Military

Operation URGENT FURY-Grenada, 1983

In October 1983, a power struggle within the Marxist government of the island nation of Grenada resulted in the arrest and subsequent murder of Marxist Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and several members of his Cabinet by elements of the People's Revolutionary Army. In response to an appeal from Grenada's governor general and a request for assistance from the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, U.S. forces, in conjunction with contingents of the security forces of several neighboring Caribbean states, invaded Grenada on October 25. The mission was to oust the People's Revolutionary Government, to protect U.S. citizens, and restore a lawful government. All major objectives were accomplished within 3 days.

Although soldiers from the 96th Civil Affairs Battalion (Bn) (Airborne [A]) accompanied the invasion force, there was no defined role for CA forces during combat operations. In fact, no CA planners were involved in the planning of this contingency operation. Planners from the 96th CA Bn (A) deployed to the Atlantic Command before D-day to determine and coordinate the role of the CA Bn, but they received no definitive guidance from the Commander, United States Atlantic Command or his staff. This lack of a defined CA mission continued through December when operations transferred to a residual force. Consequently, CA soldiers operated on an ad hoc basis, doing what they felt was best to support the commander in taking care of people and restoring services in a friendly country.

The initial invasion force consisted of the 1st and 2d Ranger Bns, operating on the southern portion of the island, and the 22d Marine Amphibious Unit, operating on the northern portion. No CA soldiers accompanied these combat forces. The first CA officer-a first lieutenant from the 96th CA Bn (A)-arrived with the 2d Brigade (Bde), 82d Airborne Division, on 25 October. A three-man team from the 96th CA Bn arrived on 26 October with the 3d Bde, 82d Airborne Division. For the next 3 days, priority of fill for deploying aircraft went to combat forces. Additional CA assets were allowed to deploy only after it became evident that their expertise was sorely needed. Unit commanders, untrained in CMO, found their forces quickly overwhelmed tending to the needs of civilians who were suffering from prehostilities neglect, as well as the results of combat operations.

On 29 and 30 October, soldiers of the 96th CA Bn and 1st Bn, 4th Psychological Operations Group, arrived in Grenada to form what would become the CMOC. The CMOC provided centralized control over damage assessments, DC operations, FNS procurement, and Psychological Operations (PSYOP) support to populace and resources control (PRC) activities. It also provided liaison and support to United States Agency for International Development (USAID), United States Information Service (USIS), various government agencies of Grenada, and international relief organizations (IROs). Other soldiers of the 96th CA Bn, assisting the G-5 of the 82d Airborne Division, supervised a prisoner of war camp using a multinational guard force. These soldiers also supervised the restriction of Cuban and Russian officials to their respective Embassies, and tended to the daily health and welfare of all prisoners and restricted personnel.

The 358th CA Bde deployed the first RC CA soldiers to Grenada on 9 November. A public welfare team and a public works and utilities team surveyed and assessed damage to telephone exchanges, water and sewage systems, and electrical power distribution systems. These teams supported USAID by supervising the reconstruction of these public utilities. They also established strong working relationships with various agencies of the Grenadine government while helping to reconstruct the infrastructure of the island. One CA officer, sent to Grenada because of skills obtained as a member of the City of Philadelphia Convention and Business Bureau, was instrumental in helping to revitalize Grenada's tourism trade. Others helped revitalize schools.

CA operations were transferred on 7 December to a residual force CMOC consisting of six Active Army CA soldiers and two RC CA soldiers. CA operations in Grenada ended in August 1985.

Operation RESTORE HOPE-Somalia, 1992

Mohamed Siad Barre, president and dictator of Somalia since 1969, fled the country in January 1991, taking with him the gold and foreign currency reserves of the Central Bank worth an estimated U.S. $27 million. Bitter dispute over who would legitimately lead the country resulted in a civil war. The intense violence created a humanitarian crisis of great proportions throughout the southern portion of Somalia. United Nations (UN) efforts, which included a small force of military observers in Mogadishu and an airlift of food to the capital and outlying areas, proved ineffective. Interclan violence and bands of armed militia confined the observers to the Mogadishu Airport and hindered the humanitarian relief efforts of international organizations. In December 1992, the United States, along with several other UN members, launched the Unified Task Force (UNITAF) to provide security for the humanitarian effort and to return Somalia to normal conditions.

