Haiti-Commandos
9-20-1994
^US Planned To Kidnap Cedras at Outset of Invasion With AM-Haiti, Bjt
^By ANDREW SELSKY
^Associated Press Writer
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) _ American commandos were set to kidnap Haiti's military leader Lt. Gen. Raoul Cedras as the U.S. invasion force headed for the Caribbean nation, a U.S. officer says.
"They were cocked and loaded to get him," said Capt. Chris Hughes, of the U.S. Army's elite Rangers, confirming reports from other military sources.
But in Washington, a senior Pentagon official heatedly denied on Tuesday that there was any plan to kidnap Cedras.
"It's absolutely not true," said the official, who had a major role in drawing up the plans for the Haiti operation. "There never was any intent" to kidnap Cedras.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the commando teams were sent in to spot out targets, assess security at airfields and other pre- invasion tasks, but had no orders to kidnap anyone.
Members of the Special Operations Command, aided by sophisticated tracking equipment and intelligence reports, had been in Haiti for weeks and planned to capture Cedras to throw the Haitian military's high command into confusion, the other military sources said.
A last-minute agreement between the United States and Cedras put a halt to the abduction plan, and instead of invading, the Americans peacefully moved in. On Monday, Cedras was no longer a kidnap target, but a partner in U.S.-led efforts to establish democracy and oversee his peaceful resignation.
Other special forces members who had been readied for the invasion included some 100 soldiers armed with sniper rifles, some with noise suppression devices and laser sighting units. Reporters traveling with the invasion force saw the soldiers during a stop at the U.S. Naval base at Guantanamo, Cuba.
Navy SEAL commandos had also been on Haitian soil at least 10 days before the planned attack and reconnoitered the shoreline, U.S. officials said Monday. Specialists fluent in Creole had also been ashore.
Although the unopposed arrival of the Americans went smoothly, Hughes - a veteran of the 1989 Panama invasion - and other combat-hardened troops believe their occupation of this complex, violent country may be another matter.
The soldiers' orders put them squarely in the middle of any fighting between Haitian factions.
There is widespread fear that the resignation of Cedras or the arrival of the elected president he toppled, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, will trigger revenge attacks by Aristide's followers against the military and its henchmen. Cedras must leave office by Oct. 15 under the terms of the accord, and President Clinton has pledged to restore Aristide to power.
"My concern is that those who were oppressed will try to get revenge," Hughes said Monday in an interview at Port-au-Prince's airport.
He said the mission was to step in to halt violence involving the army and civilians. "I think we will eventually be involved in skirmishes."
There is also a possibility that Clinton may call on American soldiers to disarm Haitians.
For Pfc. Isidro Guerrero, Haiti may be a replay of Somalia, where U.S. forces were first welcomed, then got caught between clan fighting.
"I'm expecting a repeat of Somalia, where being police meant being targets,"said Guerrero, a member of the 10th Mountain Division.
^US Planned To Kidnap Cedras at Outset of Invasion With AM-Haiti, Bjt
^By ANDREW SELSKY
^Associated Press Writer
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) _ American commandos were set to kidnap Haiti's military leader Lt. Gen. Raoul Cedras as the U.S. invasion force headed for the Caribbean nation, a U.S. officer says.
"They were cocked and loaded to get him," said Capt. Chris Hughes, of the U.S. Army's elite Rangers, confirming reports from other military sources.
But in Washington, a senior Pentagon official heatedly denied on Tuesday that there was any plan to kidnap Cedras.
"It's absolutely not true," said the official, who had a major role in drawing up the plans for the Haiti operation. "There never was any intent" to kidnap Cedras.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the commando teams were sent in to spot out targets, assess security at airfields and other pre- invasion tasks, but had no orders to kidnap anyone.
Members of the Special Operations Command, aided by sophisticated tracking equipment and intelligence reports, had been in Haiti for weeks and planned to capture Cedras to throw the Haitian military's high command into confusion, the other military sources said.
A last-minute agreement between the United States and Cedras put a halt to the abduction plan, and instead of invading, the Americans peacefully moved in. On Monday, Cedras was no longer a kidnap target, but a partner in U.S.-led efforts to establish democracy and oversee his peaceful resignation.
Other special forces members who had been readied for the invasion included some 100 soldiers armed with sniper rifles, some with noise suppression devices and laser sighting units. Reporters traveling with the invasion force saw the soldiers during a stop at the U.S. Naval base at Guantanamo, Cuba.
Navy SEAL commandos had also been on Haitian soil at least 10 days before the planned attack and reconnoitered the shoreline, U.S. officials said Monday. Specialists fluent in Creole had also been ashore.
Although the unopposed arrival of the Americans went smoothly, Hughes - a veteran of the 1989 Panama invasion - and other combat-hardened troops believe their occupation of this complex, violent country may be another matter.
The soldiers' orders put them squarely in the middle of any fighting between Haitian factions.
There is widespread fear that the resignation of Cedras or the arrival of the elected president he toppled, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, will trigger revenge attacks by Aristide's followers against the military and its henchmen. Cedras must leave office by Oct. 15 under the terms of the accord, and President Clinton has pledged to restore Aristide to power.
"My concern is that those who were oppressed will try to get revenge," Hughes said Monday in an interview at Port-au-Prince's airport.
He said the mission was to step in to halt violence involving the army and civilians. "I think we will eventually be involved in skirmishes."
There is also a possibility that Clinton may call on American soldiers to disarm Haitians.
For Pfc. Isidro Guerrero, Haiti may be a replay of Somalia, where U.S. forces were first welcomed, then got caught between clan fighting.
"I'm expecting a repeat of Somalia, where being police meant being targets,"said Guerrero, a member of the 10th Mountain Division.
Comments
Post a Comment