The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-04-20
Germans Say
Huge Battle
Is Under Way
soree River Defense Line
Before Capital Re-
ported Broken

LONDON, Friday, April 2o.-(P'
rbo Soviet high command an
rounced officially last night that a
aroo+ battle was raging on be1-
Tr,s eastern approaches while Nazl
renorts said Russian tanks were
hotfing toward strausberg, 10
n,;las from the capital, and had
cracked the city's Spree river de-
tense line on the southeast.
Clamping tight operational ST.
1ence on details of what Berlin
b t called the greatest Red Amy
forces had crossed the Oder river
cast Of Berlin and had spanned
The Neisse river to capture Forst'
Muskau and Weisswasser, 90 TO
- miles southeast of the capital.
German broadcasis, however,
said that armored forces of Mar
shal Ivain S. Konev's First Ukra1n-
ian Army had swept % miles west
of the Neisse at Muskau. Berlin
said Konev's men bridged the
Spree and pushed nine miles be-
vond to reach the strategic COM
munjcations center of HoyersWer-
ia s. miles from American ar
mics and 81 miles northeast Of
Dresden.
Revealing for the first time thai
Marshal Gregory K. Zhukov's First
White Russian Army had secured
brdgeheads across the Ode- river
due east of Berlin. Moscow SAID
only that these had been extend
ed after Reconnaissance II
strength" that developed into major
fighting
Enemy broadcasts said the great
est tank battle of all time was
raging beyond the Oder and claim
ed that l.704 Red army tanks had
been destroyed in the first three
days Of fighting. The armored
struggle was reaching its climax,
Berlin said, and admitted that the
Germans were falling back. Lon
don observers believed the indie
cisive nature of the battle was
the reason for MoscoW's reticence.
As the Soviet radio declared
that the curtain was falling on the
European war and that the time
when the Allied and Russian
armies would link up now was al
hand, the German radio reported
that the Red Army had launched
yet another mighty offensive.
The Third giant blow was aimed
at the great Baltic naval base Of
Stettln, northern anchor of Ber-
Inns crumbling Oder river defense
line. thousands Of Red Army sol
aiers were reported suTging across
the Oder below Stettin under cover
OF artificial fog.
Meanwhile, the Soviet Command
disclosed that Marshal Rodion Y
Malnovsky's Second Ukrainiar
army operating north of Vienna
1ad pushed within 10 miles Of
LA, key Austrian transit center
VI the southeastern roads te
hague, and were sweeping up the
MofaVa river valley toward juno.
e with Konev's forces in the
Sllesian basin.
Along the entire 170-mile front
n ~ otettin to SaXony, invaded fol
u the llrst time by the Red Army
ue Germans admitted that the
.eiehlless pressure of Soviet "a.
Eve, ,;1 was beating back the defen
sT T herman arc before Berlin.
4b Inc German high command sale
int o' he RUSSIANS were throwing
nl,o me colossal struggle "men anc
tnal to an extent hitherto un
ta+oN While German common
"h SAID the battle before Berlir
sn mdS i, assumed such proportions
s rHu lerocity as was never before
wars ---'' oAoouy VI dl
fis hae BY side with the Red Arm,
unson were two Polish arnaie,
coI Iel = the supreme command O.
eon,r ven; Mjchal Rola Zymierski
tor -t.tnanaer in chief of the armed
Mo- the Lublin government
eon ugSG % v. announced that the Sc
Rotbo,lr,oh sh Army had captured
Nei .aea I2g after preaching the
litz e river IA miles north of Goer
tbeso out the Germans said tha
IA bo, FORCES already had driver
multi ryohd and were pouring int
On t 7S Spree river defense line
east ST u 1nukov's front east and north
! that III. Berlin, the enemy admittet
rapid Ine ) situation had dete-ioratee
The I5y during the past "a hours 1y,
Wr;e1aeal in IA conceded the loss O
Lin. ana "a miles northeast of Der
-''' and seel0w, IS miles ss' east as Def