Page 27 - The Viet-Cong Tet_Offensive_1968

Tri, Quang Tin and euang Ngai (t Corps).

l Feb.ruarv : Kien Hoa, Dinh Tuong, Go Cong, Kien
-
Giang, Vinh Binh (IV Corps); Binh Duong and Bien ffoa (Ui Corps);
On this day the enemy pressure lost sorne of its rnornenturn throughout
the country although in such places as Saigon, Hue, Ban Me Thuo1,
Konturn, My Tho and Vinh Long, the situation still could be d.escribed
as dangerous, After sunrise, Kien Tuong town and a few garrisons in
Long Khanh province were attacked but the assailants wer-e quickly
repulsed.

2 Februarv : Dalat (II Corps).

3 Februarv : Enerny activities definitely decreased through_
out the nati.on. only in Hue did the cornrnunists continue their occu-
pation of the CitaCel. In other citie6 the insurgents sought security by
hiding arnong the people but they were rooted out. Cn that and the fof_
Iowing day they also atternpted to attack the provincial town of Go_Cong
and the headquarters of the 44th special Military District. They failed.
6 February : The situation in Hue, Saigon, and Can Tho
continued to be a source of worry for rnilitary cornrnanders. particu_
larly in Phong Dinh province, in the Mekong delta, V.C. pressure
slowed down for a while, then becarne rnore intense in rnid._February.
In other parts of the country, especially.in I and IV Corps, the Corn_
rnunists continued pounding populated areas with rnortars and rockets.

7 February : For the first tirne in the war the Cornrnu_
nists used tanks to attack an Allied position. A Cornrnunist arrnored
c olurnn crossed the border frorn Laos and swept through the srnall
village of Lang Vei near Khe Sanh, This brought about the collapse of
the defensive systern at Lang Vei. Cnly 7Z ol the defend.ers could get
to Khe Sanh with the rernaining 316 rnen consid.ered. either killed or
rnissing. In the rneantirne U.S, rnarines joined the Battle of Hue and
dislodged the Cornrnunists frorn the residential areas of the forrner
irnperial c apital.

l0 Februaly:V. C. troops entered Bac_Lieu City and set
afire an . sti.trat.E t, OOO houses. Except for Saigon and Hue, all other
South Vietnarnese cities had been cleared of Cornrnunist troops by now.
In Saigon, the fighting was located in the suburbs and in Hue it was in
the areas of Cua Huu and the Bach Ho Bridge.

28 of the 48 cities and provincial towns of South Vietnarn
were attacked by the enerny. The rernaining 20 only recorded a few

-31-