Evening star., 1953-07-16
Korea
Continued From First Page0

Continued From First Page.)
from outposts on orders as the
Reds hit.
On the Kumsong River front
three South Korean divisions
about $4,000 soldiers - with
American support-drove the
Chinese back as much as a mile
today. No United States in
fantrymen took part in the at
tack, Army spokeSmen said.
The South Koreans struck
under an umbrella of hundreds
of United States Air Force, Navy
and Marine and Australian jet
warplanes which softened up the
Reds in the first day of good
flying weather since the big Red
assault opened.
Associated Press Correspond
ent Forrest Edwards reported
the Chinese falling back disor-
ganized from territory they
gained Monday and Tuesday in
a massive offensive which carried
an officially disclosed miles.
Three MICS Shot Down
United States tanks and big
guns hampered the Communists
and waves of allied warplanes
flew more than 1000 strikes.
They shot down three Red MIG
jets in aerial battles and dam
aged two others. shot up three
Red planes on the ground and
destroyed three Red tanks, the
Air Force said.
Gen. Maxwell Taylor, United
States 9th Army commander,
made a hurried inspection trip
to the flaming east-central front,
then returned to his headquar-
ters here.
Frontline reports filtering
through heavy censorship said
there was no major fighting in
the 15-mile stretch between the
northward-pressing ROKs near
the Kumsong River and the
Reds new southwark push to-
ward Kumhwa.
First reports on the new battle
said the Reds were curling around
the southern base of Sniper
Ridge, which was abandoned as
an outpost after the ROK Cap
itol Discriminatory to the
east-was forced back under the
weight of the Red offensive
Monday and Tuesday.
Near Sniper Ridge.
The ground being fought over
at Kumhwa was the area of
the f1ve-week battle for Sniper
Ridge last October and November
when the I'd ROK Division lost
nearly 10000 men taking the
height.
Sniper is only about 3 miles
from Kumhwa itself.
Kumhwa, protected by single
hill on its west side. lies as a
prize between the twin claws
of Triangle Hill and Sniper
Ridge, which descend from the
towering 3,600-foot Communist
fortress Of Papa-san, only miles
north of the road junction.
Once a bustling mining town,
Kumhwa has been covered with
grass for two years. but is STILL
vitally important because of its
military roads. To lose it would
mean that the allies would have
to readjust their east-west road
network and face the long-range
possibility of a Chinese attack
toward either Seoul or Chun-
Chon.
Could Be Major Action.
Any battle around Kumhwa
could turn into one of the great
actions of the war. KumhWa, in
the exact center of the Allied
front, controls five major arte-
rial roads in it's area and is the
keystone of the 9th Army front
in its present line.
Allied officers said South Ko-
reans on the Kumsong front
launched their counter-offensive
on standing orders to march
when the Red drive petered out,
as happened yesterday.
The 9th Army and United Ma
tionS command avoided the term
"counterattack," but this ap-
peared to be a matter of technical
definition and there was no
question that a major U. N. at
tack was underway.
The ROK division in the CEN
ter of the attack reported re-
gaining up to a mile by early
afternoon and divisions on each
flank also moved north, but more
slowly, the 9th Army said.
Clearing Skies Aid Planes.
Clearing skies permitted
swarms of allied warplanes to
pound the Chinese for the first
time.
The tank-supported South
Korean columns rolled north
under the personal observation
of their hard-boiled chief of
staff. Gen. Sun Yup Paik, and
with an exhortation from Presi-
dent Syngman Rhee not to yield
even one inch of ground regard
less of its Importance"
Gen. Mark w. Clark. U. N. Far
East commander. told newsmen
on arrival in Seoul en- route to a
f1rsthand look at the battle, the
front situation appears to be in