ENEMY USES POISON GAS (Reed. 5.35 p.m.) CHUNGKING, June 1G It is reported that the Chinese have retaken another town about 70 miles down stream from Ichang. The Chinese forces, giving the Japanese little chance to reorganise from their crushing defeat in the Yangtso area, have disrupted enemy communications with Yochow in attacks on_ tho Hankow-Canton railway. The Chinese are now massing forces to drive the Japanese from Hwajung and Shihshow. A Chinese military spokesman stated that there were indications of a new Japanese offensive in Western Yunnan from Burma. He asserted that the Japanese apparently were preparing to Uso poison gas, as a Japanese ship unloaded 120 cases of gas containers and 50 tons of gas shells at Woosung, near Shanghai, in tho middle of last month. Japanese planes dropped gas bombs on Suiyuan village on May 31 and tho following day Japanese artillery fired gas shells at Shasi village. Reviewing the upper Yangtso battle, tho spokesman estimated that the Japanese employed 100,000 men and the Chinese forces wore only slightly greater. United States aircraft in Central China shot down six Japanese planes in an air battle over the of Changsha on Tuesday afternoon, hour more Japanese planes were claimed as probably destroyed. The Americans had no losses, although they were outnumbered by eight to one. The Japanese lost two planes in another clash in the same area on the preceding day, when eight American aircraft attacked 42 Japanese planes.