Currenr Events October 15, 1943;

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY OCTOBER 15, 1943:

In a great surge of fighting fury, Russian armies broke through at four key points yesterday, carrying with
them a nightmarish end to Hitler's dream of a winter front on the Dnieper River line.
The Russians, smashing German defenses aside and sweeping through huge gaps, were battering down the
last enemy hold in these sectors:

  

Breaking the lull in the Battle of Italy, the Fifth Army has smashed across the Volturno River and last night was battling fiercely in an effort o break through enemy positions and fan out across the broad plains north of the river.
German lines along the river already had been cracked, and although the enemy was fighting hard, it was becoming evident that Nazi strength had been stretched perilously across the Italian mainland to meet not only the main onslaught by Lt. Gen. Mark W. Clark's forces along the Volturno, but two outflanking thrusts, one in the center, a second to the east.

A great Allied aerial armada has struck the Japs their heaviest air blow yet in the Southwest Pacific, and
in the words of Gen. MacArthur, has "broken the back" of the enemy air base and stronghold of Rabaul, New Britain. Dumping 350 tons of bombs on Rabaul, the fleet of heavy and medium bombers, accompanied by fighter escort, wreaked this havoc


THE STARS AND STRIPES
Newspaper for the U.S. Armed Forces in the
European Theater of Operations published
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ETO Edition. Entered as second class matter
Mar. 15, 1943, at the post: office. New York.
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Chief ol Special Services and Publication O.Ticer
ETO SOS Col. Theodore Artcr
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Associate Editors.... { 1/ Lt, J, C. Wilconson
                                  2/  Lt. Robert Moora
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Vol. 3. No. 296. October 15. 1943

               THE STARS AND STRIPES
              Daily Newspaper of U.S. Armed Forces in the European Theater of Operations
                    New York, N.Y.—London, England Friday, Oct. 15, 1943

    Reds Break Through in 4 Vital Sectors
Nazi Escape
Road From
Crimea Cut
Germans Put the Torch
To Gomel and Kiev;
Capture Is Near
The Russian Army has captured
Zaporozh-Moscow radio 
broadcast late last night.
In a great surge of fighting fury, Russian armies broke through at four key points yesterday, carrying with
them a nightmarish end to Hitler's dream of a winter front on the Dnieper River line.
The Russians, smashing German defenses aside and sweeping through huge gaps, were battering down the
last enemy hold in these sectors:
Melitopol—The Red Army already was within this city along the Sea of Azov, capture of which might be the death knell for Nazi forces cut off in the Crimea.
Zaporozhe—Red Army units crumbled German defenses guarding this vital Dnieper city 65 miles to the north, and reached the outskirts of the town.
Kiev—Fighting on the west bank of the Dnieper, the Russians south of the city bludgeoned their way forward over three miles, bringing them nearer the vital capital of the Ukraine.
Gomel—Breakthroughs both north and south of the city were achieved, with fighting now taking place directly before the town.
Moscow reported that the Germans were putting the torch to both Gomel and Kiev, and indicated that the battle for the latter city was a race to reach it before the enemy could utterly destroy it.

Fifth Smashes Across Volturno
Allied Tanks
Press On in
Rome Drive
Aim for Key Road Junction
To North; Eighth Army
. Advances in East
 Breaking the lull in the Battle of Italy, the Fifth Army has smashed across the Volturno River and last night was battling fiercely in an effort o break through enemy positions and fan out across the broad plains north of the river.
German lines along the river already had been cracked, and although the enemy was fighting hard, it was becoming evident that Nazi strength had been stretched perilously across the Italian mainland to meet not only the main onslaught by Lt. Gen. Mark W. Clark's forces along the Volturno, but two outflanking thrusts, one in the center, a second to the east.
Driving up to the road to Rome, tanks of the Fifth were heading for Sparanise, ten mites north of the river, where the road forks, one branch going to Rome along the coast, the other following the
eastern flank of the Lepini Mountains, 15 miles farther east.
                                                    After German Counter-Blow
The great assault on the Volturno was made during a lull in the recent rains. Before-the Fifth went forward, the Germans made a counter-sortie, crossing to the south bank of the river and retaking
a number of positions.

Devastating Air Attack
Cripples Japs at Rabaul
 ALLIED HQ., Southwest Pacific, Oct. 14—
A great Allied aerial armadahas struck the Japs their heaviest air blow yet in the Southwest Pacific, and
in the words of Gen. MacArthur, has "broken the back" of the enemy air base and stronghold of Rabaul, New Britain. Dumping 350 tons of bombs on Rabaul, the fleet of heavy and medium bombers, accompanied by fighter escort, wreaked this havoc:
A total of 177 Jap aircraft destroyed o.r damaged. One hundred were destroyed on the ground, 51 severely damaged, while 26 of 40 enemy fighters that the Japs got lnto ''the airwere shot down.
It was estimated that the two-hour blitz put out of commission approximately 60 per cent of the aerial strength concentrated at Rabaul. As in the recent great raid at Wewak, in New Guinea, which saw a similar smashing of Jap aircraft on the ground, surprise was the decisive factor. Allied planes swooping in on the harbor before the enemy could marshal any kind of defense. Only five Allied planes were lost.
Today's communique from Gen. Mac- Arthur, calling Tuesday's raid a "crushing and decisive defeat" for the Jap. said : "This operation, including the first phase at Wewak, gives us definite mastery of the air over the-Solomons Sea and adjacent waters, and thereby threatens the enemy's whole perimeter of defense."
Eyewitness accounts .of the great raid said that Jap craft dotted the huge harbor of Rabaul like ants clustered around a piece of candy as Allied planes attacked in the shimmering heat of midday. Many
enemy installations, wharves and warehouses were smashed and fires started
in the harbor area.
Meanwhile, it was announced that all enemy resistance on Vella Lavella had ceased, giving the Allies control of the entire New Georgia group of islands.