Salvadoran Army
The Salvadoran Army is the land branch and largest of the Armed Forces of El Salvador.
History
The Football War
The Football War was a term coined by Polish reporter Ryszard Kapuściński to describe a brief conflict between El Salvador and neighbouring Honduras. He argued that the war began after the rival nations traded wins during the qualifying round for the 1970 FIFA World Cup. But this event was not the cause of the war. Tensions had been mounting between both nations for several years because of immigration and economic problems, resulting on the war in 1969. The soccer matches incidents just one of several events that happened during that time. Longstanding tensions between the countries were heightened by media reports on both sides, each accusing the other of hooliganism and violence toward their own football fans. On June 26, 1969, El Salvador dissolved all ties with Honduras, the events were used as a call for nationalist pride for both governments and the media.On July 14 Salvadoran forces began moving rapidly into Honduras following a series of border clashes. Their progress halted after the Organization of American States and the United States brought heavy diplomatic pressure to bear on both governments in an effort to effect a cease-fire.
A ceasefire was ultimately negotiated and signed by July 18, with Salvadoran forces withdrawing from Honduras by August 2 following guarantees of safety for Salvadoran citizens in Honduras by the Honduran government.
The Salvadoran Civil War
By the late 1970s, longstanding socio-economic inequality, human rights violations and the unwillingness of the National Conciliation Party dictatorship to address these problems led to the growth of a social movement. The government responded by assassinating thousands of political opponents and massacring students and protestors on several occasions. The heavy handed response of the government signaled to those identifying with the social movement that peaceful solutions were futile, which led to the growth of an insurgency.On October 15, 1979, the military government was deposed by a joint military-civilian government calling itself the Revolutionary Government Junta of El Salvador. The JRG's policies were met with opposition from the military and economic elites and government repression increased, with tens of thousands of civilians being killed in 1980 and 1981 alone. This led to the formation of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, which brought on a twelve-year civil war. On MArch 24, 1980 Major Roberto D'Aubuisson ordered the killing of Archbishop Óscar Romero; on December 8, 1980 five members of the Salvadoran Army kidnapped and killed missionaries Maryknoll Sisters Maura Clarke and Ita Ford, Ursuline Dorothy Kazel, and lay missionary Jean Donovan under the orders of Carlos Eugenio Vides Casanova and his cousin Col. Óscar Edgardo Casanova Vejar, the local military commander in Zacatecoluca,
The Iraq War
Up to 380 Salvadoran troops of the Cuscatlán Battalion were deployed as part of the Coalition Forces in Iraq between August 2003 and January 2009. They operated alongside the elite Spanish Legion in Najaf. While in Iraq, the Salvadoran contingent suffered 5 dead, and more than 50 wounded.In 2006 the government of El Salvador approached the Israeli ambassador to El Salvador seeking assistance in modernising its army.
Organizational structure
Each of the Zone has its own Infantry Brigade, however the Third Military Zone, being the largest and the most important, has two Infantry Brigades: the 3rd Infantry Brigade and the 6th Infantry Brigade.- 1st brigade
- 2nd brigade
- 3rd brigade
- 4th brigade
- 5th brigade
- 6th brigade
- 1 Special Military Security Brigade consisting of 2 Military Police, 1 Foot Guards and 2 border security battalions,
- 8 Military Detachments with 2 infantry battalions each,
- * Destacamento Militar N.º 1
- * DM N. 2
- * DM N.º 3
- * DM N.º 4 Headquarters of the Comandos de Montaña,
- * DM N.º 5
- * DM N.º 6
- * DM N.º 7
- * DM N.º 9
- 1 Engineer Command with of 2 battalions,
- 1 artillery brigade with of 2 field artillery and 2 anti-aircraft battalions,
- 1 mechanized cavalry regiment with 2 battalions,
- Special Forces Command with 1 Parachute Infantry Battalion, 1 Special Operations Group, and 1 Anti-Terrorism Command.
- 1 female soldiers battalion administratively part of the artillery brigade