Page 159 - The Viet-Cong Tet_Offensive_1968

the enerny had to abandon his intention to inJiltrate the city through
thi s gdte,

Meanwhile, the situation in Cholon continued to grow
rnore serious. A look at this all irnportant area indicates at least
three rnajor fronts, the Pharn The Hien front in the Eighth Precinct
where a strong cornrnunist force had been intensifying its pressure
since the early hours o{ May 9; the Binh Tien front where the enerny
had tried to occupy the installations of the Binh Tay Distilleries,
and the Minh Phung front where insurgent troops had sought to occupy
high buildings frorn where they could rnake their presence felt,

Because of the seriousness of the situation, US troops
vrere seen for the first tirne taking part in city fighting. Governrnent
Rangers supported by an arrnored elernent of the US Ninth Infantry
Division counterattacked vigorously in the Minh Phung area which
also was the target of gunship strafing. Many fires again broke out in
this area that continued well into the night.
A few hours later around 0400 hours of the following day
enerrly gunners again shelled the Tan son Nhut Airport with over ten
| Z?rnrn r ockets.
I0 Mav 1968. The Khanh Hoi front had grown serious during the night,
forcing a US arrnored group to take position early in the rnorning of
10 May on both sides of the Tan Thuan Bridge. The situation in the
trYrr Bridge area also grew difficult necessitating the intervention of
the Air Force in that part of the city for four hours. Following this
an all night gun battle could be heard in this area with rnany instances
of fire breaking out.
Meanwhile in the Minh Phung sector fighting went on
unabated. Elsewhere, rnost noticeable was the collapse of the Thi
Nghe Bridge when a big arrnored colurnn crossed it to enter the city.
1l Mav 1968. Fighting around the rrYrr Bridge c ontinued all day. Early
in the rnorning an elernent of the US Ninth Infantry Division had cros-
sed the bridge to attack Viet Cong resistance groups in the area of
Pharn The Hien and Au Duong Lan Streets. The infantryrnen were
supported by tanks and by early evening were in control of the target
area, relieving pressure around the La San School where a friendly
uni.t had sought refuge. Many houses in this part of the city also
continued to burn.

In Cholon, especially in such streets as Minh Phung,

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