Evening star., 1942-11-24
Air Battle Starts Over Tunisio::
Russians Closing Trop on Nozis,
Press Ahead in Sto|inqrod Area
New Goins Maintain
Average Up to
II Miles Daily
BY EDDY GILMORE,
associated Press War Corresponder

l
MOSCOW, Nov. 24.-The Jaws
Of a double Russian offensive,
which battlefront reports said
had bit deeply into the cold
steppes west OF the Don bend
and cost the Germans $4,000
! dead and captured, were closing
steadily today on the Nazis'
whole Stalingrad salient.
Despite desperate German re-
sistance In an effort to keep open
a corridor Of reinforcement or escape
to the long-besieged Volga bastion,
the Russians reported new gains to
maintain their average Of to II
miles day northwest of Stalingrad
and to. II miles a day southwest
Of the city.
A dispatch to the London Express
under Stockholm dateline said Col.
Gen. Hermann Won Hoth. reputed
to be the Nazi commander OF the
siege forces, has begun to pull out
from Stalingrad."
German headquarters ac-
knowledged with rare frankness
that the Red Armies had pene-
trated into Nazi defense lines
south Of Stahngrad and in the
big loop Of the Don River. The
Nazi communique said vaguely
that counter measures are pro-
ceeding.')
The deepest reported Russian
penetration was at Chernyshevskaya
on the CHR River. 125 miles west of
Stalingrad and Is miles west of
kalach, the railroad town on the
Don bend which the Russians seized
over the week end.
40 Miles From Kletskaya.
Chernyshevskaya is some 40 miles
southwest of Kletskaya, the Don
River citadel 100 miles northwest of
Stalingrad, which the Nazis over
ran in their fall drive toward the
Volea. Now German holding posi-
tions at Kletskaya are menaced
from two sides, since the Russians
also are on the offensive in the
Serofimovich, 80 miles farther up
the Don.
Southwest of Stalingrad the Rus
slams were pushing along the rail
line which leads from Stalingrad
across. the bleak Kalmyck steppes
into the Northern Caucasus. They
reported driving on after taking
Aksai in, a 10-mile advance from
Ah0o An v,f1Ae >S
Stalingrad.
Battlefront dispatches said. the
Germans were suffering heavy losses
In the Kalmyck steppes, where they
had penetrated late in the fall. Two
infantry divisions were declared
routed there and the Russians were
said to be advancing on a 12-mile
front.
Front-line dispatches indicated
the Germans were using reinforce
ments and battling desperately to
hold their Stalingrad corridor.
Several tens" of German and
other Axis divisions were reported
entrenched and fortified in positions
guarded by minefields and tank
traps and laid out in a defense sys-
tenn IN some places five or six lines
deep.
Details Of the advances were not
given, but many hundreds more
Germans were reported killed, add
ing to the previous Russian esti-
mates that the enemy lost $4,000
slain and captured through the
first four days of the drive.
The regular midday communioue
did not name any Of the towns cap
tured through the night, but said
that "our units occupied a number
of populated places" northwest Of
Stalingrad, indicating that the Axis
forces that have been battering at
that city for three months were in
growing danger OF encirclement.
The Russians were reported to
have driven one prong OF the two
pronged offensive as far as 125 miles
northwest of stalingrad.
$50 Germans Killed.
Siege-toughened defenders of Stall
ingrad helped themselves, too, clear
ing the Germans from II block
houses. killing $50 and capturing two
guns and an assortment of smaller
arms, the communique said.
The offensive columns northwest
OF the city were said to have smashed
enemy resistance at several points.
knocking out nine German tanks,
capturing seven guns, an ammuni-
ton dump and wireless station in
one area while in another Is tanks
were disabled or fired.
In surprise attack on one town.
the Germans were reported to have
been unable to organize a defense
and 1000 of them were killed while
70 trucks and IS planes were de-
stroyed.
South OF Stalingrad, one unit was
said to have killed $50 Of the enemy
and captured $50, along with IS
guns, 10 trucks and. ~ heavy and
light machine guns
Elsewhere in this area Russian
armored units in active pursuit Of
the fleeing invaders destroyed Il
tanks, 2S trucks and 8 guns.
In local action at Tuapse in the
Black Sea sector, the Russians said
they repulsed 4 German. counter
attack on = recently won position
and then dislodged the Hitlerites
from \ fortified point. Only light
action was reported In the Caucasus
southeast Of Nalchik.
To the northwest near Leningrad,
q Soviet detachment was credited
with the capture Of an enemy strong
point and nowhere along the front
lines was there any indication that
the Axis forces had made any gains.
A special communique last night
and today's early morning battle re-
port told OF the Russian troops
maintaining . swift pace in their
advance on both sides Of the Volga