The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-07-14


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 But the afternoon communique, reporting no big battles during the night. added that there had been no changes of consequence anywhere along the front.
 It was asserted that the Russian air fleet continued to bomb German alrports and that during the night Russian planes had bombed Iasi and Roman, in the Rumanian frontier area, and the important oil fields ot Ploesti which have been hammered freuuently ever since the Russo German war started.
 GA Russian communique, picked up by the Columbia Broadcasting System from the British Broadcast- ing Corporation, said three oil tanks had been set afire in 8 Russian raid on the Ploesti fields and that there had been 0 number of civilian casualties)
 The first communique had report ed the Russians holding fierce Ger man mechanized and motorized drives toward Leningrad Moscow and Kief, and asserted that the Rus- slams had recaptured two key towns on the Dnieper river, on the Mos COW front, by successful counter attacks.
 It was asserted the Germans were losing heavily, as Russian counter attacking tanks ripped Into their lines and artillery and airplaneS homharded them.
 First Three Weeks
 Summarizing the first three weeks of the war, ended yesterday, the communique said the Germans had lost not less than 100000 men in killed. wounded and prisoners against total Russian losses of not more than 250000. The Germans have lost more than 5000 tanks and more than 2,so0 planes, 1t was said, against Russian losses of 2,200 tanks and 1900 planes.
 Russia disclosed yesterday that the Germans had started to drive again in fullest fury On the three main fronts toward Len1ngrad, Mos COW and Kiev, capital of the Uk- raine.
 ,7cday's first communique like- wise reported violent fighting on all three fronts, in the Pskov direction, oppoSfte Lake Peipus in Esthonia on the way to Leningrad; in the Vitehsk direction on the Vitebsk- Emolensk- Moscow route, and in the NoVograd VolynSk direction on the Ukrainian front toward Kiev.
 In the northwestern direction, in the Pskov area, large German mos torized and mechanized forces at- tempted to develop an offensive, the cDmmunique said, but by staunch resistance of our troops, the enemy was checked everywhere and at some places thrown back, suffering heavy losses"
 Tn the western direction, in the vitebsk area, the communique said, tour troops recaptured the towns of Zhlohin and Rogachev."
 Rogachev is on the Dnieper river g miles east of BobruiSk. on the Bobruisk Doslavl Moscow road. zhlohin is also on the Dnieper, 12 Ia miles south of Rogachev.
 Violent Fighting
 "rn other sectors in this direction violent fighting against large enemy infantry forces and tanks continued Throughout the day." the communi- que said, reporting operations of Sunday.
 Tn the southwestern direction our troops continued operations against enemy motorized and mechanized units, resisting their advance to the east. In continuous stubborn fight ing in this direction the enemy sus- Ealned heavy losses from our ar- ttllery fire and blows by our tanks and aviation"
 This is the Novograd Volynsk area of the Ulrainian front.
 Tn other parts of the line, the comnfunique said, no important fighting took place and no subStan- 1aal chances occurred in the rela- tive position of troops.
 Russian airplaneS continue to hammer at German mechanical and motor units and at German air. <lromes, it was said.
 # was asserted that on Saturday 13l German airplanes were destroy