Imperial Valley press. (El Centro, Calif.) 1907-current, 1942-05-20


"paralyzed" by the Soviet Arctic
fleet which has sunk % German
ships, according to official adVlces..
3. The official army organ Red
Star reported the shattering OF a
Nazi attempt to open a new assault
on the Leningrad front with several
scores of tanks" and infantry forces.
4. On the central Kalinin front,
the Red Star said, hand-to-hand
battles were fought when the Ger
mans slashed at Russian lines IN
an effort to find soft spots Tor
a major attack.
MILLIONS IN BATTLE
5. In the Crimea on the Kerch
peninsula, 800 miles south of Khar-
kov, Russian troops have been
strongly reinforced and new heavy
battles are about to begin in the
region of the town of Kerch' at
the gateway to the Kerch straits
at the Caucasus, the Moscow radio
said.
Millions of men and tanks and
planes by the thousands were lock-
ed in the battles of mounting intens-
ity along the 1900 mile front where
it appeared that the Germans were
preparing for new offensives in an
effort to divert some of the Rus
sian pressure from Kharkov.
A dispatch from Russian north
ern fleet said a:r-naval combats
were developing on the Arctic front.
Dozens of German planes were SAID
to have been shot down by Soviet
fighter and naval aircraft. one
Russian pilot, Dimitri Safonov, was
said to have brought down % Nazi
Junkers and Messerschmitts IN re-
cent days.
SHIPS SUNK
The Soviet Arctic fleet was re-
ported to have sunk IA German
ships totalling $4,000 tons during
April and four German transports,
two destroyers and two patrol boats
were reported sunk since May IL
in attacks which are paralyzlng
the German army in its prepara-
lions for an offensive against Muir
mansk."
A Red Star dispatch from the
Leningrad front told of an exchange
of blows between Russian and Ger
man tank-led forces, resulting In
a Soviet counter attack which cut
enemy communications and disrupt
ed Nazi lines of supply leaving the
Germans in IAN extremely difficult
situation"
The same sort of savage fighting
was said by the Red Star to be
underway around Kalinin, one OF
the German strong points from
which Adolf Hitler's threatened big
offensive probably would be un-
leashed.
Day and night fighting was said
to be raging around Kalinin where
an important populated center was
captured by the Red army.
VILLAGES FREED
Soviet officials quoted German
officers captured in the KharkoV
sector fighting as saying that the
Germans were stunned by the
swiftness and the fury of Timoshen-
kos offensive.
Mai. Gen. N. Zhuravlev, military
commentator of the Moscow News,
said that village after village is be-
ing liberated around Kharkov and
that vast panorama OF destruc-
ton lies deep behind the German
lines, according to Soviet pilots.
Russian filters returning from
flights over Poltava, Chernigov
Zhitomir and Kiev told of abandon
ed railroads, bomb wrecked bridges
and the wreckage of derailed Ger
man troop and supply trains.
Today's Soviet high command
communique, which reported of
fensive battles" by TimoshenkoS
forces around Kharkov and Intense
fighting" around the town OF Kcrcf
in the Crimea. described the vast
destruction being inflicted by the
Red air force behind the German
lines.
Fleets of Soviet tanks. including
52-ton "KIim VoroshilovS." we're SAID
to be moving forward with Cossack
cayalrymen fighting ever nearer d
Kharkoy.
One COssack cavalry unit was sale
to have driven deep into the German
rear and seized several populated
places, killing TOO Germans in g
lightning raid.
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