RUSHANS CAPTURE KOTELNIKOVO

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XLXI, Issue 15238, 31 December 1942, Page 3

RUSHANS CAPTURE KOTELNIKOVO

SOVIET ARMIES SPECTACULAR SUCCESS TANKS AND EQUIPMENT TAKEN AMAZING RAPIDITY OF ADVANCE. United Press Assn.—Bv Electric Telegraph —Coovruzhi LONDON, December 30. Sweeping dawn the railway from Stalingrad, the Russians gained a spectacular success by capturing Kotelnikovo. Many prisoners were taken as well as a large quantity of booty including aircraft equipment and a whole trainload of tanks and much other war equipment. This means the loss to- the Germans of a centre they had built up as a supply base for future operations. The Russian advance is unabated in all t-lie main areas. There is no sign of a successful German rally south-west of Stalingrad, despite desperate attempts to disengage. The Associated Press correspondent in Moscow reports that the Russians have captured Nagolny, three miles due south of Kotelnikovo, also Maiorsky, nine miles north-west, and Karachev, l£ miles east of the same town. An indication of the wide sweep of this encircling movement is given in the special Moscow' announcement. It named newly-occupied localities south-west of Stalingrad* including Verkhnekurmoyarskaya, on the Don, 16 miles nortli-west of Kotelnikovo, Biriukov, on tlie right bank of the Don, 22 miles south-west of Potemkinsk, Krylov. 25 miles south-east of Kotelnikovo, and Zavetnaya, 60 miles southeast of Kotelnikovo. The Times’ Moscow correspondent says that the Germans are able to halt the Russian advance only when they entrench in strong garrisons. Elsewhere their field defences are apparently useless. The Russian tanks are quitting the roads, and making long and terribly destructive lunges. The Russians are not allowing the resisting garrison to check the advance of the tanks, whose main task is to beat down the rearguards, preventing them from disengaging and counter-attacking. The Red Army also intends to annihilate the Germans and destroy their equipment. Immediately a sufficient weight of artillery is brought up, the garrisons are resolutely assaulted. One of tlie most satisfactory features of the campaign compared with last winter’s is tlie rapidity with which isolated strongpoints are broken down. An example of this is the capture of Chertkovo. which was ringed and defended by villages and strong anti-tank guns. The fall, of Chertkovo is most important as it joins two patches of the Voronej-Rostov railway into one long stretch now in Russian hands. It is also situated on the main highway to Starobyelsk, inside a railwavless quadrangle. Its capture absorbed for a week strong Russian forces which are now free for service elsewhere.

Reuter’s Moscow correspondent says that the Russians are not allowing fresh German reserves which Hitler is moving into the Middle Don area time to concentrate and organise effective defences. German reserves at many place® are marching straight from the rear bases into the battlefront and they are meeting the Russians, fightng under orders not only to roll back the enemy but it the Germans try to stand and fight, to kill them to a man.

The Russian Guards are pounding piecemeal the large German force which has split into two isolated groups south-west of Stalingrad. Tlie remnants of the relief army of six German divisions, intending to stage a comeback on this front, continue to roll back under the Russian hammer-blows.

Despite the ' tremendous efforts on the southern sectors, tlie Russians are very active in other areas They are progressing slowly in the Nalchik region where the Axis is fiercely and fruitlessly counter-jabbing. Mutual hammering continues in the Velikiye Luk-i and Byeloi regions, but there lias been no noteworthy shifting of ground.