US advisors' in Honduras -the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. US manoeuvres threaten 1600 US troops are currently engaged in manoeuvres with the Honduras army only seven miles from the border with Nicaragua. A total of 7,000 troops are engaged in 'operation Big Pine' warships are simultaneously being deployed along the coast of Nicaragua. 'Big Pine' is the largest military exercise ever held in Central America. The 'enemy' for the Honduran and US troops is subtlely code-named The Red Army'.
in the context of the continually worsening situation for imperialism in El Salvador, the presence of large numbers of US troops in Honduras constitutes a threat of imminent intervention in the region.
Since the beginning of January more than 60 counter-revolutionaries and 25 Sandinista soldiers have been killed in rebel incursions across the border trom Honduras putting the Sandinista Defence Committees on alert. Guards at potential sabotage points were strengthened.
hoping to overthrow In addition to the land exercises, United States Last week the FSL government responded by was a stunning psychological blow the ment of Alvaro Magana.
The capture of Berlin, the CitatiOn military offensive whose main centre was Morazan province miles to the HOTLE A crisis in both the army and coincided right wing coalition which rules the country The FMLN started in mid-January the capture number Morazan, which put them in a poston to take tne provincial capital of SanGotera. The regime rushed 6,000 of its crack troops to the pro vince in an attempt to shift the guerrillas, but in one of the biggest pitched battles of the war they were driven back, whith 260 ment soldiers killed and LIC Just as the government troops regrouped another assault the FMLN LAST WEEK the guerrillas of the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front won their big. gest military victory since the January 1981 of. fensive - the capture of the industrial town of sudden capture by the FMLN revolutionaries;
and political increasingly crisis-racked governstruck their blow 40 miles the south, CAULULLL.
Berlin, a town of 30,000 people.
The successive defeats being suffered by the Salvadorean government troops putting swathes of the countryside outside the effective the Magana COLLEOL The military -ICYCISC have also caused growing dissension inside the army At the bonening gif the year Colonel Ochoa led a revolt Yabanas province north east capital San Salvador, demanding the resignation O1 Detense Minister general Jose Garcia.
Involved in the dispute was not only the military tactics being carried out by the army, but the fact that Garcia is well known as the Salvadorean soliders on patrol leader of the most extreme pro-American faction in Ochoa's rebellion was only put down when 28 other army commanders eventually signed a loyalty oath to the present army leadership The dispute inside the army parallels that between President Magana Assembly Roberto D' Aubuisson, well known as organiser of the rightwing deaths squads and the semi-fascist ARENA party. Since the sweeping ARENA SUCCeSS March in fake elections, the United States has beer attempting to dislodge the politically D' Aubuisson. As the has gone military success to military success, the divisions inside the regime and the army have worsened.
failure of the FMLN to hold Berlin for more than a couple of days is of no consequence in the context of a guerrilla war What it signifies is that the FLN can strike virtually anywhere at its own choosing, and that the military well the political struggle is being won For the United. States this poses acute problems. Vietnam showed that demoralised army can,collapse rapidly, The danger of direct United States in tervention in the region is more acute than ever.
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Berlin in Usulatan province. Although Berlin, was rapidly retaken by government forces, its;