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2 April 1968 - 30 June 1968 | |||||||||
2 Apr 68
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L.B.J. Won't Run - Halts Bombing North of DMZ | ||||||||
4 Apr 68 |
Civil rights leader Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King is assassinated
in Memphis. Racial unrest then erupts in over 100 American cities.
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4 Apr 68 |
1/50 (M) Infantry finishes operations
under operational control of the 4th Infantry Division.
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5 Apr 68
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North Vietnam Declares It's Ready to Talk - L.B.J., Aids to Confer in Honolulu | ||||||||
5 Apr 68
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Operation Cochise Green begins in
the Bong Son Plains, Vinh Than Mountains, Central Coastal Plains, Binh
Dinh Province. It lasts until 17 August 1968. 150(M) Infantry is attached
to the 173rd Airborne Bde (SEP) and joins ongoing Operation Cochise Green.
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5 Apr 68
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McCarthy, Nixon Sweep Wisconsin | ||||||||
5 Apr 68
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Allied Force Pushes Toward Khe Sanh | ||||||||
7 Apr 68
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Troops Called to Curb D.C. Violence | ||||||||
7 Apr 68
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Khe Sanh Siege Lifted | ||||||||
8 Apr 68 |
NVA troops withdraw from the siege of Khe Sanh having
suffered some 15,000 casualties. U.S. Marines losses are 199 killed and
830 wounded. The U.S. command then secretly shuts down Khe Sanh and withdraws
the Marines. A North Vietnamese official labels the closing of Khe Sanh
air base as America's "gravest defeat" so far.
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8 Apr 68 |
1st Cavalry suffered 92 killed and 629 wounded reopening
Route 9.
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11 Apr 68 |
Defense Secretary Clifford announces Gen. Westmoreland's
request for 206,000 additional soldiers will not be granted.
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23 Apr 68 |
Anti-war activists at Columbia University seize five buildings.
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27 Apr 68 |
200,000 New York students refuse to attend classes as
a protest.
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Apr 30-May 3 68 |
The Battle of Dai Do occurs along the Demilitarized Zone
as a battalion of U.S. Marines nicknamed "the Magnificent Bastards", aided
by heavy artillery and air strikes, kill 1,568 NVA troops trying to open
an invasion corridor into South Vietnam. Marine losses are 81 killed and
297 wounded, as well as 29 U.S. Army killed and 130 wounded supporting
the Marines. The defeat postpones North Vietnam's next attempt to invade
the South for four years after most of the Americans have gone; that attempt
is also unsuccessful.
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5 May 68 |
Viet Cong launch "Mini Tet," a series of rocket and mortar
attacks against Saigon and 119 cities and military installations throughout
South Vietnam. The U.S. responds with air strikes using Napalm and high
explosives.
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5-7 May 68
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Battle of An Bao, Operation Cochise,
Phu My District, Binh Dinh Province. Co. A(-) with 9 APCs is attacked
by two enemy battalions near the village of An Bao. The heavy enemy fire
destroyed 5 of the APCs in the initial contact. Counter attacked with
reinforcements from C 1/50 and B 1/69th Armor. Enemy lost 117 KIA. The
1/50 lost 18 KIA and 91 WIA.(Ref. 1/50th After Action Report on An Bao for casualty stats.)
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5 May 68
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U.S., Hanoi Agree on Paris For Talks | ||||||||
5 May 68
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New Heart Transplants in Texas, U.K. | ||||||||
10 May 68 |
An NVA battalion attacks the Special Forces camp at Kham
Duc established in 1963 along the border of Laos to monitor North Vietnamese
infiltration.
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10 May 68 |
Peace talks begin in Paris but soon stall as the U.S.
insists that North Vietnamese troops withdraw from the South, while the
North Vietnamese insist on Viet Cong participation in a coalition government
in South Vietnam. This marks the beginning of five years of on-again off-again
official talks between the U.S. and North Vietnam in Paris.
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11-13 May 68 |
Battle of Trung Hoi (2), Operation
Cochise, Phu My District, Binh Dinh Province.
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15 May 68
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Both Sides Urge De-Escalation As Peace Talks Open in Paris | ||||||||
15 May 68
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Thousands Join Anti-De Gaulle March in Paris | ||||||||
15 May 68
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Poor Settle in D.C. to 'Plague' Congress | ||||||||
15 May 68
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Johnson Silent on Paris Talks | ||||||||
24 May-1 Jun 68
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The 1/50(M) Infantry activates the
Scout /Recon Plt. under HHC company and deactivates Delta Company (Provisional)
as a line company.
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25 May 68
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Battle of Trinh Van (1), Phu My
District, Binh Dinh Province. Co. B and C (-) halted to disarm an anti
tank mine. The companies while continuing on their march toward objective
were attacked from west, northwest and northeast. Company B command track
gets a direct hit with a mortar and the FO is wounded seriously. The Recon
Platoon (Scouts) and elements of the 1/69th Armor were sent to help. The
U.S. units counter attacked. The enemy lost 38 KIA. U.S. losses were 1
KIA and 20 wounded.
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1 Jun 68 |
The 1/50 (M) Infantry officially
constitutes the Scout/Recon Plt. under HHC June 1, 1968.
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5 Jun 68 |
Robert F. Kennedy is shot and mortally wounded in Los
Angeles just after winning the California Democratic presidential primary
election.
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5 Jun 68
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Hanoi to Release 3 Downed Pilots | ||||||||
5 Jun 68
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L.B.J. Watches 'Westy' Become Chief | ||||||||
19 Jun 68
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Night Assault - Last VC Holdouts Routed in Saigon | ||||||||
19 Jun 68
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North Viets May Be Using Copters | ||||||||
19 Jun 68
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Striking Actors Dim Broadway | ||||||||
19 Jun 68
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L.B.J. Vows Support to Berlin in Latest E. German Squeeze | ||||||||
29 Jun 68
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Agree to Discuss Cutback - Russ Okay Arms Talk | ||||||||
29 Jun 68
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L.B.J. Asks Vote For 18-Year-Olds | ||||||||
29 Jun 68
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Marines Leaving Khe-Sanh; Red Shift in Tactics Cited | ||||||||
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