Evening star., 1945-02-19

Beeskow and Cottbus are located
and indicated that Guben might
have been bypassed at that time. .
Moscow dispatches today said
Guben was under artillery fire and
the German communique said vio-
let battle was raging just east of the
place.
Oder Bridgeheads Quiet.
! Marshal Zhukov remained quiet
in his sector along the Oder where
he is reported to have bridgeheads
30 to 40 miles from Berlin, but Ger
man military commentators said this
was the "lull before the storm
Sagan, a six-way railway center
IS miles southeast of Guben, was
captured by the Russians over the
week end after a bloody two-day
fight in the virtually encircled city.
A Soviet communique said the
southern wing of Marshal Konev's
Army had overrun Naumberg in
fighting at the threshold of Saxony
Naumberg is Sc miles east of Dres-
den.
Marshal Konev's northern wing
toppled Sagan, site of several Ger
man prisoner of war camps The
fate of the internees has not yet
been disclosed.
Other Russian troops advancing
toward Danzig yesterday broke into
the outskirts of the Vistula River
stronghold of Grudziadz, city of So
900 which is 81 miles from the Baltic
port.
Soviet General Killed.
Moscow said the Sd White Russian
Army had scored new gains in East
Prussia. but these successes were
tempered by announcement of the
death of that army's brilliant COM
mander, Gen. Ivan D. Cherniakhov-
sky.
Youngest of the Russian front
leaders, this 37-year Jewish tank
expert died of wounds suffered on the
battlefield where his men yesterday
killed 1000 Germans and tightened
their stranglehold on the remnants
of a force of 100000 Nazis. 4.
Berlin said 100 Soviet divisions
were attacking in an attempt to
wipe out the trapped Nazis in that
sector.
At Grudziadz the Germans
launched 20 counterattacks in an
effort to break the encirclement
ring, the Russian war bulletin said
They were beaten off and the Soviet
troops drove into the city's out
skirts.
BY official Moscow account 7,445
Germans we're either captured or
killed in fighting along the 800-mile
eastern front, bringing to 258,15C
the total of Germans and Hun
garians reported killed or captured
in the last week, including the cas-
ualties in the seige of Budapest.
The Paris radio said this morning
that the Russians were opening ur
a huge offensive all along the from,
and asserted that Marshal Zhuko,
had assembled enormous masses o1
material for this final assault or
Berlin.
Furious fighting was in progres.
near the confluence of the Bobel
and Oder Rivers and the Berlin ra.
dio said the Russians had crossee
the Bober in their drive to turn Ber.
Inns eastern defenses.
Moscow'S communiques gave M
details of the struggle in this area
but Soviet front dispatches sale
Russian troops were menacing Colt.
bus and Guben, and that both place,
were heavily raided by Soviet bomb.
ers.
Moscow announced the liquidation
of large German pocket south o
Schwerin, IS miles east OF Berlin
with the capture of 1,245 prisoners.
Few Nazis Left in Poznan.
Far behind the Oder River lin
a few Germans still held out in tn
besieged Western Polish citadel o
Poznan, the Russian communion
!: said
Pravda said Russian troops ha,
smashed strong defense rim
around beleagured Breslau, lowe
Silesian capital of $4,000. Berlil
already has asserted that the Rus
slams had penetrated the city.
Attacking on a 15-mile from
southwest and south of Breslau tn
Russians gained up to miles b
loficial Moscow account as the
'deepened the ring around the cit,