Imperial Valley press., 1943-01-04
Reds Recopture
Key to Boku Oil

pun ouCo iCCiCdJlIlS ItIHldIl alltt
other Axis troops westward and
northwestward through the night,
the noon communique reported, to-
ward Prokhadnaya, % miles away.
In taking Mozdok, their fourth
major victory in six days on their
l100-mile battle front, the Rus
slams took also Malgobeck. 20 miles
| to the southeast, and Elkhotovo,
40 miles to the southwest.
RAILROAD CUT
They had cut both arms of the
main Rostov-Baku railroad and
from Mozdok, Malgobeck and Elk
hOtovO Russian motorized infantry
and Klimvoroshikov tanks were in
hot pursuit of steadily retiring Axis
forces.
The fall of Prokhadnava. where
the arms of the railroad meet to
continue northWard to Rostov.
seemed imminent, and if the Ger
mans lost that city they would face
the choice of a general retreat or
the risk of humiliation of an army
split into two sections.
The noon communicate reported
an unbroken succession of gains on
six fronts from Velikie Luki west
Of Moscow to the Caucasus noun
tains, where the fall of Mozdols
had removed. apparently for the
winter If not forever, the Axis
threat to the richest Caucasus oil
fields.
NAZI LOSSES HEAVY
During night of constant -
tack, the Russians stormed and caD-
tured several inhabited places. the
noon commuaique reported.
Heavy enemy losses were reDort-
ed-700 killed within a few hours in
one sector alone.
Driving into one Sossack village
the Russians disabled eight enemy
tanks and captured four guns and
eight motor trucks.
Southwest and south OF Stalin-
grad, where Gen. Gregori Zhukov
has now joined two fronts in one
gigantic offensive, the Germans
we're desperately throwing reserves
into their lines in vain and costly
attempt to stop the Russians.
Two full regiments, 5000 men, OF
Adolf Hitler's black uniformed SIS
troops, pick of the German fighting
forces, were thrown into one sec
tor last night The Russians at
tackled at once and, smashing then,
drove forward for new gains. the
noon communique reported.
IN STAJJNCRAD
Village after village fell to the
tanks of infantrymen before dawn
today.
In Stalingrad city. the Russians
sent night combat forces filtering
into the German lines where thev
stormed and destroyed 10 block
houses and three dugouts, the noon
communique said.
On the middle Don, night fight
ing troops captured a number OF
inhabited places and in two sectors
tanks, attacking alone, made i'm
portant gains.
In one of these sectors the tanks
drove right through the German
front line. captured three villages,
and sent the Germans retreating in
disorder, leaving their arms and
stores behind them.
In the other the tanks killed
300 Germans and captured eight
field guns, Is anti-tank guns ana
| other weapons and equipment.
FORTS SMASHED
In the Velikie Luki sector OF the
central front. where the Russians
were now within 60 miles of Latvia
after capturing Velike Luki itself.
the Red army advanced steadily
during the night, the noon COM
muniuue reported, and smashed
several enemy strongholds. The
Germans tried one counter attack
but all it go them was 400 killed.
Since last Tuesday the Russians
had taken Kotelinkovski, the great
est German base on the southwest
Stalingrad front; Velikie Lllki, ELS
ia. capital of the Kalmyk republic
south of Stalingrad, and Mozdok In
the Caucasus, for four of their
most important victories OF the
war
South and southwest Of Stain
grad the Axis position approached
the desperate. Communicates and
dispatches of the weekend de-
scribed how the German command
was maintaining infantry in hope
less situations with orders to stand
to the death. Transport planes
were landing troops at key PORTS.
Infantrymen were thrown DUB III
thin screens to try to stop the Rs
sian heavy tank and the tho,-
sands of troops following them.
little detachments were left to die
at "strong'' points in villages which
the Russians took within n few
hours. ..f4