Evening star., 1942-07-11
Area Of Fighting
Is Spreading,
Russians Soy
b. the Associated Press.

MOSCOW, July 11.-German
divisions, having captured Ros-
sosh, today pressed a three
pronged offensive toward the
Don River with such vigor that
the Russian Army newspaper
Red Star acknowledged their
developing success"
Marshal Semeon Timoshenko's
Soviet field forces battled on against
spearheads jabbed across the Don
at Voronezh, and in the direction of
the strategic river at Kantemirovka,
As miles to the south; and near Lisi-
chansk, 200 miles below Voronezh.
Red Star said the Germans
fighting to expand their holdings on
the east bank of the Don were find
ing rough going because of the tank
troops and heavy Russian artillery
fire, but acknowledged 'the area Of
fighting west of Voronezh is spread
ing"
(The Vichy radio reported to-,
day that the Germans had
reached Yelets, about rs miles
northwest of Voronezh, indicat-
ing a considerable widening of
the Don River front, but it added
that the Russians have been sue
cessful in their elastic defense
and several armies succeeded in
withdrawing.")
Conditions Difficult.
The Soviet defenders of Kantemi-
rovka were reported by the army
publication to be operating under
very improbable and difficult con-
ditions."
North of the Kursk-
wedge, however, all German attacks
were declared to have been con-
sistently repelled, with the Germans
now on the defensive, digging in
and relying on their air force to
ward off Soviet attacks.
Red Army men counterattacked
tenaciously on the f1anks and fought
to close breaches in their river posi-
tions before Voronezh, the admins
trative center population 212,00O
OF Russia's black earth area.
Heavy casualties were reported in
ficted on the invaders by the spirit
ed defense of that city.
HNno I'd fE,litah ,,,if Lac+,oral
$500 German officers and men, 10
tanks, 3 armored cars, Al guns OF
various calibers, 10 mortars, Is ma
chine guns, II trucks and (muni-
tions) carts" the Soviet Information
Bur eau announced.
Military observers said the stub
born defense of Voronezh had forced
the Germans to swing south the
main weight of their greatest cam
paign of 1912.
Principal Rail Line Cut.
Nazi troops, however have cut the
principal railway linking Central
and Southern Russian armies-the
trunk line between Moscow and
Rostov-by the capture of Rossosh,
a communique disclosed.
Rossosh, a way station and fac
tory-farm town of 10000, which lies
100 miles south of Voronezh, was re-
ported abandoned by Soviet troops
in favor of new positions after 48
hours Of fierce fighting against
tanks and motorized infantry.
Another 100 miles to the South,
German detachments striking from
the Izyum sector along the Donets
River, the chief western tributary OF
the Don, engaged Marshal Timo-
shenko's men in the region Of Lisi-
chansk, town of $4,000.
The Information Bureau said
fierce battles continued yesterday
west of Voronezh, even though it
had been acknowledged that strong
German formations finally forced
crossings of the Don, 10 miles away
in their 2-week-old push from
! Kursk.
Fighting in KantemirOvka Area.
Our troops evacuated Rossosh,
the communique reported. Fight
ing continued in the neighborhooc
OF Kantemirovka.
TN the direction OF Lisichansk
fighting developed with enemy
(See RUSSIA, Page A-2)