The Commander, United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), quickly formed Joint Task Force (JTF) Somalia, the U.S. portion of UNITAF, in late November. The JTF was organized around the headquarters (HQ) of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. Ground forces included Army forces (ARFOR) (10th Mountain Division), Marine Corps forces (MARFOR) (1st Marine Division), SOF (3d Special Forces Group), and the 13th Corps Support Command (COSCOM).

The mission of JTF Somalia was to provide security for the overall relief effort and to assist IROs in providing humanitarian assistance (HA). The commander's intent was to avoid involvement in disarmament or in the rebuilding of Somalia. This fact would influence the number and type of CA forces allocated to the JTF.

Planning for CA participation began with the arrival of the commander of Company C, 96th CA Bn (A), at USCENTCOM HQ. He was told that United States Army Reserve (USAR) CA soldiers would not participate in the operation, and that he would have to rely solely on Active Army CA assets. He divided his company's six Civil Affairs direct support teams (CADSTs) evenly between the 10th Mountain Division and the 1st Marine Division, and at the direction of the JTF J-3, attached his Civil Affairs tactical headquarters support team (CATHST) to the UN Humanitarian Operations Center. He then deployed directly to Somalia with the JTF staff on 11 December.

The three MARFOR CADSTs arrived in Somalia on 21 December, 12 days after the first Marine elements landed at Mogadishu. The three ARFOR CADSTs arrived on 28 December, approximately coinciding with the arrival of the initial elements of the 10th Mountain Division.

The CADSTs did not receive a clear mission statement until they arrived in Mogadishu and were briefed by the military deputy of operations of the UN Humanitarian Operations Center. The CA mission was to provide liaison between military commanders and representatives of IROs operating in humanitarian relief sectors throughout Somalia. A major factor missing from the mission statement was the relationship between the JTF and the Somali people in returning their country to normal conditions. This oversight would affect the daily operations of the JTF.

Although the United States Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command (USACAPOC) was not deploying RC CA soldiers to this operation, three RC CA officers of 321st CA Bde did obtain deployment orders through the U.S. Army Reserve Personnel Center. Affiliated with 13th COSCOM through the Army's Capstone program, these soldiers participated in planning from the time the 13th COSCOM received a warning order to deploy and were included on the COSCOM's time-phased force and deployment list (TPFDL). They arrived in mid-January 1993 and redeployed with 13th COSCOM in June 1993. Activities conducted by these few CA forces in Somalia included staffing CMOCs in humanitarian relief sectors throughout Somalia; coordinating and facilitating IRO requests for security escorts, passes and identification cards, space-available seating on JTF aircraft, and other miscellaneous requests, such as the return of confiscated weapons; conducting medical and engineer assessments of orphanages, feeding centers, health clinics, schools, roads, bridges, and minefields; conducting meetings with local Somali groups to identify local elders, assess needs, and determine civilian attitude toward coalition forces; providing liaison between local Somali leaders and IRO representatives; coordinating medical and engineer civic action projects to foster good relations and enhance force protection; training representatives of coalition forces to plan and conduct CMO; and conducting handoff of CA operations to coalition forces.

One deficiency in the JTF organization was the failure to have a trained CMO staff officer at every level from JTF to battalion. With all operations clearly focused on support to civilians, this oversight created a void in CMO planning. Other than the rules of engagement (ROE), the JTF had no centralized CMO plan or policy regarding interaction with civilians and direct requests for assistance by local nationals. Consequently, many subordinate units, left to handle unfamiliar situations without clear guidance, undertook activities on their own accord that were beyond the scope of their mission and that were better suited for IROs. These same units later complained that they were victims of a phenomenon known as "mission creep," which took resources from their primary mission to address unforeseen requirements.

