The Wilmington morning star., 1942-06-21
NAX ARMY PRESSES
DRIVE ON SEVASTOPOL
CONTINUED from Pare One)


the Black sea fleet stayed aloft to
challenge them. In 10 days Rus
sian fighters and ground batteries
were reported to have killed 1000
German infantrymen and destroy
ed "a tanks.
Situation Grave
But the situation there was one
of increasing gravity for the stout
Russian defenders.
Soviet dispatches said the Ger
mans made eight successive as
saults on the south side June 18
only to be repuled each time by
the Red army defenders. One re-
pulse was carried out at bayonet
point, the Russians destroying a
regiment of Nazi infantry and de-
stroying about &c tanks.
Even fiercer fighting was re-
ported around the northern fortifi-
cations where the Germans exert
ed their greatest effort, with sew
eral infantry divisions and many
heavy tanks massed in single sec
tors.
The Red army, both at Sevasto-
pol and on the other fronts, was
considered far stronger, better or
ganized, armed and trained after
almost a year of war in which
millions have fought, bled a n d
died. Across Hitler's path h y
stood, from the Arctic to the Black
sea, determined to make 1912 the
year of his debacle.
The Germans at Sevastopol, no
longer the cream of Nazi manpow-
er, hurled themselves against the
flaming trenches and concrete
blocks in the hope of presenting
their fuehrer with the naval base
as a present on the first anniver-
sary Of the Russian-German strug-
gle, next Monday.
Punish Nazis
But the sailors and gunners,
defending with their breasts
every inch of Soviet land" were
the Nazis mercilessly.
The Black sea fleet continued to
shell the enemy lines and to bring
arms, munitions and food
to the besieged garrison.
Warships and long range guns
wiped out numerous enemy troops
in positions we'll behind the front,
advices said. The cruiser
Red Crimea escaped repeated at
tempts of the Luftwaffe to 81 n k
her near the city. There W
than 200 raids on the ship,
the dispatches said, but she w S
not hit.
Meanwhile the Russian high
command masked its intentions
west of Moscow.
Soviet military authorities were
silent on German reports that
new Russian offensive had b n
opened against Smolensk, W t h
waves of infantry attacking behind
tank and air support.
Gan important town in the direc-
ton of Smolensk was recaptured,
said British broadcast of Mos
COW dispatches.)
But observers recalled that it
was several days after the begin
ming of the Russians Kharkov OF
fensive on May IL before an an
was made. That Of
fensive was launched to upset Ger
man plans for German often
sive against Rostov, designed as
companion to the Kerch peninsula
drive in the Crimea.
Soviet reports told of two bat
ties on the Kalinin front, north OF
Smolensk, in which 1,500 Germans
were killed in a 48-hour fight, and
more than 700 wiped out in an
other two-day combat.
Since the ending of the Russians
winter offensive they have h l d
two salients pointed at Smolensk,
which is 220 miles west of Mos
COW. One reaches to Dorogobuzh,
so miles southeast of Smolensk,
and the other runs through Toro-
petz. 12O miles north of Smolensk
and extends on into White Russia
between Smolensk and Velikie
Luki.
Caught in the bulge are Gzhatsk,
95 miles west of Moscow, Vyazma
- p.L