1941-07-23 — Page 41

THE CHINA MAIL, JULY 23, 1941.

RED ARMY HOLDS SMOLENSK

Stubborn Battles In Nazi And Soviet Reports Flatly Contradictory

(SPECIAL TO "CHINA MAIL”)

FLATLY CONTRA DICT URY PICTURES OF EVENTS ALONG RUSSIA'S EXTENSIVE BATTLEFRONT CONTINUE TO BE PRE- SENTED BY GERMAN AND SOVIET VERSIONS OF EVENTS, BUT, IT SEEMS CLEAR THAT SMOLENSK IS STILL IN SOVIET HANDS, THOUGH PANZER UNITS MAY HAVE WORKED ROUND ITS FLANKS.

Yesterday was quieter on the northern sector, where the Russians are firmly holding the German thrust along the shore of Lake Peipus, but there was heavy fighting on the northern wing of the central front, round Polotsk and Nevel and towards Smolensk.

A stubborn battle is still in progress in the direction of Novograd-Volinsk, where the danger seems, at the moment, less to Kiev than from a German attempt to work down the Dnieper, imperilling the Russian posi- tions in Bessarabia.

Moscow

July 21.

the on

Nazi Losses

night of

These losses must be consider-

Berlin makes no specific claims to achievements, beyond the cap- ture of Leutenant Jakob Jugu- shvel, sun of Stalin, DNB, in its usual vein, claims the 'destrue- tron of My Red divesi.95" says that the main defence is plungeded very great under the condi- into a "severe crisis." and adds tions of a night raid. Scattered that the "secwnd battle of anni- hilatium is approaching its zenith." "Izvestia. in Moscow, carries details of an action behind the Russian main lines in which an advanced German tank column was exterminated after a four- teen hour battle in which the Germans lost 39 tanks,

and demoralised by our night fighters and anti-aircraft guns. German planes dropped most of their bombs in woods and felds outside Moscow.

"Not a single military target was touched nor was any dam⚫ age done to municipal enter- priaca.

An earlier official bulletin au- "Mention should be made of the nounced that Soviet troops and splendid service rendered by the 'planes had halted the German Fire Brigade, Militia and also by offensives in the three main fight- | the Moscow population, who ing zones, adding that Stubborn |quickly extinguished incendiary fighting continued in the central | bombs dropped on the city by and Ukraine sectors.

national News Service.

Inter-individual 'planes which broke through, and also quickly got fires under control."

German Communique

Yesterday's German High Com-

mand communique

that states

Pitkaranta Claim

A Finnish communique claims

news agency-Reuter,

NO BLACK-OUT EXERCISE

TO-NIGHT

Wing-Comdr. A. H.

S. Steele-Perkins, Director of Air Raid Precautions, informs us that there will be no black-out exercises to-night "as no fur- ther useful

purpose will be served and also

to relieve the public of any inconvenience caused by the exer- cises in this very hot weather."

GERMANS

BOGGING

DOWN

Turkish military

ex-

"breaching operations of the Ger- that Finnish troops have occupied perts consider it unlikely man army. In conjunction with and passed Pitkaranta in their that Germany will want their allies. have divided the advance north-east of Lake Soviet de'ence front into unco-Ladoga, according to a Helsinki to create a new front be ordinated groups.

te egram to the official Italian fore having materially reduced Russian resist- ance, according to the Ankara correspondent of the Independent French Agency.

"Despite tough local rep'a- tance and obstinats counte"-at- tacks, no co-ordinated leader. ship of the chemy iB now recognisable.

"On the whole eastern front the defeat and annihilation of isolat- ed groups of Soviet forces is con- tinuing ceaselessly.

Moscow Raid

of

"As reprisal for Bolshevik air ralds on the open capitals

Bucharest and Helsinki, the Luft- waffe on Monday night made their first attack on Moscow.

"In a series of waves 12 bomb-

er formations bombed military

installations and munitions in-

lin and the Moskva River direct

some large.

THE NAZI

PROPHET

IN TOKYO

dustries, visibility being good. The prediction that "In the vicinity of the Krem. "within one month," the hits caused a number of fires, Swastika will be flying over Moscow, was made "Buildings of the High Com~ mand and administrative by Lieut.-Colonel Wil- authorities and a public utility helm Nimiz, the German plant were destroyed or severely damaged,

[military attache ·în Soviet CommuniqueTokyo, in a statement to The following communique was the Japanese Press on the Issued by the Soviet Information first month's fighting *""On - July 22 our forces were against Russia. engaged in heavy, fighting“ ** on The fall of Leningrad," he said, Petra Zavodsk Porkhov. Smo according to the Domel Agency, lensk and Zhitomir directions, was a matter of time." There were no essential changes Fighting would reach its pent in the position of our troops on in about a fortnight's time, he pre- the front. On July 22, our air-dicted, and he referred to the craft brought down 87 enemy | bombing of Moscow as proof that 'planes. :: We lost 14 planes. {"Germany"-" has already won air

According to supplementary supremacy." Information ":: 22- Gorman:/bom- bera wore brought down In. añ "attempt to” mɛke a masá^raid

Bureau last night:-\.

There is growing scepticism in Ankara as to Germany's chances against Russia, even those Turks who had predicted the rapid col- lapse of the Russian front now be- ing reserved in their opinions.

The statement by the German military attache in Ankara, that the Russian campaign would be over in six weeks, which was at first given certain credence, is now the subject of Ironical com- ment.

Although it is believed in Ankara:the Germana would ap- pear too deeply, engaged in Russia for any action in the Near East to be feared; the cor- respondent says: oxparts admit the situation might become ori- tical, again. If the Germans were to reach the Caucasus before the end of August.

Military observers point out the German attack is being directed rather towards the Urals, as if the German High Command wanted first of all to eliminate the main Russian forces before facing the long lines..ct communication that an advance on the Caucasus would entail-Reuter

allowances for the possibility of United States' participation in the war.!!

As for, the United States. The landing of American forces Colonel Nimiz assorted: “The in Iceland, he said: "In fact con- Germana have naturally made istitutes participation. Reuter,

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