Special jungle troops to mount mobile border patrols in 4 States

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

6 battalions of Cazadores (Hunters) will be dispatched to border badlands with Colombia to boost Army Operations Theaters.  

• A first contingent of 600 of 1,000  soldiers is expected to arrive in target areas within 15 days. 

The Cazadores were formed to fight Venezuelan Communist insurgents in the 60-70s and have been stationed in eastern Venezuela (Maturin, Cumana y Cocollar) where most of the guerrillas had set up camp and campaign. 

The new contingent will be placed under the orders of  TO-1 commander, Brigadier General William Warrick Blanco in La Fria (Tachira) and TO-2 commander, General Carlos Acosta Perez in Guasdualito (Apure). 

Troops will be employed in temporary camps  from which they will mounts patrols moving across border areas in Zulia, Apure, Barinas and Tachira.  The new tactics will also mean changes for troops already stationed in the operations theaters.

The government has finally approved a Unified Intelligence Command which General Victor Cruz Weffer had attempted to set up several years ago. The Command will consist of the Military Intelligence Directorate (DIM), State Political & Security (DISIP) Police and the intelligence services of the Army, Navy (Armada), Air Force (FAV) and National Guard (GN) with the aim of reinforcing the work of border  military units.