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Description
Half-length portrait of a cigarette smoking army soldier from the Belloso Battalion keeping guard at an outpost outside Perquín, El Salvador. He's standing behind a small wall made of rocks on which he's resting his hands and his assault rifle. The guerrillas had occupied the town in October 1982 but in the first couple of weeks of February 1983, Colonel Miguel Antonio Méndez and his Belloso Battalion recaptured it. The guerrillas assaulted the Belloso command post in Perquín on February 23rd forcing Méndez and his battalion to retreat from Perquín. The Belloso Battalion formed in 1982 with training assistance of the United States. It was one of the most aggressive military units during the Civil War, its men were trained at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, and was nicknamed the Gringo Battalion. Un retrato de medio cuerpo de un soldado del ejército fuma un cigarro, él pertenece al Batallón Belloso y guarda guardia en un puesto de observación en las afueras de Perquín, El Salvador. Él está parado detrás de un pequeño muro hecho de rocas y descansa sus manos y su rifle de asalto. Los guerrilleros habían ocupado la ciudad en octubre de 1982, pero en las primeras semanas de febrero de 1983, el Colonel Miguel Antonio Méndez y su batallón Belloso la retomaron. Los guerrilleros asaltaron el puesto de mando de Belloso en Perquín el 23 de febrero forzando a Méndez y su batallón a retirarse de Perquín. El Batallón Belloso se formó en 1982 con la asistencia de entrenamiento de los Estados Unidos. Fue una de las unidades militares más agresivas durante la guerra civil, sus hombres fueron entrenados en Ft. Bragg; Carolina del Norte, y fue apodado el Batallón Gringo.
Civil War El Salvador Documentary photographs Soldiers El Salvador. Ejército El Salvador--History--1979-1992 El Salvador--Politics and Government--1979-1992 Assault rifles Military uniforms Guard duty Smoking Civilians in War
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