Oran Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 23, 1943, Oran, Oran                               V Dai Lys vol. 1 no. 169 thursday december 23, 1943 one franc doily newspaper for to. S. Armed Force soviets 15 Miles from Vitebsk Start drive near Zahl Obiri nazi thrust at Kiev stupid without gain Pacific visitor London dec. A russian forces today were advancing in a wide arc on Vitebsk and Are within is Miles of the German bastion on the Baltic front after repulsing severe German counterattacks it was reported. In its drive toward Vitebsk the red arty u converging on Sorodok the last big railway town before Vitebsk on the line from Nevel three columns Are pointing at Sorodok the nearest Only three and a half Miles away and the others five and six Miles. With the drive on the Northern Anchor of the White Russia line growing daily in intensity the russians have also begun a new off Haive around Shlobin the Southern base of the line. Fierce to Attles it were reported raging Southwest of this rail Junction 30 Miles Northwest of Gomel. The nazi counteroffensive near Korostek on the Kiev bulge renewed two Days ago has been stopped without gain by soviet Artu Aery it was reported. The germans were said to have lost heavily. The russians have been gathering their troops for what May be an attempt to recapture Korostek if the ads withdraw any Panzer divisions. Already a Neutral commentator pointed out the German High command has switched reserves from the Kiev sector to meet the soviet threat at Korostek. Another vast Battle was raging today on the Broad ukrainian Steppes South of Kirovograd already enveloped on three sides by soviet forces. The germans Are attacking with masses of tanks in some sectors while red army armoured forces Are pressing the offensive in others. The nazis correspondents believed were attempting to Force a wedge in the russian lines Between Kirovograd and Kii Voi Rog. But were making no Progress and suffering heavy losses in men and Materiel. Marshal Joseph Stalin last night decorated red army units which broke through the a strongly fortified German defense zone Quot South of neg last week. Five infantry two air. One cavalry and one artillery divisions and several brigades received awards. Allied planes hit tanks Battle in streets of japs from new Orlonza As fighting rages Imam of army front line Gen. George c. Marshall Gen. Marshall i Pacific says bbl London dec. 23�?Gen. George c. A amp Rush amp la. U. A. Chief of staff has visited the Southwest Pacific and conferred with general Mac Arthur according to bbl. General Marshall who accompanied president Roosevelt on the recent conferences at Cairo and Teheran also conferred with Admiral Nimitz United states naval commander in the Pacific. He saw Allied operations in new Guinea and the Solomons area the report states. General Marshall s visit came at the time the United states 6th army was invading net Britain. 15 nil operating rail unions vote to join strike Washington dec. 22 a fifteen non operating Railroad unions with 1,100.000 members today joined the five operating brotherhoods in their plans for a general Railroad strike to begin next thursday. The membership of the brotherhoods which totals approximately 350.000, authorised the strike after failure to obtain a wage increase of three dollars a Day. Three times within the past three Days. President Roosevelt has conferred with representatives of a the brotherhoods in an Effort to forestall the strike. The president s proposal is that the operating unions accept a four cent an Hothir raise together with an vont%nu9t on a 4 6th army drives 7 Miles beyond Akrawe Airfield Allied South Pacific Kan Qatar i dec. 22�?de livering smashing blows against japanese targets from the Solomons to new Guinea Allied bomber formations yesterday Sank at least one enemy ship and damaged six others. Two powerful bomber blows were hurled against Rabaul chief japanese sea and air him by at the Northern tip of new Britain. Sweeping in Low Over the Harbor just before Dawn medium bomber fired objectives in the towns and Harbor areas. Pilots reported that huge flames flared High into the sky and were visible or so Miles. Bougainville based heavy bomber groups with fighter escort heaped tons of High explosives on shipping in Rabaul Harbor. One cargo ship was shattered and two other left in flames. Four enemy fighters were shot Down to the allies loss of four planes. In sea assaults off the new Ireland coast Allied aircraft in night attacks scored direct its with 1,000 Pound bombs on three cargo ships one of them 8,000 tons. Two of the ships were left burning fiercely Aruj tie third is believed to have sunk. A fourth a Large Jap cargo ship was damaged in a Daylight attack by an ached fighter bomber. Texas Mobile forces of the 6th u. 3. Army were reported advancing in severe fighting several Miles from the Akrawe Airfield on the Southwest coast of new Britain supporting bombers blasted gaping holes in japanese defense positions. On new Guinea s Huon Peninsula australian tank units founded Forward to reach a heavily fortified nip defense Point two Miles North of the Mas Awang , invaders bomb ammo dump Allied Force Headquarters dec. 22�?in weather which grounded heavy bombers american a-36 invaders and p-48 War Hawks yesterday destroyed two of three buildings believed to House a munitions Plant near Colle Ferro South of Rome. Pilots said two of the building exploded during the attack and one was set afire. Other invaders destroyed or damaged 26 freight cars two locomotives and ten motor tracks in the Rome Civitavecchi area and on. The East coast Raf spitfires destroyed two locomotives and eight motor tracks. Aah b-25 Mitchells bombed the Road Junction at Terracina 3d Miles up the West coast from the Battle front the Road was reported blocked by several hits on an overhanging cliff.1,200 tons of borate plaster Bromeo Raf frauds frankfurt5th army nears important nazi City of Cassino Allied Force Headquarters dec. 22�?british tanks engaged German Mark in s yesterday in the streets of the Adriatic coastal town of Ortona in particularly heavy fighting As the Battle along the whole 8th army front continued with full intensity. Ortona is situated on the main coastal  a a a revenge threatened for Kharkov trials London Doc. 22�?hints that the germans May take reprisals against american and British War prisoners for a the execution of the three germans in Kharkov an monday Are contained in Berlin dispatches in tie Stockholm papers according to Reuters commenting on the trial nazi officials Are stated to have followed the affair a with the greatest attention and bitterness but they still refrain from taking an official  the German Public was said to be still without knowledge of the trial but it was considered Monifi cant that All German newspapers have published a picture of a captured american Pilot with the Large caption a murder  pointed references Are included in the a latches to the action of the japanese in executing captured american pilots after the raid on  strike hits capital papers Washington. Dec. .