Operation Sourisak Montry VIII
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Operation Sourisak Montry VIII (September 1971 ā 22 June 1972) was a Thai military offensive against an encroaching Chinese Communist presence just north of the Mekong River. Operation Phalat established a base camp at Xieng Lom, Laos, on the southern bank of the Mekong River, and garrisoned it with three Thai mercenary battalions. Operation Sourisak Montry was a series of indecisive skirmishes in the same area, during which the Thais won a Pyrrhic victory over the Pathet Lao in mid-March 1972.
Operation Sourisak Montry | |||||||||
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Part of Laotian Civil War; Vietnam War | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
Thailand Kingdom of Laos Supported by United States |
Pathet Lao Communist Party of Thailand Supported by: People's Republic of China | ||||||||
Units involved | |||||||||
Operation Sourisak Montry 7th Regimental Combat Team Thai mercenaries 70 US Special Forces Air America medevac 22nd Special Operations Squadron |
Operation Sourisak Montry 100 Communist insurgents |
Subsequently, Operation Sourisak Montry VIII in June 1972 attempted to recapture two Lao border villages from Communist forces. The offensive ended poorly, with an Air America civilian pilot killed, an 80-man column pinned down for ten days, and the Thai troops repulsed.