Evening star., 1944-07-30
Great u. S. Offensive Threatens
To EnveIop Normandy Defenses;
Russians Shell Warsaw Suburbs
NuziTunk Attacks
Smashed in Drive
Below Coutunces
By the Associated Press.

SUPREME ALLIED HEAD
QUARTERS, Sunday, July 30
The greatest United States Army
offensive since the World War
smashed determined German
counterattackS in at least 100
duels with huge Tiger tanks and
thrust II miles below captured
Coutances and 13 beyond st. Lo
yesterday in drives which threat
ened to envelop the enemy's
Normandy defenses in a major
defeat.
The American assault had pro-
gressed 81 miles since it began Tues
day, and was continuing against stiff
fening but unsuccessful Nazi re-
sistance.
Twin thrusts below Coutances
toward Brehal theatened to snare
at least some of the Nazis who so
narrowly escaped from the Cou-
tances pocket Thursday and Fri
day. The Brehal road junction al
ready was under American artillery
fire.
One Allied armored column
reached the coast west of Coutances
and captured the town of Pont de
la Rogue, thus sealing off land es-
cape routes of any Nazis who might
still be in the Coutances pocket
Tanks Shifted From Caen Area.
The German radio began to talk
of the necessity of a wholesale
withdrawal along the entire 40-mile
western wing of the invasion front
even while the enemy was making
desperate counterattacks on the
American east flank near Tessy- Sur
Wire with tank forces pulled out of
the static front facing the British
east of Caen.
From all appearances. 1t. Gen.
Omar Bradley's carefully planned
precision offensive has broken clear
through the German 7th Army"
said Yves Gallagher, Associated Press
front-line reporter with the Amer
ican forces.
1T may we'll be that the Amer
leans are fighting and winning one
of the great decisive battles of the
war, ne wrote. IF Hitler Is una BILE
to stop the American offensive soon,
1t may have done irreparable dam
age to the morale and strength of
the Wehrmacht in France"
A hlgh-ranking officer in Gen.
EiSenhower's command declared.
Right now We are fighting for ports
erd elbow ROOM and concluded
emphatically:
We're going good"
More Than 5000 Captured.
In the southernmost penetration
of the fifth day of the offensive,
the Americans sent an armored
spearhead across the Tessy- -Brehal
road to within about a mile of the
big town of Percy, midway between
the Wire River and the sea. This
column was we'll beyond La Than
diere, and patrols were reported still
farther forward.
Farther west another tank column
sped down that road through St
Denis le Cast, Lengronne and
Hambye to points less than four
miles from Brehal, through which
German troops were trying to es-
cape southwark.
Behind the advance, American
tanks, self-propelled guns and
doughboys cleaned out pocket after
pocket of madly resisting Germans
who had been by-passed in the
first rush. The captives, now to-
falling more than 5000 and in
creasing steadily, included the ele-
ments of seven German divisions.
German dead Uttered nearly every
field and lane.
The tally Of enemy tanks de-
stroyed mounted to 267 claimed by
American fighter -bombers alone, in
cluding II yesterday, and the tre-
mendous aerial support of the
American drive continued without
a let-up despite unfavorable
weather.
The Allied midnight communioue
800 INVASION De-