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FTPOLK.ASC
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1990-09-18
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-- START OF TEXT --
Red ribbons symbolizing support for U.S. soldiers in Panama are being
removed from car aerials and neighborhood trees now that the last of the
post's units are returning home. The last soldiers of the 5th Infantry
Division (Mechanized) are expected to be back on post Friday, ending a
14-month mission in Panama that erupted in December with a 2,000-troop
invasion. About 125 soldiers of D Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Infantry landed
at England Air Force Base Thursday evening after participating in Operation
Promote Liberty - the subsequent security mission of the Dec. 20 Panama
invasion, which was dubbed Operation Just Cause. Post spokesman Dan Nance
said only 25 D Company soldiers remain in the Central American country. They
will return home by the end of the week. "The biggest thing was to be there
as a show of force," said Capt. Jerry Clinkscales, commander of the returning
D Company. "That's not as easy as it sounds because you have to stay busy,
stay occupied and stay trained." He said, for the most part, his soldiers
were well received by the Panamanian people. "They identified with the
diamond," he said. A red diamond is the symbol of the 5th Division and is
worn on the shoulder of Fort Polk soldiers. "I think most of the soldiers are
just realizing how important their mission was and how much a part of history
it was."
Fort Polk's interdiction of Gen. Manuel Noriega's regime started May
11, 1989, when 700 soldiers from the 5th Battalion, 6th Infantry were part of
2,000 U.S. troops ordered to Panama by President Bush. The action was in
response to the harassment of American citizens and Noriega's voiding of an
election. "These soldiers were deployed on short notice and conducted freedom
of movement exercises throughout Panama," Nance said, adding that the unit -
dubbed Task Force Roadrunner - would often encounter roadblocks set up by
Noriega's Panama Defense Force (PDF) but no armed opposition. Starting in
September 1989, soldiers and support units of the post's 4th Battalion, 6th
Infantry replaced the 5th Battalion as tension between the U.S. and the
Noriega government escalated. Noriega eventually declared a state of war
between Panama and the United States, and a Marine lieutenant was shot and
killed at a PDF roadblock. Dubbed the Task Force Regulars, the 4th Battalion
engaged in some of the heaviest fighting of Operation Just Cause and was noted
for capturing La Comandancia - the headquarters of the PDF guarded by an
estimated 300 to 400 Panamanian soldiers.
*** From The (Shreveport) Times, Shreveport, LA ***
-- END OF TEXT --