 The PAVN opened its campaign against Phước Long on December 12, 1974, using the 4th Battalion of the 165th Infantry Regiment to attack a South Vietnamese outpost located on Route 14, which was defended by a single South Vietnamese security company.On the same night the military zone of Bù Đốp was also attacked by a company of Viet Cong special forces from the Phước Bình area.During the next few days the ARVN managed to recapture its positions along Route 14, but they could not clear the main road.