Operation SUPPORT HOPE-Rwanda and Zaire, 1994

The JTF of Operation SUPPORT HOPE deployed from the United States European Command (USEUCOM) on or about 22 July 1994 in response to the humanitarian crisis in Rwanda and Zaire. The objectives set for the JTF were to assist efforts to establish water purification and distribution systems in Goma; establish an airhead and cargo distribution capability at Entebbe; provide round-the-clock airfield services at Goma, Kigali, and Bukavu; provide logistics management support to UN and other agencies; and protect the force.

The JTF commander selected an ad hoc team of personnel within his command to run his CMOC, which began operations on 28 July 1994 at Entebbe, Uganda. The selected soldiers had experience in peace operations and expertise as regional foreign area officers, but none had trained or been briefed on how to organize and run a CMOC. CMOC Entebbe's initial focus was strictly on logistics functions.

The initial main effort for international humanitarian response was actually in Kigali, Rwanda. The United Nations Rwanda Emergency Office established the On-Site Operations Coordination Center in Kigali to coordinate the international response.

Meanwhile, soldiers from the 353d CA Command (CACOM) were activated in July 1994, mobilized at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and briefed about CMOC lessons learned by members of C/96 CA Bn who had been in Somalia. They then sat at Fort Bragg for several days because they could not get seats on deploying aircraft. After some attrition, the CA team finally arrived in Rwanda on or about 7 August 1994 and immediately established CMOCs at Goma, Zaire, and Kigali, Rwanda.

The JTF experienced an initial lack of understanding of the situation and inability to effectively interact with NGOs working in the same sector or geographical area. Delayed deployment of trained CA soldiers, therefore, significantly inhibited initial military contribution to the main efforts of HA operations.

JTF Operation PROVIDE REFUGE-United States, 1999

In 1999, the United States participated in an international effort to provide safe haven for Kosovar Albanian refugees to relieve the strain on Macedonia, host to approximately 140,000 refugees fleeing death and oppression from neighboring Kosovo. From 5 May to 31 July 1999, Fort Dix, New Jersey, became a reception and processing center for 3,547 Albanians en route to new lives in the United States.

Operation PROVIDE REFUGE was truly an interagency CMO. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) was the LFA that oversaw the reception, billeting, medical screening, and processing of the Kosovar Albanians for temporary resettlement in the United States. Other federal agencies included the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the Department of State (DOS), and the Department of Defense (DOD). Nongovernment agencies, known collectively as the Joint Voluntary Agency (JVA), included the Immigration and Refugee Services of America, Amnesty International (AI), and the American Red Cross (ARC).

At the direction of DOD, 1st COSCOM from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, deployed a JTF on 1 May 1999 to Fort Dix to set up and operate the temporary camp while the Kosovar Albanians completed the immigration process. The JTF commander, realizing a need for soldiers knowledgeable in DC camp operations, requested CA support for the operation. His request was denied at United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). To meet the commander's needs, the commander, XVIII Airborne Corps, deployed one member of the Corps G-5 to head up the J-3's CMO section.

Initially one-deep, and later augmented by four soldiers of the 358th CA Bde performing annual training at Fort Dix, the CMO section provided support and advice to the JTF commander and to the representatives of the various agencies brought together for this uncommon domestic operation.

Some of the responsibilities of the CMO section were to-

• Advise the JTF commander on all CMO issues within the JTF area of responsibility (AOR) and area of interest in accordance with (IAW) the interagency memorandum of agreement (MOA).
• Provide staff CMO presence, such as attendance at daily interagency meetings (0930), command and staff briefings (1600), and any special meetings called by the military or task force leadership.
• Conduct daily walk-throughs to assess camp life, monitor morale, and quickly identify problems for referral to the appropriate agency or provider, and exercise diplomacy in identifying shortfalls, developing solutions, and making recommendations.
• Attend "Village" council meetings and report CMO issues developed or identified at these meetings to the appropriate JTF staff section.
• Provide interagency liaison between federal agencies, NGOs, and the JTF, and meet briefly each day with representatives of the JVA, DHHS, DOS, INS, AI, and ARC.
• Identify refugees with English language skills. Forward names, buildings, and room information to DHHS or other appropriate personnel.

