Page 418 - The Viet-Cong Tet_Offensive_1968

the local adrninistrative building.

B. - THE BATTLE OF DALAT

Before the offensive enerny forces operating in Tuyen
Duc province nurnbered around Z00raen divided into two rnobile corn-
panies for the whole province and four regional platoons for its four
districts, Their activities had been lirnited to scattered attacks
against governrnent outposts, rninor arnbushes against convoys while
evading our large-scale operati-ons. Their rnain purpose had been
to destroy our in{rastructure at the village and harnlet level around
Dalat, seeking influence on, and supply frorn the locaL population.

As their regional forces were too weak the C ornrnuni sts
had to bring in reinforcernents frorn other places for their offensiwe
against the city. One enerny battalion was reportedly dispatched by
the C ornrnunist cornrnand to the south of Don Duong district a few days
before Tet. It was identi.fied as the VC 186th Battalion.

. C ornrnanding and staff officers at the Tuyen Duc Sector
C ornrnand were restless throughout the night of the 3rd day of Tet as
they did not know when the enerny would attack (no intelligence
reports had indicated they would) or whether the C ornrnunists would
choose the city itself as target of their offensive as had been the case
throughout the rest o{ the country.

The officers had thought of reinlorcing the defense of
Dalat by bringing back troops frorn regions around the city, but they
were afraid such rneasure would adversely affect the rnorale of the
regional authorities and leave open gaps for the enerny to rnove
through, This led to no decision by the sector cornrnand gathered in
their conJerence roorrr only for a long wait-and-see segsion.
And suddenly in the cool spring night of Dalat, the
enerny opened fire at exactly 0145h. Following a barrage of 60rnrn
and 8Zrnrn mortar rounds frorn the southeast part of the city toward
the sector c ornrnand headquarters, enerly infantryrnen ernerged
frorn the dark and launched their as6ault on the headquarters. They
rnet with fierce resistance by the defenders. Sergeant Tai, who
c ornrnanded a platoon guarding the headquarters rnaj.n fortress, was
fatally hit by the enerny gunfire rninute s after the fighting broke out,
However, the fortress did not fall as its defenders helped by our
V-100 counter-fire succeeded in repelling the attackers out of the
headquarters cornpound. One of the V-100rs was set fire by an enelny

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