Somoza Crushes Rebel Forces As Thousands Flee Nicaragua

MANAGUA, Nic.--President Anastasio Somoza used troops, tanks, and warplanes to quell the latest and bloodiest uprising against his rule, but the rebellion against him appears far from over.

"This is only the beginning. I'm leaving for Costa Rica just as fast as I can," said one rebellious resident of Esteli, a city which was severely pounded during a week-long assault by the national guard, Nicaragua's 7,500-man army.

Somoza said he unleashed his military forces on Esteli and three other major cities to save the nation from communism, which he claims is being imported by Cuban-trained Sandinista guerillas.

But reports from visitors to Esteli, Leon, Masaya and Chinandega while they were in rebel hands said the challenge to Somoza's rule is coming mostly from townspeople with guns made to kill rabbits rather than men.

One Red Cross spokesman estimated 2 000 people may have died in Esteli alone, although firm figures have been impossible to obtain. Red Cross spokesmen estimate more than 1 000 died in earlier fighting in Leon, Chinandega and Masaya, and that 10,000 people may have fled the country during the violence.

The nation-wide rebellion was spearheaded by the Sandinista National Liberation Front, a group named after a Nicaraguan rebel of the 1930s. The group was formed by a Cuban-trained Marxist, Carlos Amador, who was killed by Somoza's troops about two years ago.

"There are still Marxists involved, but there is no doubt they can no longer control the movement," said a foreign diplomat who asked not to be identified.