Word: lon
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...would the fall of Lon Nol affect South Viet...
After the 1970 coup, more than 5,000 Cambodian rebels who had been training in North Viet Nam returned to their native country and recruited a like number of local Communists. They today form the core of the 60,000 Khmer insurgents (commonly known as the Khmer Rouge) fighting Lon Nol's forces. The non-Communists are primarily conscripted peasants, who Western military observers believe are serving under duress. Prince Sihanouk, who has been living in Peking since 1970, is the nominal head of the insurgents, although little is known about the rebels' real leaders. It is assumed...
...supporting the Lon Nol regime...
...battlefield. State Department officials recently disclosed that the U.S. made six attempts in the past year (variously using Peking, Hanoi and Moscow as intermediaries) to open a dialogue with the rebels. "All our efforts have been rebuffed," complained President Ford. The Khmer insurgents' leaders refuse to negotiate while Lon Nol continues to head the Phnom-Penh government. Moreover, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger apparently made no attempt during any of his seven visits to Peking to meet with Prince Sihanouk...
...insurgents have burnt entire villages that they have captured; there are reliable reports that Khmer Rouge troops have killed and strung up scores of civilians in areas they have "liberated." (Both sides have treated prisoners brutally.) On the other hand, the rebels' clandestine radio promises that only Lon Nol and six of his top colleagues ("the seven traitorous chieftains") would be executed; all others who cooperate with the new government have been assured of pardons. If the capital falls, the U.S. is prepared to evacuate the regime's top leaders...