fighter aircraft, as well as USAF B-52 bombers, the political climate in Moscow and Peking had changed to encourage the North Vietnamese to agree to a settlement. Uneasy Peace 1973 On 27 January 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed with an effective date of 28 January 1973. For TAC, the war in Southeast Asia (SEA) was almost over. With the official end of hostilities came the long-awaited release of American Prisoners of War from inside North Vietnam. The last USAF aircraft left South Vietnam at the end of January 1973, and the final group of American Prisoners of War were released from North Vietnam on 29 March 1973. The accords effectively ended United States military operations in North and South Vietnam. Laos and Cambodia, however, were not signatories to the Paris agreement and remained in states of war with their internal rebel forces. The United States was helping the Royal Laotian government achieve whatever advantage possible before working out a settlement with the Laotian communists and their allies. The USAF flew combat sorties over Laos during January and February 1973. On 17 April, the USAF flew its last mission over Laos, working a handful of targets requested by the Laotian government. In Cambodia, there was no peace in 1973. Local communist insurgents of the Khmer Rouge kept up their attacks on the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, so the Cambodian Government urgently called upon the U.S. for help and the USAF in Thailand was ordered to carry out a massive bombing campaign against the insurgents on the outskirts of the city. The Cambodian Army would attempt to attack Khmer Rouge forces, however the rebels would simply slip away and move somewhere else. This tactic effectively succeeded in wearing down the government forces. In July and August 1973, the Khmer Rouge focused on taking Phanom Penh and other major cities. In addition, it was reported that the Khmer Rouge was utilizing tear gas in its attacks. Congressional pressure in Washington grew against these bombings, and on 30 June 1973, the United States Congress passed public law PL 93-50 and 93-52, which cut off all funds for combat in Cambodia and all of Indochina effective 15 August 1973. Air strikes by the USAF peaked just before the deadline, as the Cambodian Army engaged a force of about 10,000 Khmer Rouge rebels that encircled Phnom Penh. The last shot fired in anger in