Evening star., 1945-01-20
MAP on Page A-7.)

by tDe Associated Press.
LONDON, Jan. 20.-The Rus
slams, driving to cut off East
Prussia, have penetrated within
62 miles of the Gulf of Danzig
in the Junkers province and have
smashed to within 204 miles of
Berlin in the southwest, the Ger
man communique disclosed to-
day.
The Germans told of fierce bat
tling against a rolling Red Army
tide of 100000 men everywhere
along a blazing 800-mile front as
Moscow broadcasts indicated a
fresh series of victory announce
ments might be forthcoming tonight
from the Kremlin.
Marshal Ivan Konev's 1st Ukrain-
ian armor reached the area of KEEP
no (Kemper) in 20-mile advance
from Wielun northwest of captured
Krakow. German home guard bat
talions, the Volkssturm, were bat
tling to stop the smash along the
Upper Sllesian border, Berlin said
Kepno is only miles from the from
tier and 38 miles northeast of Bres-
lau, the chief industrial center OF
German Silesia. Only 204 miles lie
between Kepno and Berlin.
Five Miles From Tannenberg.
Northwest of Warsaw Marsha
Konstantin Rokossovsky's End White
Russian Army reached or crossed
the southwestern border of East
Prussia on a 35-mile front anc
stabbed to Gilgenburg, 60 miles from
the Gulf of DanZig.
Gilgenburg is only miles from
Tannenburg, where the memorial tt
Won Hindenburg's victory of tht
Masurian Lakes in the first Work
War was erected.
The Russian also reached Neiden.
burg, 8 miles inside East Prussia
and Chorzelle on the East Prussian-
Polish border, the Germans an
nounced.
In the center of the blazing front
Marshal Gregory K Zhukov's 1st
White Russian Army was pouring
toward the Polish corridor between
the Vistula and Warta (Warthe) In
new breakthroughs, and the Ger
mans said fighting was raging
against the onrushing line of Red
Army tanks.
Near Vistula River Fortress.
The Russians had reached the
area of Plock, Vistula River fortress
125 miles from Pomerania.
The Russians were 238 miles from
Berlin in this sector.
The communique did not confirm
earlier Berlin broadcasts indicating
that Russian spearheads had crossed
the Silesian border. But the high
command said heavy fighting was
raging in the border area against
wedges attacking westward, a clear
indication that the tide of war had
crept to the immediate vicinity of
German towns and villages.
Already the Russians were holding
more than 1000 German towns in
East Prussia, now caught in a pin
GERS from southwest and northeast.
Closing on Tilsit.
In the northeastern sector of East
Prussia from 350,000 to 100000 men
of Gen. Ivan Cherniakhovsky's Sd
White Russian Army in a newly de-
veloped offensive were closing on
Tilsit from Ragnit, miles to the
southeast.
The Germans spoke of wild fight
ing" at the eastern fringes of Gum
binnen, Is miles east of Insterburg,
and north and northeast of Inster-
burg.
Insterburg, important railway
center, was in danger of being cut
off from Tilsit to the north.
Russian forces, leaving captured
Krakow, were smashing across the
vital communications of Silesia and
the value of that coal
and industrial region to
the Germans.
BY reaching the area of Kepno,
the Russians extended to IS miles a
front which was only 4 to miles
at the most from the Silesian bor-
der.
A Russian flank so miles long now
Co. DTICCTa 49, -