K HMER ROUGE rebels in the past fortnight have continued to launch regular
attacks around Battambang - reportedly shelling rockets into the provincial town
- killing two civilians and injuring another two.
Battambang's police
commander General Van Chhunly said: "At around 12:40 am the morning of March 5,
a band of about twenty KR came as close as ten kms south from the provincial
capital in Sangke district."
"They came in the district quietly carrying
with them 107 mm shells," Chhunly said.
He said the guerrillas launched
seven rockets into the town but only three of them exploded, destroying one
house.
General Chhunly said it was the first incident of the rebels
shelling the capital this year, but he did not consider it a threat "because the
KR is now weakened and divided into small groups."
"Since early this
year, my police have cooperated with the military to fight against rebels
everywhere around Battambang... the KR is being weakened from day to day,"
Chhunly said.
He said on Feb 27, his fighting police and about 300 troops
launched an attack to mop up KR guerrillas along Route 58B, about 30 km
northwest of Battambang in Bavel district.
He said after two hours
fighting, about 100 guerrillas retreated from their base leaving behind two
dead.
He said two RCAF soldiers were killed and two more wounded during
the day-long operation.
Chhunly said on Feb 28, his police launched more
heavy shelling on rebel camps in Rattanak Mondul district, 34 km west of
Battambang.
He said RCAF forces started their attack from the east along
Route 10 - the road to Pailin - pushing the guerrillas 20 km to the west from
the district town in Rattanak Mondul. At least three KR guerrillas were killed
in the operation.
Rattanak Mondul district came under heavy KR attack
late last December, forcing the entire population in the district to
flee.
He said on Feb 26, KR guerrillas attacked Anlong Run village in
Bavel district , about 40 km northwest from Battambang town, killing one
villager and burning 44 houses.
Four days earlier he said KR rebels
launched three separate attacks around rural Battambang.
The first
occurred in Sangke district and the second in Mong Russei district when a number
of KR attacked Robah Mongkul village.
He said KR weapons were seized and
four guerrillas were killed in a counter-attack by local militiamen and
police.
The third attack occurred in Bavel district, when the rebels hit
Ta Mat village in Prey Kpoh commune, burning 15 houses.
