Evening star., 1943-03-14
Ukraine Citadel
lmperiIed From
Three Sides
BY his Associated Press,


German troops gained fresh
ground in the flaming fight for
kharkov, a midnight Moscow
bulletin announced today, and
Russian field dispatches frankly
termed the situation serious" as
the Nazis threw hundreds of
tanks and thousands of infantry
men into an assault on three
sides of the Ukraine citadel.
The German high command de-
clared that Elite SIS guardsmen had
shattered enemy resistance" and
advanced to the main railway sta
ton, but did not claim the recapture
OF the city where it said violent
street struggle still was going on.
The Nazi-controlled Paris radio
said occupation was almost COM
plete," with the RED Army defenders
falling back slowly but steadily.
The Moscow bulletin recorded by
the Soviet monitor said the Rus
slams had absorbed heavy counter
attacks on the north and south
sides, but acknowledged another
withdrawal ito new positions" in
the west where il said large enemy
tank and infantry forces succeeded,
after repeated attacks and at the
cost of severe losses, in pressing
back our troops"
Enormous Losses.
Taking up new positions. our
forces withstood the onslaught of
the enemy's numerically superior
forces, repelling the Hitlerite at
tacks and causing them enormous
losses.
heavy fighting also ragged north
OF the city, this communioue said
ana to the south the Germans were
said to have thrown dozens of tanks
against the Soviet lines without
breaking them.
After losing II tanks and about
500 officers and men. the Hitlerites
fell back to their initial positions.
1t said Of that sector.
The Russians officially have ac-
knowledged four Withdrawals in the
last two days.
1t was reported that squadron
after squadron Of German planes
had further devastated Kharkoy's
central section-already heavily
damaged by two previous contests
for the city.
A Berlin broadcast quoted
Kharkov front war correspondent
as saying that German troops
their boots and belts full of hand
grenades"-were fighting a house
toulouse campaign in the center of
Kharkov. Russian resistance was
described as incredibly stubborn"
at first, but waning thereafter from
hour to hour"
Large Clouds of Fire.
The city was said to be "enveloped
in enormous clouds of fire and
smoke, while the thunder and roar
OF guns never ceased"
Whole squadrons of Stukas
roared down in consecutive waves
on the enemy who is being attacked
from all sides by formations of the
German panzer corps" the Berlin
broadcast said.
The Russian army newspaper Red
Star termed this aerial attack a
nonstop affair, and also said that
In some narrow sectors the Ger
mans hurled as many as $50 tanks
against the Red Army lines. In one
case, it said, Russian cavalrymen
had to pit themselves against tanks,
destroying IL of them.
Pravda termed the situation seri-
Gus, and also stressed the fact that
the Russians were outnumbered.
The swift German comeback in
the Kharkov area extended on a
line running southeast into the
Donets basin, and the midnight
bulletin said six German tanks were
wrecked and 200 Germans slain in
the repulse of numerous Nazi at
tacks in the Ivyum sector, rs miles
southeast of the Ukraine steel city
On the central front, however, the
Russians advanced steadily on Smo-
lensk, 230 miles west of Moscow.
(See RUSSIA, Page A-5.)