Page 100 - The Viet-Cong Tet_Offensive_1968

garne of hide-and-seek. A new dirnension was added by two fires burn-
ing at the Esso gas station at the Binh-Hoa Intersection and the Bach
Tuyet Paint factory. Frorn these points Cornrnunist snipers had been
harassing the advancing troops. Though choking in the srnoky atrnos-
phere, the Brown Berets sti1l continued their advance. They had
barely left the gas station when two of thern were hit.

The Ranger colurnn was irnrnediately divided into srnall
groups to search the rnany all-eys and side streets of the area while
sorne of thern rnade a pincer rrrovernent in order to catch the Cornrnunists
by surprise. They received rnore V. C. sniper fire as they reached the
paint {acto ry.
The fighting lasted quite a few hours ewen though the Viet
Cong were not very nu(rerous in this particular area. The terrain
presented irnrnense di{ficulties which were cornplicated by the thousands
of civilians living in hundreds of houses and hr.rt s throughout the area,
thus preventing governrnent troops frorn taking full advantage o{ their
{irepower.
On Z February the Forty-First Ranger Battalion was heli-
lifted frorn Tuy Hoa ro reinforce the Saigon battle and the {ighting in the
Binh Hoa intersection soon died,
5. elgs*he1_e iA_qAfC_S". Elsewhere in the capital city figh-
ting continued on a scattered basis. Srnall groups of infiltrators conti-
nued harassing friendly {orces frorn their positions in populated areas.
Sorne of these even included worrlen cadre,
In the Chinese section of Saigon enemy pressure seerned
to increase with each passing day. Although there were no rnajor battles,
indications were trany that two Viet Cong battali.ons - Long An 508
Binh Tan Six - were still very active in the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and
Eighth Precincts. This despite heavy losses during the previous days.

Governrnent soldiers had to block practically all streets
and elirninate the infiltrators one by one to counter this threat. Firep
had broken out here and there and the population in threatened areas had
Ieft to seek greater security elsewhere.
Typical of the difficulty faced r/as the situation in the
Seventh Precinct where enerny pressure had been acutely {elt since 3l
January, especially in the Binh-An Catholic diocese of Bishop Hoang-
Quynh, one o{ South Vietnarnrs rnost noted anti - Cornrrruni st fighters.
For several days the rurnor had spread around town that Fbther Quynh
had been killed, This was irnrnediately denied.

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