Operation STABILIZE-East Timor, 1999-2001

The former Indonesian province of East Timor fell into turmoil in September 1999 after the passing of a provincial referendum calling for independence. Due to the organized terrorism by militias, East Timor suffered loss of infrastructure, displacement of the civilian population, and disruption of the economy and agricultural output. Many major humanitarian agencies rushed to provide aid. These agencies included the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and the International Rescue Committee (IRC), among others.

In reaction to an estimated 2,000 deaths, torching of 75 percent of the country, and displacement of approximately 180,000 civilians, the international community, under a UN resolution, created a peacekeeping force. This force, International Force for East Timor (INTERFET), was created to ensure stability and bring security to the province. Australia, United Kingdom, France, New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand, and the Philippines comprised the coalition forces.

Recognizing the need for close cooperation with the military to coordinate the humanitarian operation, the UN humanitarian coordinator established a civil-military cooperation (CIMIC) component in INTERFET. The CIMIC team developed a one-page conceptual framework for CIMIC and presented it to the force commander. This framework specified two sets of deliverables: (1) coordination arrangements, primarily to deconflict the intended use of the same resources, and (2) specific arrangements to coordinate the use of military resources in direct support of HA operations.

Twelve soldiers from B Company, 96th CA Bn (A), augmented by four RC personnel, deployed to Australia on 21 September 1999 to participate in planning for the peacekeeping mission. Their initial mission was to establish and operate a CMOC for INTERFET. Force protection requirements prevented their immediate departure from Darwin, Australia, but they arrived in Dili, East Timor, on 3 October-several days after the main force.

Once in East Timor, force protection constraints prevented the team from executing the original plan of conducting needs surveys and assessments. For example, the tactical support teams (TSTs) were not allowed to leave the INTERFET compound to conduct HA assessments. This situation did not change for the duration of the U.S. INTERFET deployment and remained in effect even after members of the 322d CA Bde assumed the CA mission on 10 November 1999. Nevertheless, this CA force was successful in two key areas: (1) the coordination of interagency relief to the population, and (2) assisting in the return of over 100,000 refugees from West Timor.

When the UN assumed the role of the administrative interim government of East Timor in the form of United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), the INTERFET peacekeeping force transitioned to become the UN Peacekeeping Force (PKF). The U.S. presence downsized and, while the United States was not a part of the UNTAET or PKF, the United States maintained an independent presence to show political support for the UN effort. The 322d CA Bde maintained a rotational CA liaison officer (LNO) to the joint staff of United States Support Group East Timor (USGET). USGET CA LNO planned and coordinated ongoing U.S. engineering and medical projects by U.S. military teams in East Timor. The CA LNO served as LNO to the UN PKF and its component forces, as well as the various diverse departments within the UNTAET government, and coordinated relief efforts with many of the NGOs and international organizations in East Timor. At the peak of operations, there were military forces from 24 nations and over 180 NGOs and international organizations in-country.

Operation ANACONDA-Afghanistan, 2002

In response to the terrorist attacks on the United States on 11 September 2001, the United States and the United Kingdom initiated the military phase of the global war against terrorism on 7 October 2001 with Operation INFINITE JUSTICE, later renamed Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. U.S. objectives of this operation included acquiring intelligence on the resources of the al Qaeda terrorist organization and the Taliban government, preventing the use of Afghanistan as a safe haven for terrorists, developing relations with groups opposed to the Taliban, supporting opposition forces in their struggle, and facilitating the delivery of humanitarian supplies to the Afghan people. Within two months, opposition forces, supported by an international coalition, succeeded in toppling the Taliban government and scattering Taliban and al Qaeda forces. However, the scattered forces still posed a threat, particularly in the eastern part of the country.

