The Marine Corps served an important role in the Vietnam War by participating in such battles as Da Nang, Hue City, and Khe Sanh. Individuals from the USMC operated in the Northern I Corps Regions of South Vietnam. While there, they were constantly engaged in a guerrilla war against the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (NLF) and an intermittent conventional war against the North Vietnamese Army (NVA). The U.S. government did not begin keeping separate statistics on Hispanics until 1979. Therefore, the exact number of Hispanics who served in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War era is unknown. The statistics that were kept by the Department of Defense, in accordance to the Vietnam War Statistics, included Hispanics among Caucasians. However, it is estimated that 170,000 Hispanics served in Vietnam and that 3,070 (5.2% of total) died there. This total includes those who served in the Marines. Of the 57 Medals of Honor awarded to Marines for actions during the Vietnam War, six were awarded to Marines of Hispanic descent, of which five were posthumous awards. The six Marines were Sergeant Alfredo "Freddy" Gonzalez, Major Jay R. Vargas Jr., Lance Corporal Jose Francisco Jimenez, PFC Ralph E. Dias, Lance Corporal Emilio A. De La Garza and Lance Corporal Miguel Keith. Of the 360 Navy Crosses awarded to the Marines, 19 were awarded to men of Hispanic descent.