- U.S. military forces in Europe, which are currently at
threat condition "Bravo," are set to be upgraded to condition
"Charlie" by Jan. 20, while other elements of U.S. European theater
forces -- as well as British special forces troops -- may be headed to
Israel "within a few weeks," sources have told WorldNetDaily.
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- According to a host of reports from various European
and Middle East military sources, all of whom requested anonymity for security
reasons, European Command, or EUCOM, forces last week were placed on alert
status "Bravo" -- with "Alpha" being the lowest and
"Delta" being the highest -- "across the board," which
included all U.S. forces stationed in the European theater -- Germany,
Italy, Kosovo, Bosnia and elsewhere.
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- Other sources said the alert status would be upgraded
to "Charlie" -- the second highest level -- at "2400 hours
European time, Jan. 20," the day President-elect George W. Bush is
to be sworn into office, due to developments taking shape in the Middle
East.
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- Another source said the U.S. V Corps -- which includes
the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division and the 1st Infantry Division, plus
supporting artillery, engineer, medical and supply units -- "are moving
en masse to Grafenwoehr" -- a sprawling training center near Nuremberg
-- and that Patriot missile batteries may be moved to Israel.
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- A spokesman for the U.S. Army, Lt. Col. Dave LaPan, confirmed
that EUCOM's alert status was upgraded to "Bravo" last week,
noting that "they go up and down all the time."
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- Another U.S. Army spokesman said he was "unaware
of any pending change to the threat conditions in the United States European
Command." While he said he had "no specific knowledge" of
the troop movements, he added, "I can tell you that we frequently
train at Grafenwoehr. It would not be at all unusual for [those units]
to move there."
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- When asked if the Pentagon planned such training exercises
-- which typically cost millions of dollars -- well in advance, the spokesman
said, "Yes, yes, way in advance."
-
- But, after some hesitation, he added, "As far as
I know, there would be no relation between" the movement of those
forces "and any raise or elevation of the threat condition."
-
- "I'm unaware of the things that you're talking about
in advance," he said.
-
- When asked if WND could quote him as saying the particular
exercise at Grafenwoehr had been planned in advance, he replied, "I
wouldn't say that, because I don't know that there is an exercise going
on."
-
- According to EUCOM, there is no record of a major January
2001 exercise involving the numbers of troops that comprise the U.S. Army's
V Corps.
-
- But, sources told WND, the divisions reportedly being
deployed to Grafenwoehr are "taking with them more than just enough
stuff for a weekender. They're taking contamination outfits, protection
gear, all of it -- lock, stock and barrel."
-
- Also, sources said, "the 69th Air Defense Brigade"
-- a two battalion Patriot missile brigade -- "is going through the
process of deploying overseas, meaning leaving Europe, and they're going
to Israel."
-
- One source said U.S. Patriot batteries are already --
and routinely -- stationed in Israel and Kuwait.
-
- However, by deploying the 69th, "this means that
those two battalions -- which are the umbrella of air defense protection
for that army -- are being taken away from them, leaving them naked. That
doesn't make a lot of military sense, but when you add up all the little
pieces it seems that the European Command is saying, 'Once the 69th is
deployed, this will send a signal to all terrorists that the U.S. is definitely
taking sides in a fight [in the Middle East] that all sides now admit is
a war.'"
-
- The same source also said British SAS special forces
troops were preparing to deploy "to a desert climate" within
three weeks.
-
- Meanwhile, a separate report said the U.S. military has
ordered soldiers with families living in Israel to send them home, but
both the Pentagon and the State Department denied that report.
-
- "At this juncture, we don't feel that that decision
is merited," one State Department spokesman told WND. "Whenever
something happens, we go through all the options ... and decide on the
best course of action."
-
- The spokesman said the last time Washington issued an
"authorized departure" for U.S. citizens to leave Israel "was
in December 1998, the last time we conducted a sustained bombing of Iraq."
The time before that was in 1991 during the Gulf War.
-
- However, the U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory
for U.S. citizens in Israel, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank Jan. 12,
warning that the "U.S. Government has indications that there is a
heightened threat of terrorist incidents" in the Jewish state.
-
- "Violent clashes and confrontations continue to
take place throughout the West Bank and Gaza. U.S. Embassy and Consulate
employees have been prohibited from traveling to the West Bank, Gaza, commercial
districts of East Jerusalem and the Old City of Jerusalem, except for mission
essential business," the State Department said.
-
- "When you look at all the signals coming out of
Iraq, for example," one source told WND, "they are significant.
In effect, he [Iraqi President Saddam Hussein] is saying, 'We're going
to bring a lot of pain to Israel,'" noting that Saddam has deployed
Republican Guard divisions "50 miles south of Baghdad and two divisions
near the border with Syria."
-
- "When you look at these signals, it's 10 years ago
again," the source said, noting that other sources "who don't
know each other are all saying the same things."
-
- "From all indicators, it looks like" the U.S.
is making preparations for conflict in the Middle East.
-
- On Wednesday, separate published reports said Israeli
commanders were pressing Prime Minister Ehud Barak's government for full
mobilization of military reserves to "augment the standing army and
relieve active duty forces from duty in Gaza and the West Bank so they
can train for what commanders view as an inevitable regional war."
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- Sources also confirmed earlier reports that Israel was
reinforcing its northern border with tanks, armored personnel carriers
and troops in expectation of attacks that would come from guerrilla and
terrorist forces in Lebanon.
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