In May , civil unrest broke out in South Vietnam following the Huế Phật Đản shootings . Nine Buddhists were gunned down by the minority Catholic regime of President Ngô Đình Diệm after defying a government ban on the flying of Buddhist flags on Vesak , the birthday of Gautama Buddha and marching in an anti-government protest . Following the shootings , Buddhist leaders began to lobby Diệm for religious equality and compensation and justice for the families of the victims . With Diệm remaining recalcitrant , the protests escalated . The self-immolation of Buddhist monk Thích Quảng Đức at a busy Saigon intersection was a public relations disaster for the Diệm regime , and as protests continued , the Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces loyal to his brother Ngô Đình Nhu , raided pagodas across the country on August 21 , killing hundreds and causing extensive damage under the declaration of martial law . Universities and high schools were closed amid mass pro-Buddhist protests . In the meantime , the fight against the Viet Cong insurgency had begun to lose intensity as rumours spread of sectarian infighting among ARVN troops . This was compounded by coup plotting by various ARVN officers which distracted attention from fighting the insurgency . In the aftermath of the pagoda raids , the Kennedy administration sent Cable 243 to its embassy in Saigon , ordering it to explore alternative leadership possibilities
raided pagodas across the country
Xá Lợi Pagoda raids
McNamara–Taylor mission