Soviet troops occupied the town of Banska Bystrica in Czechoslovakia

The troops of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, advancing in difficult mountainous and wooded terrain in the Carpathian mountains, occupied the town of Banska Bystrica in Czechoslovakia on March 26, an important road junction and a strong German defense stronghold. This is reported by the newspaper Izvestia.

"They also occupied more than 50 other settlements, including Gornja Legota, Yasene, Razloka, Podkonice, Prezod, Selce, Sasovo, Skubin, Malakhov, Rakitovce, Turova, Budcha. And the railway stations Radwan, Slovacka Lupca, Luchatin, Zamost, Podberezova," the newspaper said in a March 27, 1945 publication.

There were exactly 44 days left until the Great Victory.

In addition, it is reported that the front's troops captured more than a thousand enemy soldiers and officers.

"The enemy, relying on defensive structures built in the mountains, tried to hold a bridgehead on the left bank of the Gron River, north of the city of Zvolen. The center of German resistance in this area was the town of Banska Bystrica. Our troops reached the eastern part of Banska Bystrica and started street fighting on the outskirts of the city. At the same time, our other units, which recently seized a bridgehead on the right bank of the Gron River, captured the village of Radvan, which covers the city from the south," the newspaper notes.

The enemy infantry, reinforced with self-propelled guns, launched several counterattacks. But the Soviet fighters pushed back the Germans and, making a detour, broke into the streets of Banska Bystrica.

"The Nazis settled in stone buildings adapted for defense. Acting in assault groups, the Soviet units quickly defeated enemy pockets of resistance and captured the city of Banska Bystrica," the newspaper's publication emphasizes.

The material was published as part of the Izvestia special project "80 days to Victory."

All articles of Izvestia during the Great Patriotic War can be found in the electronic archive.