European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 08, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Germany edition the so amp ramp ants Fries. Vol. 49, no. 357 monday april 8,1991 b authorized unofficial publication for the  armed forces 35c d 8693 withdrawal Pace picks up More troops in Iraq begin redeployment Riyadh saudi Arabia apr the United states began thinning out its 100,000 troops in Southern Iraq after the Baghdad government accepted . Cease fire terms on saturday military sources said. Troops of the 2nd army Cav regt the deepest inside Iraq said they received orders to begin withdrawing sunday for redeployment Back to Europe. The regiment headquartered in Nurnberg Germany is part of the Vii corps in Southern Iraq which also includes the 3rd army div. Based in Frankfurt. Germany and the 1st inf div from fort Riley Kan. Air Force combat patrols were ordered to escort transport planes on an Airlift of supplies beginning sunday to thousands of starving kurdish refugees in Northern Iraq. The fighter bombers will be in the skies to Back up president Bush a demand that Iraq allow the transport planes to drop supplies of food blankets clothing tents and either Relief related items to the refugees fleeing Saddam Hussein a onslaught. The military sources said the Pace of the withdrawal of american troops throughout the persian Gulf had been stepped up. The number of troops who have left passed the 200,000 Mark nearly 40 percent of the  forces in the theater they said. Central come said More than 204,000 troops from a Peak strength of 540,000 had been redeployed. That leaves 336,000 troops in the theater and they Are returning Home at the rate of by tween 3,000 to 5,000 a Day. Gen. Colin Powell the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff said last week it could take More than a month to withdraw All . Ground troops from Southern Iraq after the cease fire and the arrival of a . Peacekeeping Force. . Officials said most of the troops Are Likely to be Home by the fourth of july for a Holiday Celebration. Supply troops Are expected to be in the theater see troops on Page 10 ., British drop supplies to refugees from wire reports Nicosia Cyprus a . And British military cargo planes began dropping food and water Over Northern Iraq sunday to Aid kurd whose rebellion has been brutally smashed by government forces. Four . Air Force c-130 planes took off from in Ciurlik Turkey on sunday carrying about 32,000 pounds each of . Military rations said cmdr. John Wood House spokesman for the . European come in Stuttgart Germany. Three Royal air Force transport planes loaded with food blankets and tents took off from Britain to Aid the hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing the iraqi crackdown. The aircraft dropped the supplies by Parachute on pallets that floated do in Over strife torn Northern Iraq the former strongholds of kurdish rebels whose uprising is being crushed by the iraqi army. The planed were accompanied by warplanes capable of defending Jhom . Officials said. The Relief Effort is being coordinated by the euro Ean come. Two other aircraft were scheduled to Fol of sunday with rations and water Woodhouse said. The food Relief is the packaged military ration called meal ready to eat or Are. Res became famous during the persian Gulf War As the Staple of . Forces hunkered Down in the desert since August. Woodhouse said there was not word of any problems see supplies on Page 10 a kurd carries his daughter across a footbridge Over of thousands of refugees Are on the Iraq Side waiting the Tigris River Between Iraq and Turkey sunday. Tens for their turn to come across the Border. . Troop pullout in Germany reportedly to hit 176,000 by 95 from staff and wire reports the United states plans to withdraw 176,000 troops from Germany by the year 1995, about 120,000 More than previously stated a German newspaper reported sunday. That would reduce . Forces in Germany to about 75,000, the Welt am sonntag said. The United states has not announced troop withdrawal plans beyond fiscal year 1992, which ends sept. 30, 1992, according to cmdr. John Woodhouse a . European come spokesman in Stuttgart Germany. Those plans Call for withdrawing 80,000 service members from throughout Europe by the end of fiscal 1992. Although 50,.000 troops were to leave this fiscal year those plans have been postponed by operation desert storm. The approximately 90,000 troops sent to the persian Gulf Region from Europe a have to be brought Back to Europe first a Woodhouse said. The with1 drawl will be seeded up in the next fiscal year to meet the 80,000 goal he said. The bulk of the serv ice members will come from Germany. At present the number of american servicemen Bers in Germany is a Little less than 250.000, although Welt am sonntag was using a slightly higher total. Welt am sonntag a conservative newspaper did not cite the sources of its information. There Are 320,000 . Service members stationed in Europe. Astronauts make emergency walk. Cape canaveral Fla. A a shuttle astronaut Shook a Balky Antenna and freed it sunday in the first unscheduled emergency repair Ever made in space. A a it a free its free. I can see it move. Its Freety shouted a jubilant Jerry Ross As the Antenna swung out. The repair Job made it possible to release the $617 million Gamma Ray Observatory into orbit later in the Day. Jay Apt the other space Walker told Ross a far out Good  the astronauts were 280 Miles above the East indies when the repair was made. It was the first time in More than five years that any americans had taken a spacewalk. The repair had been estimated to  More than an see walk on Page 10