Reports of 600-Troop Panama Deployment Disputed

Reports say a battalion of roughly 600 soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division has begun deploying to Panama for jungle training, with plans for later exercises in Colombia and Honduras. The U.S. Embassy in Panama, however, denied that a 600-soldier deployment was taking place, saying 120 U.S. personnel were there for a training course and would return to the United States on October 25. The reported deployment was attributed to military officials speaking anonymously and to reporting that described the first elements of the battalion moving to a jungle training facility. The soldiers are expected to train with regional forces. They could also support U.S. special operations personnel who advise local militaries on raids against suspected drug traffickers, according to the account. The sources do not establish that the Army unit would conduct combat operations. The embassy said the 120 personnel in Panama were participating in a jungle training course, not arriving as part of the reported battalion deployment. It described the course as previously agreed with Panama and said U.S. and Panamanian instructors jointly teach survival and jungle operations. The...