NIXON HALTS US BOMBING OF VIETNAM
1973 US President Nixon today ordered a halt to all bombing of Vietnam by American warplanes, less than a month after the massive US ''Christmas bombing'' raids hit North Vietnam's capital, Hanoi. This initiative comes as the Paris peace conference opens, with a cease-fire to end the conflict believed to be imminent. The Christmas bombing was planed by White House strategists as a means of forcing Viet Cong leaders to moderate their demands at the Paris negotiating table. Women and children were evacuated as Hanoi Hospital was hit by bombs, and 1600 civilians killed when more than 36,000 tons of bombs fell on the city over 12 days, leaving Hanoi a wasteland. In Washington a hostile congress had signaled its intention to limit Nixon's power to wage war if bombing continued.
1973 US President Nixon today ordered a halt to all bombing of Vietnam by American warplanes, less than a month after the massive US ''Christmas bombing'' raids hit North Vietnam's capital, Hanoi. This initiative comes as the Paris peace conference opens, with a cease-fire to end the conflict believed to be imminent. The Christmas bombing was planed by White House strategists as a means of forcing Viet Cong leaders to moderate their demands at the Paris negotiating table. Women and children were evacuated as Hanoi Hospital was hit by bombs, and 1600 civilians killed when more than 36,000 tons of bombs fell on the city over 12 days, leaving Hanoi a wasteland. In Washington a hostile congress had signaled its intention to limit Nixon's power to wage war if bombing continued.
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