During the Battle of Berlin, Three German divisions of the 9th Army were trapped in the Spree forest region southeast of Berlin near the town of Halbe. Their plan was to push eastward through the Russian lines to locate and surrender to the Western Allies. However Soviet Red army had different plans, three divisions of Russian troops were stationed in the area, seeking revenge for German attack on Stalingrad, and they would not let any German troops through without a fight.