�2�?ekim-Py, makeshift editions of the Washington Post and times Herald appeared today in piece of their regular newspapers As members of the Columba typographers Union number 101, struck because of a wage dispute. The War labor Board directed the printers to return to work tuesday or show cause for allure to comply. No editions of tuesday afternoon papers appeared ambulance Driver nazi planes tangle by sgt. Ralph g. Martin stars and stripes staff writer with the St army upstairs eight Jerry planes were kept Busy twisting inside the thick flak circling the area and trying to pick their spot to come in on a dive bombing strafing Job. Downstairs directly beneath them in the medical Clearing station the ambulance Drivers were eating corned beef pfc. Paul a Santa Claus Harvey looked up at the planes and cursed. The boys called him Santo Claus because he had a Beautiful red Beard with three Inch sideburns. Quot i would t be surprised u if the bastards dropped their eggs right on the red Cross of the operating room tent Quot Harvey said. Harvey was bitter because of what happened the week before. He was driving an ambulance full of patients Back to an evac hos Pital crawling slowly along the Slushy Road when suddenly he thought he was seeing things. A i thought i saw Little land mines bursting out of the Road Quot he said. Actually the exploding spurts of red were 20 my. Shells spitting out of two German planes that had appeared out of nowhere. There were Only two cars on the Long stretch of straight Road one of them was the ambulance Acyl the other was a command car. The first Jerry completely shot up the command car hitting the Driver in the legs killing the passenger. The passenger was a Pilot who had completed his 50th Mission and was getting ready to go Home on a furlough. Or the second Jerry plane headed straight for the ambulance. A it was a Clear Day perfect visibility said continued on Faye i London dec. 22 a twelve Hundred tons of bombs were dropped on Bremen during mondays Daylight raid by the american 8th air Forue it was announced Here last night. Only three times previously has greater tonnage been dropped by United states planes during a single raid. More than 500 flying fortresses Ano Liberator bombers took part in the attack while the fighter escort was the largest Ever sent out. Great fires were started in this important manufacturing and ship building Center and smoke Rose to 14,000 feet. The raid on Bremen was followed by the dropping of 2,000 tons of High explosives and incendiary bombs on Frankfurt by the Raf monday night As other Raf bombers made heavy diversionary attacks on the twin manufacturing cities of Mannheim and Ludwigshafen. The germans attempted to mislead the Frankfurt bombers by an extensive system of Dummy flares and German fighter flares began to drop around the bombers when they were still 100 Miles from their main target. The air attack on Hitler s outer fortress was continued in joint operations of the 8th air Foroe and the Raf yesterday. Hundreds of medium bombers crossed the Channel to strike heavily at military installations in the area of Calais in Northern France. Ground opposition was Light and All bombers returned. Eight German plane were destroyed by supporting Allied fighters. Women enable nary to Mon 12 ships Washington. Dec. 22-enough men have been released for sea duty by women volunteers in the u. S. Naval Reserve to take 12 battleships to War against the enemy. The Navy department announced today. Additional thousands of other men have been enabled to go to sea because of women having been assigned to new expanding Shore activities that otherwise would be staffed by men. The Navy department stated that 47,688 officers and enlisted personnel will have joined the women s naval Reserve toy dec. 31. Southwest of Ortona the 8th army advanced slightly after repelling counterattacks and Captur tured enemy equipment above the Ortona Orsogna Road. The enemy was reported to toe stubbornly resisting the 8th army Advance All along the Road sector. American infantry units of the 5th army driving hard toward the Rome Cassino Road from the Northeast attacked the Mountain villages of Acqua fond amp la and Cardito. Cassino is the next big important enemy position along the Road to Rome and yesterday s attacks on Acque amp Fonda la and Cardito brought the 5th army to within seven and a half and ten and a half Miles respectively of the City. Acqua Fon Dala is six Miles North of Venafro and two Miles West of it. Sinuc Cio captured monday. J at another Point a mile above the Rome Cassino Road american troops knocked out enemy pillboxes defending san Vittore two Miles Northwest of san Pietro and six Miles Southeast of Cassino. The enemy Laid Down heavy artillery and mortar lire and fortified every Village to slow up the allies. Sharp fighting continued on the Northern portion of the 5th army front with French and american troops taking the Southern shoulder of an important Mountain pass after three Days of fighting. Allied troops occupied several tails and took prisoners. Southeast of Cerasuolo in mountains known As Mon a Casale they captured a 3,888 foot Peak. The weather along the 5th army front cleared monday after intermittent showers. Gen. Alfonse juin is commanding the French troops fighting in Italy it was announced today. General juin led the French during the tunisian  tells of japs leaving Bougainville Washington dec. 22�?secretary of the Navy prank Knox said yesterday there is evidence that the japanese Are evacuating the Southern part of Bougainville Island and shifting their men northward. Part of an around the Dock Campaign the japanese airfields on the Island have been bombed continuously and not one is any longer serviceable he said. Secretary Knox also reported that adm. Harold r. Stark commander of the United states naval forces in the european theater and former chief of naval operations has returned to the capital to discuss plans for Quot the general  he announced the appointment of vice adm. Frank j. Fletcher As commander of the North Pacific area and endorsed the proposal of Henry Kaiser ship builder that servicemen overseas be canvassed As to their Post War employment Hopes. He added however that this should be undertaken nearer the end of the War