Evening star., 1943-01-31
Tikhoretsk, South
Of Rostov, Also
Is Recuptured
BY HENRY c. CASSIDY.

MOSCOW, Sunday, Jan. 81
Maikop, the center of the only
oil resources ever captured BY
Adolf Hitler in his 1912 drive fol
precious Caucasus motor fuel
has been recaptured by the Rec
Army, the Russians announced
early today in a special COM
munique.
Aside from depriving the German!
Of the only oil resources they ever
gained in their efforts of a year anc
a half, the Russians seized the vita
railway junction of Tikhoretsk, 81
miles south of Rostov, the announce
ment said.
Moreover, said the regular
midnight communique, as re-
corded in London by the Soviet
monitor from Moscow broad
cast, the Russians made i'm
portant advances westward to-
ward Krasnodar, important rail-
way center on the line leading to
the Kerch straits and the only
means of escape for the Germans
in the entire Caucasus if the
Rostov gateway is closed.
(The communique said Ladoj-
skaya, a railway station 48 miles
east of Krasnodar and 80 miles
west of Kropotkin, had been cap
tured.
tThe fall of Archangelskaya, 80
miles north of Kropotkin and IL
miles south of Tikhoretsk, also
was announced)
Vital Caucasus Rail Key.
Tkhoretsk is a vital rail key to
The Caucasus, the juncture for the
and Rostov-
8aku railroads. It's fall along with
Maikop threatens entrapment of
Of Nazi Army originally
3o0, 900 men, and squeezes
hem into contracting north
uestern corner of the Caucasus
Delow RoStov.
Russian forces we're now poised
or thrusts at Krasnodar, which is
% miles northwest of Maikop and
lbout 30 miles southwest OF Tx
aoretsk.
Meanwhile, other Soviet armies
we're reported pushing steadily
westward on the Voronezh front
ess than SIS miles from Belgorod
md so miles from Kursk, two of the
main springboards for the Germans
,densive last year.
ION the Leningrad front, the
Germans reported heavy Russian
attacks south Of Lake Ladoga,
but claimed they were "bloodily
repulsed." The Russians, they
said, we're hurting massed tanks
and artillery formations into the
battle there)
Tanks Spearhead Smashes.
Battlefront dispatches reported
siant new Soviet tanks were spear
heading the Soviet smashes toward
Kursk, and the Russians also an
nounced they still were pounding
the Nazis trapped at Stalingrad and
the German remnants encircled in
the Voronezh area.
West of Voronezh the Russian
force which swept through Grem-
yachye was reported less than 60
miles from Kursk, and still advanc-
Ing.
Southwest of Voronezh the force
which pushed through Novy Oskol
was less than SIS miles from Bel
gorod.
Battlefront dispatches said the
Russians were in close pursuit Of
enemy forces, and Russian planes
roared overhead raking the enemy
columns with bombs and machine
gun fire,
The battle was developing over
a ravine-cut steppe land dotted
with German strongpoints and ar
tillery emplacements as the Red
Army drive famed out along the
spur rail lines north and south of
and west toward Kursk
Falls in Night Battle.
Red Star, the army newspaper
said Kastornoye fell in night bat
tie after Russian flanking drives cut
off the retreat of its garrison which
refused to surrender and was vir-
tually wiped out.
The Soviet Information Bureau:
noon communique yesterday said A
more towns had been added to more
than 200 already recaptured in thi;
advance which cost the German
nearly 100, 900 men in captured alone
Still further heavy losses were
being inflicted on the Germans a
they gave way before the continuing
attack, the communique said.
1t was in this sector where tn
Russians said the remnants of MIN
more enemy divisions still were hell
In a death trap, indicating that tn
full extent of the Nazi losses wa