The Wilmington morning star., 1945-03-10
Germans Saw
Kuestriin1s
Partly Lost
Enemy Claims That Rus.
sian Army's Seelow
Hold Broken

LONDON, Saturday, March 10
P-The Germans said last night
that the Russians had captured
part of the Oder fortress town Of
Kuestrin, 38 miles east of Berlin,
and were pouring reinforcements
by day and night across the river
on both sides of that stronghold
in flaming prelude to the battle
for the Nazi capital.
Marshal Zhukov's First White
Russian Army troops were reported
in enemy broadcasts to be extend
ing their west bank Oder bridge
heads and trying to link they up
ito create a jumping board for
further operations against Berlin. -
While the Soviet high command
ignored Tor the third day these Nazi
reports of heavy battles on the
Berlin front, the regular Soviet
communloue announced that Red
Army forces had rolled within five
miles of the docks of Stettin, Pom
eranian capital and Berlin's main
port, and were only nine miles
from Darzig city.
The Po1neranian strongholds of
Stolp, Schlawe, Ruegenwalde, and
Stolp-Muende, all fell to the Rus
slams yesterday. along with 200 9TH
er localities as Marshal Rokossov.
sky's Second White Russian troop
gained up to II miles and hurled
the Germans into. a shrinking g.
57-square-nile trap along the Bal
tic coast.
These rapid Soviet strokes in the
north and northeast, in which Mos
COW said that a total of 16, 500 Ger
mans had been killed or captured
in two days, were preliminary
steps in the approaching show
down battle for Berlin.
But the Germans said that Thu
kov's central forces had fought
their way into the heart of Kuestrjn
and were engaged in fierce strug-
giles on a 21-mile front from KEN
itz, west bank village 10 miles
northwest of Kuestrin, down to the
area west of Lebus, IL miles south
Of Kuestrin.
Adolf Hitler was said to have
visited the Oder front several days
ago on a morale-raising tour, ap-
parently in the belief that the all
out assault toward Berlin was i'm
'nlnent if not already begun.
The DNB agency said that So
Wet troops had been thrown back
from Seelow, 10 miles west of the
Oder and 25 miles from greater
Berlin, after penetrating to that
town on Thursday. Seelow is II
miles southwest of Kuestrin.
In the attack toward Stettin, Zhu-
hoV northern wing gained three
10 five miles yesterday on a 30
nile arc east of the lower Oder
river stronghold, and Berlin said
spearheads of three Soviet armies
were battling in Stettin's suburbs.
AT the top of the assault arc,
MOSCOW said its troops took Wolf
horSt only mile from the mar.
~" Oder channel between Papen
"aSSer and Dammscher See lead.
ms 10 Stettin. At this point the
NusSlans were only five miles
n0f'neast of Poelitz, west bank
Stettin, 80
IN the direct frontal assault to-
safa otettin, another Soviet column
ssplufed Muehlenbeck, three
. MllleS southeast of the crossing
m%h OF Altdamm and within five
"iles OF stettin's big ship basins.
W.. Iaflher south, the Russians took
n .GIllh and Wierow. two to three
a nlles east OF Greifenhagen, an
, ,sis crossing town. The Germans
Gu caiu Naz troops had abandoned
S..oe.Iiienhagen, IL miles south of
fa estln' during Thursday night,
'e 1g across the Oder.
NM anukov's troops captured 5000
, ,i,oie Germans in this mop-up of
t%a oaec S east bank, making a
bt" "I1S.3y total of 5000, the Soviet
der .ie.ln SAID, A divisional comman-
0er was among the prisoners.
no @rtGhAosso7sky's troops in the
u WIZ ;stneaSt struck forward on a
t',r ue1ln 1 sO-mile front from cap
por eu huegenwalde on the Baltic
"p niaI NJ coast to Rheinfeld,
mi1 IiSh Corridor village only nine
Is esn southwest of Danzig city and
lisb INES south of the former Po-
"Sn naTal base of Gdynia.
bn n'Gip' Il way communications
pri3d M Peomerania, was the biggest
mid de ol the places taken, and a
d MN Soviet hllletin said that
. ,,poo Germans were slain in its