Operation ANACONDA developed as part of the ongoing effort to root out Taliban and al Qaeda forces from caves and strongholds dug deep into the Shah-I-Kot mountains of eastern Afghanistan. Conducted 1-17 March 2002, it was a combined ground tactical operation that initially involved U.S. and Afghan forces and, later, included coalition forces from Australia, Canada, Germany, Denmark, France, and Norway.

Operation ANACONDA called for U.S. special operations and conventional forces, along with Anti-Taliban Forces (ATF), to conduct unconventional warfare (UW) and combat operations to deny egress routes to Pakistan through the Khowst-Gardez area. U.S. forces consisted of elements of 5th Special Forces Group (SFG), known as Task Force (TF) Dagger, and the 3d Bde, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). Preparation included organizing and training the ATF for the operation and providing HA to the distressed populace in the area.

The lead planning agent-HQ, TF Dagger-moved from Uzbekistan to Bagram, Afghanistan, to create a forward presence for planning. Since there was no CA/CMO planner on his staff, the commander of TF Dagger requested CMO planning support from the Combined Joint Civil-Military Operations Task Force (CJCMOTF). The CJCMOTF directed CMOC South, located in Kabul, to provide one CA planner familiar with SF operations to work under the auspices of the TF Dagger information operations section. The CA planner, a member of the 96th CA Bn (A), reported several days prior to execution of Operation ANACONDA and eventually transitioned his duties to a 4-person team from the CJCMOTF.

A Special Forces operational detachment A (SFODA) from TF Dagger was operating in the Khowst-Gardez area for 8 days before Civil Affairs Team A (CAT-A) 41, from 96th CA Bn (A), arrived. The SFODA's focus as on conducting combat-oriented assessments (for example, military capabilities and targeting) and UW training.

The CAT-A's mission was to support UW operations by overseeing HA operations in 17 provinces of the area and to create a positive relationship with local leaders in the area prior to the combat phase of Operation ANACONDA. Over a 2-week period, the CAT-A executed the CA activities of host-nation support (HNS), military civic action (MCA), and support to civil administration. Specifically, it conducted CMO-oriented assessments; facilitated the local hire of cargo vehicles and, in the absence of materiel handling equipment, individuals to transfer cargo by hand from aircraft to the vehicles; supervised an engineer project to repair a bridge required to support the movement of HA supplies; and delicately managed operations in an environment in which political leaders, appointed by the interim government of Afghanistan, and local warlords, who did not necessarily accept the interim government as legitimate, were often at odds with each other.

Elsewhere in the theater, five members of 352 CACOM, working at the CJCMOTF, planned and managed the delivery of HA supplies into the Khowst-Gardez area. They configured pallets (also known as "Home Depot" packages due to the preponderance of building materials) in Bagram and called CAT-A 41 when the supplies were inbound.

At times, the security situation limited CAT-A operations to the vicinity of the supporting airfield. As a force protection measure during the distribution of supplies, the CAT-A moved with ATF, local police, or SFODA forces. Conversely, the HA operations enhanced the force protection of the SFODA by promoting rapport between the SFODA and ATF. When ATF soldiers saw their families were taken care of, absenteeism among ATF trainees was diminished, allowing ATF to focus on the mission. Another benefit of including ATF and local police in HA operations was to promote the legitimacy of the provincial government among the populace.

JP 3-57, Joint Doctrine for Civil-Military Operations,
8 February 2001

JP 3-57, Joint Doctrine for Civil-Military Operations,
8 February 2001

CA and IO in Kosovo

The joint operations center (JOC) within NATO's Kosovo Force (KFOR) at KFOR Main, in the city of Pristina, had an IO cell consisting of U.S. Air Force officers, a U.S. Army PSYOP plans section, and a Norwegian Army public affairs office (PAO) team. Additionally, the KFOR J-9 assigned an operations (OPS) cell consisting of U.S. CA officers to the JOC. At times, the J-9 OPS cell sought the assistance of the IO cell to disseminate information in support of CMO using PAO and PSYOP resources.