European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 24, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday May 24, 1991 the stars and stripes Page 3 cancelled troop return was no joke changed without warning and for some a we re not so interested in How Well it was the final Straw. Our husbands arc  Allen said several wives wrote the stars and later. A what we thought they were stripes complaining about the repeated going to Tell us was when our men Are changes in return Date. Others called coming Home and Why we weren t told their spouses in the Middle East and before anyone else that they weren t the soldiers sought out journalists cow coming Home with the rest of the Divi ering postwar Kuwait. Sion."�?o1 would have never found out that on May 16, a week after the meeting my husband was not coming Home if i in Friedberg it. Gen. Frederick m. Had waited for the Community to con Franks the Vii corps commander tact me a said Connie Witter the wife held a similar meeting with wives of of of staff sgt. Joel Witter of the 2nd in filers and senior cos in Giessen 67th Armor it in Friedburg. A i still Germany. A a would have never found out that my husband was not coming Home if i had waited for the Community to Contact me.9 a Connie Witter by Luke Britt Middle East Bureau third army div soldiers on duty in the Middle East used to joke with their wives about being pulled off a homeward bound plane at the last minute and sent Back to the desert. When it happened none of the wives laughed. About 180 division troops were listed on a passenger Manifest and were within hours of Takeoff May 9, when half were suddenly ordered to return to Kuwait for additional duty. A it was terrible. Everyone was heartbroken a said Cathy Allen the wife of 1st sgt. Samuel Allen of 2nd in 67th Armor which is still in Kuwait. A a i wish the commanders could have seen the tears in these wives eyes the disappointment on the faces of children who were expecting their daddies to come  the 15,000 soldiers in the division were told May 7 that they had been cleared to return Home to Germany. But less than a Day later the news began to leak that not everybody was going Home. A brigade sized group from the division would be left behind to provide Security for the struggling Oil emirate. The official announcement that 5,000 division soldiers would stay was made May 8, although word would not reach the 180 troops at the Airport until late the following Day. While the troops were getting the bad news their wives in Germany were Reading about it in a new York times article someone had clipped copied and stuffed into housing area mailboxes. It was the fourth time the Date of their husbands return had been Haven to heard from the command about what a going to happen to  on May 9, the Day after the times article showed up in mailboxes Fried Berg military Community officials met with the spouses of deployed soldiers. Most of the information Given at the meeting however was limited to living conditions in Kuwait the wives said they were told their husbands would be in air conditioned buildings with running water. What they were not told the wives said was when the soldiers would come Home. Allen said she and several other wives walked out Halfway through the meeting. According to wives who attended that meeting Franks offered some Welcome news another unit had been selected to replace the 3rd army div soldiers left behind in Kuwait. Franks apparently had been working behind the scenes to get the 3rd amid div troops brought Home. According to a corps spokeswoman Franks was concerned about keeping troops who had fought in the War in Kuwait especially in Light of the a speedy return publicly promised by president Bush. A the pressed to have his forces brought Home As soon As possible a said the corps spokeswoman who declined to speculate on what effect Franks pressure had on the Pentagon. The decision to Send the 11th army Cav regl a from Fulda Germany to the persian Gulf was announced May 17. According to Allen most Friedberg wives Learned from television reports that the cavalry regiment had been chosen to replace their husbands. A i still have not been told officially about when our husbands Are coming Home Quot Allen said this week. �?o1 am very . Most division troops  to Germany a division spokesman had no immediate comment on the complaints of division wives however he noted that the Fried Beig Community commander had posted a notice on a Mai room bulletin Board announcing the delay in the soldiers return. The lust 11th grind Cav troops Are to Arne in Kuwait m mid june. Alter chasing the Carrot of redeployment Tor three months 3rd army div soldiers in Kuwait took the news of the cavalry s deployment with scepticism. A a we la believe it when we see it a was the Standard comment from soldiers interviewed Lor this report. Most said they have been told at least Lour times that they would go Home As soon As the Mission they were working on at the time was completed. And each time they finished the Job a new one was Given to them they said. Quot All we be Ever asked Lor is a Date we could count on Quot said stall sgt. Michael Pere a 4th in 67th Armor Soldier m Doha Kuwait. A instead we were told a you re going you re not going you Are you  Quot sure Well keep doing our Job Here the Best we can. But our Best Isnit what it used to  contributing to this report staff writer Gary Pomeroyton the spot education Galvin rules out expanding role in Northern Iraq a by David Tarrant Brussels Bureau Casteau Belgium a the top . Commander in Europe says . Forces in Northern Iraq Are there for a humanitarian Mission and Are Quot not in the business of taking and holding  Gen. John r. Galvin the head of the . European come which is heading the International Relief Effort said he did not expect the operation to a expand its role.�?�. A. / a and i done to think we need to try to take Over control of cities and towns a Galvin said wednesday. His comments came on the Day that Iraq agreed to withdraw its military and police forces from Dozhuk a provincial capital in Northern Iraq. The move clears the Way for a Small multinational team to enter the City and begin restoring Basic municipal services. Dozhuk is just outside the Security zone set up to ease the resettlement of kurdish  within the Security zone control of those towns has remained in the hands of iraqi authorities. We re simply providing Security a he said. Galvin who is also natos top military commander in Europe made the comments in an interview at shape Headquarters in Casteau. He said it is hard to say How Long . Forces will be in Iraq As part of operation provide Comfort. A we have to ensure the survival of the kurd. That a the Mission. I think we re doing pretty Well in that right now. And a lot of this depends on the iraqi government. Quot the name of our operation is provide Comfort. When we re sure we be provided that Comfort to the degree necessary then Well Back out. But that a. A pretty fluid situation there and Well just have to take every Day As it  it. Col. Don Gersh recently discusses some aspects of an army Black Hawk helicopter with a group of kurdish children near Dozhuk in Northern Iraq. . Soldiers have helped establish a temporary communication Point for . Specialists near the City. Gersh is from Fayetteville