Editing Malayan Emergency (section)

===Nature of warfare===
[[File:The Malayan Emergency 1948-1960 MAL35.jpg|thumb|Malayan Police conducting a patrol around the [[Belum-Temengor|Temenggor]], 1953]]

The British Army soon realised that clumsy sweeps by large formations were unproductive.{{sfnp|Nagl|2002|pp=67–70}} Instead, platoons or sections carried out patrols and laid ambushes, based on intelligence from various sources, including informers, surrendered MNLA personnel, aerial reconnaissance and so on. An operation named "Nassau", carried out in the [[Kuala Langat]] swamp is described in ''The Guerrilla – and how to Fight Him'':{{Efn|Fleet Marine Force Reference Publication (FMFRP) 12-25,'The Guerrilla - And How To Fight Him'}} <!-- This is an absolutely massive colossal block of text to describe conditions which could be explained in a single paragraph. --> {{blockquote|On 7 July, two additional companies were assigned to the area; patrolling and harassing fires were intensified. Three terrorists surrendered and one of them led a platoon patrol to the terrorist leader's camp. The patrol attacked the camp, killing four, including the leader. Other patrols accounted for four more; by the end of July, twenty-three terrorists remained in the swamp with no food or communications with the outside world.

This was the nature of operations: 60,000 artillery shells, 30,000 rounds of mortar ammunition, and 2,000 aircraft bombs for 35 terrorists killed or captured. Each one represented 1,500 man-days of patrolling or waiting in ambushes. "Nassau" was considered a success for the end of the emergency was one step nearer.<ref>Taber, ''The War of the Flea'', pp.140–141. Quote from Marine Corps Schools, "Small Unit Operations" in ''The Guerrilla – and how to Fight Him''</ref>}}MNLA guerrillas had numerous advantages over Commonwealth forces since they lived in closer proximity to villagers, they sometimes had relatives or close friends in the village, and they were not afraid to threaten violence or torture and murder village leaders as an example to the others, which forced them to assist them with food and information. British forces thus faced a dual threat: the MNLA guerrillas and the silent network in villages who supported them. British troops often described the terror of jungle patrols. In addition to watching out for MNLA guerrillas, they had to navigate difficult terrain and avoid dangerous animals and insects. Many patrols would stay in the jungle for days, even weeks, without encountering the MNLA guerrillas. That strategy led to the infamous [[Batang Kali massacre]] in which 24 unarmed villagers were executed by British troops.<ref name="MAY" /><ref name="MAL" />

Royal Air Force activities, grouped under "Operation Firedog" included ground attacks in support of troops and the transport of supplies. The RAF used a wide mixture of aircraft to attack MNLA positions: from the new [[Avro Lincoln]] heavy bomber to [[Short Sunderland]] flying boats. Jets were used in the conflict when [[de Havilland Vampire]]s replaced Spitfires of [[No. 60 Squadron RAF]] in 1950 and were used for ground attack.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/60squadron.cfm |title=60(R) Squadron |work=Royal Air Force |year=2016 |access-date=9 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306151633/http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/60Squadron.cfm |archive-date=6 March 2016 }}</ref> Jet bombers came with the [[English Electric Canberra]] in 1955. The [[No. 194 Squadron RAF|Casualty Evacuation Flight]] was formed in early 1953 to bring the wounded out of the jungles; it used early helicopters such as the [[Westland Dragonfly]], landing in small clearings.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.warhistoryonline.com/instant-articles/operation-firedog-the-raf.html | title=Operation Firedog: The RAF in Malaya -1948-1960 | date=31 October 2018 |website=War History Online |first1=Dean |last1=Smith |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230811154813/https://www.warhistoryonline.com/instant-articles/operation-firedog-the-raf.html |archive-date= Aug 11, 2023 }}</ref> The RAF progressed to using [[Westland Whirlwind (helicopter)|Westland Whirlwind]] helicopters to deploy troops in the jungle.

The MNLA was vastly outnumbered by the British forces and their Commonwealth and colonial allies in terms of regular full-time soldiers. Siding with the British occupation were a maximum of 40,000 British and other Commonwealth troops, 250,000 Home Guard members, and 66,000 police agents. Supporting the communists were 7,000+ communist guerrillas (1951 peak), an estimated 1,000,000 sympathisers, and an unknown number of civilian [[Min Yuen]] supporters and [[Orang Asli]] sympathisers.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hack|first=Karl|date=2012|title=Everyone lived in fear: Malaya and the British way of counter-insurgency|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09592318.2012.709764|journal=Small Wars and Insurgencies|volume=23|issue=4–5|pages=671–699|doi=10.1080/09592318.2012.709764|s2cid=143847349|via=Taylor & Francis Online}}</ref>