Hard days but proud
The Hue - Da Nang Campaign was one of three major campaigns in the 1975 Spring General Offensive and Uprising.
The resounding victory of liberating Hue destroyed the enemy's strongest shield in the North, contributing decisively to the victory of the Hue - Da Nang campaign, creating momentum for victory in the historic Ho Chi Minh campaign, completely liberating the South and unifying the country.
Having the opportunity to listen to veterans Pham Minh Tam and Vu Khanh Toan in Thanh Mien district talk about the days of great enthusiasm in the battle to liberate Hue - Da Nang, we feel even more proud and cherish these shining examples of the qualities of "Uncle Ho's soldiers".
Mr. Pham Minh Tam, born in 1949 in Thanh Mien town, is a special forces soldier of Battalion 7 - one of the first battalions of the special forces. He fought for 8 years in the battlefields of Quang Tri and Thua Thien Hue. Recalling that period, he said: "I don't remember how many battles I participated in. We went into battle not knowing whether we would live or die tomorrow, we only knew that we had to complete the mission, had to reclaim every inch of land for the Fatherland."
Severely wounded in a battle in the west of Thua Thien Hue in 1972, he was sent to the North for treatment. He suffered a traumatic brain injury and completely lost hearing in his right ear. It was thought that after treatment he would return to the rear to rest, but immediately after recovering, he asked to return to the battlefield. Because his health was no longer suitable for special forces duty, in 1973 he was transferred to the Engineer Regiment.
Recalling the days of opening roads amid bombs and bullets, Mr. Tam choked up: “We did not have modern machinery, only hoes, shovels, and even bare hands to dig roads amid the rain of bombs and bullets. Whenever the enemy discovered a road, they would bomb it and attack day and night. As soon as the road was opened, bombs would cover it again, but even if we had to sacrifice, the engineers still had to maintain the traffic flow for vehicles carrying troops, food, and ammunition to the battlefield.”
Joining the army together, becoming special forces together, then being injured, and asking to return to the battlefield, Mr. Vu Khanh Toan in Le Hong commune (Thanh Mien) recalled: “At that time, there were bulldozers but they were only used for wide roads, and for dangerous places, we had to break rocks ourselves to clear the road. To use explosives, some sections had to be dug up to two meters deep to stuff explosives. Some comrades had just placed explosives and had not yet had time to retreat when they died. We were in great pain, but we could not stop, because without roads, our army could not advance.”
Enemy troops and evacuees shot and killed each other.
On March 21, 1975, our army advanced deep into the base and surrounded the enemy in Hue city. When entering the city, the two men still clearly remembered the scene of devastation before their eyes.
Mr. Tam recalled: “Hue was eerily quiet at that time. The healthy people had left, leaving only the elderly, women and children. Many people were scared, looking at us and shedding tears.”
On March 25, 1975, our forces destroyed the enemy at Thuan An and Tu Hien seaports and occupied important bases. After taking over Hue, Mr. Tam and his unit marched down to Thuan An port - where tens of thousands of enemy soldiers and evacuees poured in to find a way to escape.
What he witnessed there still haunts him to this day. “They fought to get on the ship, trampling each other, those who couldn’t get on turned around and shot each other. Bodies were floating on the water, vehicles and military equipment were thrown away,” Mr. Tam recalled.
After Hue was liberated, your unit took on the additional task of managing prisoners of war in parallel with establishing the Military Management Committee in Hue.
At that time, prisoners were very afraid of the liberation army because they were told that the North Vietnamese army was very cruel. But they gradually understood when they were treated humanely. Mr. Tam recalled: "Prisoners were told about the lenient policy and were treated. Many of them, after being released, came back with their families to thank the army."
Recalling the days of fighting and witnessing so much loss and pain, Mr. Tam and Mr. Toan still could not hold back their emotions. “We experienced everything, from hunger, thirst, hardship, pain to the joy of victory,” Mr. Toan choked up as he recounted.
Nearly 50 years have passed, but the Hue - Da Nang campaign is still an unforgettable memory in the minds of the soldiers of the past. They fought and sacrificed their youth so that the country could have peace and independence.
And the legendary victories that they painted with their blood will continue to be remembered, so that future generations will never forget.
VAN TUANSource: https://baohaiduong.vn/chien-dich-hue-da-nang-qua-hoi-uc-cua-nhung-cuu-chien-binh-hai-duong-407669.html
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