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Carefully planned, Tet lasted two months. Fighting was fierce across South Vietnam. Strategic targets were struck, including the heart of Saigon, Hue, and around America's Khe Sanh base.
Vietnamese called years of struggle "The War against the Americans to save the nation." They never wanted war, their nation divided, or Washington as an enemy. Imperial arrogance had other plans from end of WW II. Liberation came only after 30 years of conflict.
May 1954 Dien Bien Phu defeat ended French involvement. America's exit took another two decades.
On January 30, 1968, three and a half years after America's August 1964 Gulf of Tonkin resolution, thousands of Vietnamese soldiers and NLF guerrillas stormed Banmethut, Kontum and Pleiku.
At the same time, they invaded 13 of the 16 provincial capitals throughout the Mekong Delta. US forces were caught off guard and stunned. America's Saigon embassy was penetrated. So was the presidential palace, a radio station, ARVN headquarters, and General Westmoreland's own Tan Son Nhut airbase compound.
America's Bien Hoa air base was assaulted. Over 20 aircraft were either destroyed or damaged. Surprise gave fighters an advantage. Saigon experienced chaos.
Tactics varied from area to area. Most Saigon fighting ended in days. In Hue, it raged for weeks. It became one of Vietnam's longest and bloodiest battles.
After two months of conflict, Tet ended in defeat. Years later, Vietnamese won the war. Tet was decisive. It turned the tide. It showed US vulnerability from freedom fighter determination to prevail. They didn't succeed alone. American anti-war activism made the difference. So did Congress.
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