Evening star., 1944-12-22
EnemyCoIumns
Turned Aside
In Some Areas
BULLETIN.


GROUP HEADQUARTERS (P).
The German offensive has
penetrated 40 miles at the
point of its greatest depth,
but has lost a great deal of
it's momentum in the last 48
hours.
By the Associated Press.
PARIS, Dec. 22.-The main
force of the Germans thrust
deep into Belgium has been
blunted, field dispatches an
nounced today, and Gen. Eisen-
hover called on Allied armies to
swing into action and destroy
the enemy.
Field Marshal Karl Won Rundstedt
has come out of his fixed defenses
in last great gamble on a winter
counteroffensive, Gen. Eisenhower
said in an order of the day
"The enemy is making his SUI
preme effort to break out of the
desperate plight into which you
forced him by your brilliant vic
tories of the summer and fall Gen
Eisenhower told his troops. He
will completely fail
I'VE will, with Gods help, go for
ward to our greatest victory"
The order of the day was ad-
dressed ito every member of the
AEF."
Counterattack In New Sector.
Although the main enemy drive
had been turned aside and slowed
down, the counterattack broke out
in a new sector 20 miles south of
the city of Luxembourg last night.
A battle involving 10 tanks ard
two companies of infantry was
fought at dusk, below Luxembourg,
were repulsed
(This would be in France, in
the direction of the Sd Army
sector at ThionvilleD
After six days of a slashing as
sault in which German forces had
driven wedge 80 miles deep INTO
Allied lines by Tuesday noon,
Marshal Won Rundstedt's columns
in Belgium have been turned aside
in some sectors and forced to
slower pace in others, said a field
report timed at 6;55 m today.
(The German high command
said today Our spearhead ad-
vanced farther to the west and
established several bridgeheads
across the Ourthe River"
Part of the course of the wind
Ing Ourthe is about 7 miles west
of Werbomont on the Liege-
Bastogne highway, which is the
deepest German penetration re-
ported by the Allies, and approx
mately 40 miles west of the Bel
gian border.
CAN enemy attempts to hold
our attacks in Southern Belgium
we're smashed yesterday" said the
communique.
prisoners taken in the Ger
man offensive have mounted to
$4,000, Berlin said This was S.
600 more than reported by Berlin
yesterday.
(The broadcast admitted, how
ever, that the fighting west of
Stavelot was growing increasing
ly hard and bloody.'D
Northern Allied Flank Firm.
Along the 32-mile German north
flank veteran Allied forces had
swung into action after speed
marches across snow-topped noun
tains. Fierce tank battles had been
fought in head-on collisions with
German armor, and cool veterans of
river crossings all the way from the
Volturno in Italy to the Moselle in
France had moved down waves of
Germans attempting to force the
turbulent Ambleve. This flank was
firm.
Along the southern flank of the
bulge the Allied situation also was
improved, but still confused.
However, the initiative still was in
the hands of Won Rundstedt and
groups of 20 to 80 German tanks
still made slashing penetrations here
and there and roved behind Allied
lines.
Both sides were pouring tens of
thousands of men into the critical
phase of the battle every few hours
as the intensity of the conflict in
the fog -shrouded cauldron mounted.
Information Scant.
Except for few field dispatches,
however, there was no new word as
to the depth of the German pene-
tration.
st. With, 4 miles from the German
border, with two German wedges
driven far past it on either side, was
stu held by the Americans despite
the frontal attack of a full German
SIS division.
"a German broadcast claimed
capture of st. With and the COM
mander of the Allied garrison
there)
Fighting through fog, snow and
mud. American fighting men were
cutting down Germans by the hum
oreds and taking heavy losses.
fHty-hye enemy tanks were de-
sroyeo southwest of st. With yester-
day, field dispatches said. when
groups of rowing armor were tranped
here and there.
Rowing Mission Suggested.
The tenor of front line dispatches
suggested that the German forav
south of Luxembourg was one such
rowing mission. Third Army dis