THE DAILY TELEGRAPH, NOVEMBER 3,1971
GUERRILLAS START STREET WARFARE IN EAST PAKISTAN
By Clare Hollingworth in Dacca
Forty Thousand Bangladesh Guerrillas are now operating inside East Pakistan, and posing grim problems for the West Pakistan Army, which is generally deployed along the 1,300-mile frontier with India.
There are now at least 20 military casualties a day as the Mukti Fouj, the guerrillas, increase their activities inside the towns. They are becoming more aware of their strength, which is based on whole-hearted local support.
Two Pakistani soldiers, one policeman, and a guerrilla were killed in a noon gun battle the other day in Chittagong market.
This is the first time street fighting has taken place in daylight since the martial law authorities took over last March.
In Dacca there are prolonged exchanges of fire in the old part of the town and three or four explosions in the residential areas every night. Several bodies, generally unidentified, are found each morning.
Wave of Support
One Pakistan Army officer said to me: “Open support for the Mukti Fouj has risen during the past two months like a gigantic tidal wave sweeping over the country.”
This has left the Army in an over-stretched position-manning the frontiers with too few men to retain control of the countryside, especially those areas away from the main routes which are now “liberated” by the guerrillas not only during the night but also during the day as well.
Two bombs destroyed a garage and a petrol station in Dacca yesterday. The building in the centre of the city which houses the Election Commission was blown up on Sunday night. A few nights earlier, guerrillas bombed the television studios building.
Bank robberies are frequent because the three groups of guerrillas now deployed inside the city require far more money for food and lodgings than those operating in the countryside. Schools have also been attacked. Many parents now keep their children at home.
Growing audacity
The authorities are pressing the Government in Islamabad to introduce “punitive levies” on local inhabitants. Under this, the nearest inhabitants to any guerrilla activity would be forced to pay a collective fine.
But it will be difficult to enforce if the audacity of the Mukti fouj continues at its present rate. One thousand guerrillas held a conference last weekend near the port of Barisal. Banners proclaiming their independence were flying only three miles from the nearest army outpost.