Evening star., 1941-07-03
Vanguard Of Germans
Driving al Moscow
Repe||ed Soviet Says
Nuzi Mechunized Advance
Inside Ukraine Also
Declared Halted
Hy the Associated Press

Hy the Associated Press
MOSCOW, July 3.-The vanguard
Of Moscow-bound German invaders
was reported by the Russian high
command today to have been thrown
back in repeated attempts to cross
the Berezina River, where in 1872
the waters were Redeemed by the
blood of Napoleon's men under
harassed retreat from the Russian
capital.
Nearly 300 miles to the south OF
Borisov, where the battle of the
Berezina centered, the Red Army
also was reported to have halted
in "a heavy defeat" a mechanical
advance toward Shepetovka, some
20 miles inside the old border of the
Ukraine on the road to Kiev.
Other parts of the Ukraine in
vasion force were said to have
attempted a Through to the
south toward Tarnopol, east OF
Lwow and south of Luck. still in
the Ukraine's Polish buffer zone
These forces apparently had veered
southwark from Luck.
Throughout the whole night our
troops in heavy fighting stemmed
the advance of the enemy troops,
a communique said
Fighting continues by our air
force. which shot down 81 enemy
planes In air combats through July
2. We lost % aircraft"
(Another threat to the Ukraine
and its capital, Kiev--this from
the southwest-appeared in a
German high command report
that German and Rumanian
troops finally had crossed the
Prut River into Bessarabia and
were driving toward the Dnestr
River)
Two Major Battles Rage.
Thus. according to the latest Rus
sian communique. two ajor battles
ragged on this, the 18th day of the
Russian-German struggle near
Borisov, less than 400 miles from
Moscow on the Minsk- Moscow
motor road, and in the Shepetoxka-
Tarnapol region, some 200 miles
from Kiey.
1t appeared that the full force of
the German blitz had not yet
reached the bloody Berezina" at
Borisov. for the Red high command
made a point of saying only that
advanced detachments" had tried
to cross the river.
Gn Berlin it was said German
advance units had crossed the
Berezina on the way to Smo-
lensk.1
Last night, the communiuue said.
Red troops and motorized forces of
the Germans fought fercely in the
Eorlsov area.
1t was to Borisov on November
as, 1912, that the main body of Ma
poleon's army retreated. close upon
the heels of an engineer force which
struggled deep in the icy water to
lay a bridge of escape from the
slashing attacks of a victorious Rus
sian Army. The Russians destroyed
the bridge at Borislov before the
French could Use it. presumably
the modern bridge likewise has been
DESTROYED by the Red ArmyD
Patrol Activity During Night.
As for other fronts. including the
Far North Murmansk sector. where
the Russians claimed to have de-
feated about two infantry divisions
attacking on the Sredni peninsula.
the latest Russian communique re-
ported only might patrol activity
and fighting of local character"
Reports on the Borisov sector.
deepest point of the German thrust
into Russia proper, elaborated an
earlier admission that the invaders
had pushed about 80 miles beyond
Mlnsk to Bobruisk.
Bobruisk is about 10 miles east of
Slutsk, which apparently is caught
with Sinsk, Borisov and Bobruisk in
a fan-shaped offensive from the
break-through at Baranowicze. in
Poland near the old Russian border.
An earlier communique said that
the German spearheads aimed at
Moscow had been blocked in the
Borisov-Slutsk- -Bobruisk region.
I'm the directions of Borisov.
S1utsk and Bobruisk" the COM
munique said, violent battles oc-
Cured during the G,oy between our
troops and mobile enemy units.
Enemy attempts tdl break through
were prevented by the stubborn
resistance of our troops and the
successful operations of our avia-
ton"
The struggle around Murmansk.
key Soviet Arctic port at the head of
an important rail line from Lenin-
grad, led to stubborn and fierce
fighting the Russians said.
I'm the direction of Murmansk, !"
the communioue said, "our troops
halted by fire and counterattacks an
enemy offensive of about two divi-
s1ons against the Sredni Peninsula
and to the southeast inflicted a great
defeat upon him
Other fighting mentioned in the
communique:
In the KuolaJarv1 sector ton the
Russtan-Finnish border south of
Murmansk) and the Karelian 18TH
mus our troops successfully repulsed
all enemy attacks, inficting heavy
losses on him.
Fight in Dvinsk Sector.
''1n the Dvinsk sector (at the
Russian-Latvian border) great
battle developed between our troops
and the enemy, who attempted to
penetrate toward the northeast. The
fighting continues.
I'm the Luck direction (South-
eastern PolanO our troops continued
to resist f1ercely in the Rowne area
(45 miles east of Luck. The enemy
tried to break through to the south
east, but everywhere his attempts
were smashed by the firm, stubborn
resistance of our troops"
The Russian air force was said to
have bombed the Rumanian capital
of Bucharest, blowing up an arsenal.
Nv E~t, {,, u,,+