European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - December 22, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday december 22, 1989 the stars and stripes Page 3 operation just cause Covert Navy team scouted Panama by Charles w. Cordry the Baltimore Sun Washington a Navy team trained for Covert sea air and land operations was infiltrated into Panama about two Days before wednesday s attacks to ferret out the location of Gen. Manuel a. Noriega and his associates and conduct other dangerous reconnaissance authoritative sources reported. Three of the team members were killed when the Panama invasion got under Way the sources said. The remarkable secrecy surrounding preparations for the operation which involved More than 22,000 soldiers was attributed by military men wednesday to constant unpublicized rehearsals that could be quickly turned into the real thing by presidential order. Army sources said concepts for an at tack like that of wednesday had been developed and practice since the Gre Nada invasion of october 1983. One called the Panama attacks a Superb example of lessons Learned from  there was no divided command this time. For example All Field operations were in the charge of Gen. Maxwell r. Thurman. Commanding the . South Ern come in Panama. Still smarting about criticism of Gre Nada communications problems the Mil itary went into Panama with a robust command and control network to direct an extraordinarily Complex operation the sources said. What information was turned up by the Navy Seal unit an integral part of the Complex undertaking could not relearned wednesday. However a television Pool reporter sent to Panama with the invasion reported that . Authorities considered grabbing Noriega before the invasion began because they though that they knew where he was. The United states deployed to Panama a Large diversified Force of army Rancis paratroops Light infantry an marines with amphibious troop carriers All supported by helicopter gunships Jet fighters and cargo aircraft. Pentagon officials said this sort of rapidly deploy Abl relatively Light military Force will be the Model for the 1990s,when the peaceful turn in Europe will first . Michel Sanchez of Victoria Texas in combat rear with his Rifle and Field radio takes a break while guarding a combat Parade rest laundry room in a family housing area at fort Amador Panama. The installation was previously used by both is. And panamanian forces on wednesday . Infantrymen were shelling the panamanian forces in Barracks there. Likely mean vastly reduced emphasis on heavy armoured forces. Though no hint of the invasion emerged publicly until hours before i began. Secretary of defense Dick Cheney said wednesday plans were in the works at the Lime he look office. There was a further tip in the White House announcement on How so vast an operation could be quickly and secretly mounted. It said that Bush had directed the forces to execute. Preplanned missions in  missions in other words had been planned and rehearsed and All that was needed was the presidential order. Elaborating. Army and other sources said that conceptual planning for third world contingencies had been give heavy emphasis since Grenada operations undertaken in Panama wednesday by troops of the 82nd air borne div. Fort Bragg n.c., and the 7lh of div fort Ord calif., for example had been routinely practice. Rangers highly trained in seizing Small areas under fire were in their Clement when the order came to free jailed  panamanian soldiers and to precede the 82nd s paratroopers in securing the International Airport. Training Over the years has been compartmentalized unit by unit with troops largely ignorant of who the actual foe might turn out to be. When the coded execute order fro the president goes out packages of forces arc accordingly assembled Tai lored for the Mission in  it was Panama an Are where some of the troops had actually trained for combat. Extradition plan ready for on the run Noriega Miami a . Officials have made plans for the extradition of embattled Gen. Manuel Antonio Noriega in the event he is captured. But his lawyers said he would rather die than surrender. Noriega would be flown to a Mili tary base in South Florida and trans pc Rcd to a secure i location 19 await trial in Miami on Federal drug charges said a .marshals service he official. But his lawyers i said Noriega May never be captured. He s a fighter i said Miami lawyer Raymond Takiff who said tic talked Noriega with his client monday evening and remained in Contact with the general s aides wednesday. I feel unhappily secure in my belief that he will be killed he will not be captured. Should that occur the truth will never come  the Justice department and the marshals service refused to release details about Noriega s possible extradition or where he would be detained citing Security concerns. If general Noriega is apprehended and brought Here for trial he would be Given the same treatment As any other person accused of a crime no More no less. All his rights will be protected said . District judge William m. To cycler the trial judge in the Miami indictment Noriega and 16 associates face fed eral drug trafficking indictments re turned by grand juries in Miami and Tampa in 1988. He would be tried first on the Miami charges a Justice department spokesman said. Former . Attorney Robert Mark la who brought the Tampa indict ment against Noriega and now practices Law in cd Carway a said the military Dic Tator is just another criminal. The indictments were not instigated by the state department and they were not brought for any Politi Cal purpose whatsoever Mark la said. All this yammering about indict ment for political purposes is pure  . Drug agents sent to join Panama attack Washington not a Small contingent of Federal Law enforcement officials was dispatched to Panama thursday to help american military authorities seek ing at least four panamanian fugitives  Gen. Manuel Antonio Noriega have been indicted in the . On drug charges the j Ustick department said. Officials said the team s work was part of a separate goal of the Panama inva Sion not just to oust Noriega but also to eliminate the nation As a Haven for illicit narcotics traffickers. Lew enforcement sources said they hoped the invasion would also make i easier for the United slates to shut Down laundering operations. They hoped to re cover an estimated $20 million in drug profits that Jose Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha. The Medellin Cartel Leader killed in Colombia last week recently deposited in panamanian Bank accounts. Panama As everyone knows has been used As a Sanctuary a vacation spot a banking Center for traffickers a place to go when the heat is turned up said William j. Bennett director of the office of National drug control policy. I believe Panama is unlikely to be used in that capacity in the  by late thursday however . Authorities said they had not captured any fugitives from narcotics charges. David Runkl chief spokesman for e department said the officials participating in the Panama operation included agents from the drug enforcement administration and possibly a smaller num Ber from the Fri. Spokesmen from those agencies however would not confirm Runkl s statements. He would not disclose How Many officials were being sent to Panama nor How Many were already there. We will round up As Many people As we can who arc wanted in this country on charges Many of them drug related Runkl said. The indictments returned in february 1988 by grand juries in Miami an Tampa accused Noriega of providing Protection and services for major narcotics traffickers. The Miami indictment contends that he received More than $4.6 million to protect cocaine shipments flown from Medellin through Panama to the United slates. The Tampa indictment accuses Noriega of trying to import More than a Mil lion pounds of marijuana and accepting a is million bribe to allow drug smug gling and Cash laundering in Panama