GAINING MORE GROUND

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 87, Issue 203, 28 August 1943, Page 5

GAINING MORE GROUND

RUSSIANS WEST OF KHARKOV POWERFUL NAZI LINES BROKEN IN DONETZ BASIN (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright-) Recd. 7 p.m. London, Aug. 26. Though the Russians have gained more ground west of Kharkov, they are meeting with resistance from well-prepared defences in the Donetz Basin. Moscow radio says that the Red Army has advanced to the top of a dominating height south west of Voroshilovgrad. To do this they had to smash through some of the most powerful defences on which the Germans had been working for nearly two years. Now Soviet guns pre pounding the German posiitons, while the infantry penetrates deeper into the defences. Th.? enemy is resisting desperately and it is a case of prising him out of trenches, dug-outs and pill-boxes. The Bed Army made good progress again yesterday in the great Ukrainian' offensive. Soviet troops beat off widespread counter-attacks, fought their way through minefields and hurled the enemy out of strongpoints in many sectors of the line.

West and north-west of Kharkov, the Russian offensive has developed in the plains between Poltava and Sumy. It is in this area that some days ago the Germans put in their most determined counter-attack. In the Don Basin the Russian force that had driven across the River Alius met and successfully dealt with the expected powerful German counterattack. German tanks made some progress but their infantry failed to follow up, and the Russian advance continues. On the Briansk front there has been more air and patrol activity The Germans have created special counter-attacking groups waich are hastily thrown in wnenever conditions favour a counter-drive. There was a particularly determined enemy attempt on Wednesday south-west of V orosnilovgrad, where several aoz-n tanks, with air support and large infantry forces, attacsed the dran.i-out rig.it flank of the Rea Army and simultaneously harassed the left flank. The initial success of the enemy drive petered out and the Russians resumed their attack, capturing an important settlement and forcing a river position, thereby creating a grave threat to a larger enemy force consisting mainly ot remnants of units already routed in the Soviet attack. According to to-day's Red Star the Germans are attempting to homo me Russians in the Kharkov area by using large groups of bombers, escoited by fignters, but the Soviet forces are successfully dealing witn tnem. Yesterday nine Soviet lighters met 40 German bombers, escorted by about the same number of fignters. Despite their numerical imeriority, the Russians shot down 22 planes. One of the key battles ot the summer campaign, is how correspondents describe mammoth tank struggles raging norh and north-west of Poltava to decide the fate of one of the two main railway lines into southern Russia. 'The British United Press Moscow Correa pond-ent says that when the Russian spearhead in the great swing north Irom Kharkov crossed the Psioi River and got into position to outflank the Germans holding Poltava. Van Mannisein flung in great tank divisions in an attempt to check the grave Russian threat. The meeting ot the vast tank forces resulted in the giant clashes now going on. The correspondent points out that if Poltava tails the railway line trom Kiev to Stalino and the Donetz Basin generally would lie cut. and the problem of supplying the German forces still holding out in the Donetz Basm would be extremely difficult. The Russians, taking advantage of the capture ot the important railway centre ot Senkoy, outflanked Poltava and are driving rapidly down the last 30-mile stretch of road to the Kiev-Poltava railway. The Russians simultaneously nave launched a new assault south ot Kharkov, menacing the German supply lines on the Donetz front. The Stockholm correspondent of The Times says that Akhtyra, which the Russians recaptured yesterday, changed hands six times, which is more frequently than any other important Russian town. Renter's Moscow correspondent states that the Germans have oroug.it up large groups of bombers, supported ny Messerschmitts and Fockc Wulfs, in an effort to stem the Russian movement north-west of Briansk.