Evening star., 1942-05-22
Nozi Tank Thrusts Are Blocked
On Khorkov F Front, Reds Report;
Some Enemy Gains Intimoted
Germans Declared
Trying FuriousIy
To Take initiative
BY the Associated Press.

1tldllS OIlCc IIlOTe nave IuTl6u
strong tank forces into counter
attacks in the raging battle for
Kharkov, this time employing
tricky new tactics of screened
attack, but the new mechanical
thruSts have been repulsed, the
army newspaper Red Star said
today.
The enemy is making furious
efforts to take the initiative out Of
our hands," the army newspaper
reported, but this is not last year,
and the relation of the opposing
forces is quite different"
Red Star intimated the Germans
might have succeeded in obtaining
some partial. limited successes" but
declared that on the whole the
Kharkov offensive was developing
satisfactorily and I'VE have every
thing necessary to keep the initia-
tive"
Local Gains Reported.
The Soviet Information Bureau
announced at least local Russian
gains.
"On the heels Of the retreating
enemy" the communique said,
Russian troops broke into a pop
ulated place"
(The German high command
declared Russian attacks on the
Kharkov front had been turned
back and that the initiative had
been seized by the Nazi armies0
(Reuters in London recorded a
German broadcast today saying
the Russians had broken through
the main German line over an
8-mile front southeast Of Lake
linen after heavy artillery prep
aration in an assault with tank
and plane support, but that the
break-through was only tempo
rary and that the Russian attacks
collapsed in the face of stubborn
German resistance."D
In its account, Red Star said
eounterattacking German tanks
were sent into the attack in three
groups-two small forces intended
to distract Russian attention, then
q third strong surprise force at
tempting to catch the Russians on
the flank. This failed and heavy
losses were inflicted on the Ger
mans, Red Star said.
Previously large-scale tank op-
erations had dwindled temporarily
except in one sector Of the Kharkov
front. Even there, Red Star said,
a big tank clash which had been
under way for several days con-
tinued at a lower pitch.
Heavy German Losses.
"The Germans had tremendous
losses here" the army newspaper
reported, land are running out OF
breath"
Red Star said German successes
on the Kerch Peninsula also cost
the invaders a tremendous price in
men and war material.
(The Germans themselves
claimed capture Of 1892 more
prisoners on the Kerch PENN
sula, bringing the total to 169,-
1913, and said captured material
now included 284 tanks and 1897
guns)
The community newly penetrated
by Russian spearheads was not iden-
titled by the Soviet Information Bu-
reau. The phrasing indicated the
action might have been part of an
attack which Red Star reported
yesterday had preached Nazi lines
before Kharkov, wiped out a key
German stronghold and carried Rus
sian tanks and troops miles into
an open battlefield held only by
German infantry and scattered pill
boxes.
More than 1900 Germans were re-
ported slain in two engagements
on the Kalinin front to the north.
The midnight communique, refer
ring to daylight operations yester-
day, did not announce gains. The
successful drive against the Ger
man attack in the Kharkov region
was reported at midday.
For a week official reports con-
cerning Marshal Semeon Timo-
shenko's onslaught. launched while
Axis invaders of the Crimea struck
eastward along the Kerch Peninsula
400 miles to the south, had followed
a general pattern set by the an
nouncement May 13:
In the Kharkov direction of the
front our troops took the offensive
and are successfully advancing"
The account of battle develop
ments yesterday said enemy attacks
were repulsed in the Izyum-Bar-
venkova sector 80 miles southeast of
Kharkov and that fighting con-
tinued on the eastern part of the
Kerch Peninsula"
German counterattacks on the
1zyum- -Barvenkova sector have
bitten a chunk out of the salient
created by the current Russian
offensive, but there are no indi-
cations that this bite is being
increased, British military
spokesman said.
(The spokesman declared nerce
fighting was continuing on the
front from Krasnograd go miles
southwest of Kharkov, to VOL
chansk, about 80 miles northeast
OF that city.
cit is too early, however, for
q definite result" the spokes-
man added
S. Planes Shot Down.
Sixty-f1ve German planes were de-
clared shot down Wednesday, against
a Russian loss of %, and the Red air
force was credited with destroying
or damaging "a Nazi tanks, 273
trucks with troops and supplies, 81
ammunition wagons and 81 guns
that day.
The information bureau an
nounced guerrillas had slain more
than 5000 Germans in the area OF
SmoIensk, which is near the border
Of Nazi-occupied White Russia.
Red Star forecast that Hitler's in
vaders would seek to link the isolated
strong points which they defended
through the winter campaign
scattered between Taganrog ane