Khmer Rouge Claims Attack on Cambodia’s No. 2 City

The Communist Khmer Rouge claimed early today that its forces had attacked Cambodia’s second-largest city, Battambang, and that the provincial capital was ablaze hours after the attack was launched.

There was no independent confirmation of the attack, announced on the Khmer Rouge’s radio and monitored in Bangkok. But if true, it would represent a stunning blow to the Vietnamese-backed government in Phnom Penh.

In what appeared to herald the start of a new offensive against the Phnom Penh government, guerrilla forces also attacked positions in western Pursat province and in northwestern Bamteay Meanchey province, the radio said.

The radio said that Cambodian government troops attempted to bring up tanks from positions along Route 10, which runs from Battambang to the border town of Pailin, which the Khmer Rouge captured on Oct. 22 after a month of fierce fighting.

The radio said the government troops were “partly routed” in the fighting along Route 10.

“Battambang town burned brightly from 1 a.m. on Jan. 6,” the radio said.

There was no comment from Phnom Penh.

The loss of Battambang would be a major psychological blow to the Cambodian governments, as well as cutting off most of western Cambodia from supplies.