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Show Page H4 THE HERALD, Provo, Utah, Thursday, November 72, 1990 ipecial forces oim IN EASTERN SAUDI ARABIA Forget the Hollywood hype (AP) musclemen tailing of Rambo-styL- e on and whipping entire armies handed. The U.S. Special Forces taking part in Operation Desert Shield are a lot more J "If we do our jobs right, nobody knows about it. If you're not that's when you get the puhlirity," said CoL Jesse Johnson, commander of special operations in Saudi Arabia. For Johnson, "the most damaging thing done to the image of special operations was the Rambo movies." single-- low-profi- le. sue--cessf-uL We're ''We're not snake-eater- s. not spies. We're quiet professionals," he said in a recent interview. . The Special Forces consist of Army Green Berets, Navy SEAL and it stands for underwater demolition teams, parachutists and Arabic speakers. E'jt their jobs in Saudi Arabia desert are hardly glamorous survival and navigation, practicing dose air support and fire control with Saudis and other Arab forces, questioning Kuwaiti refugees. AP LascrpboM Members of Charlie Co. of the 2nd Battalion of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne from Ft Bragg, N.C., approach a line of concertina wire while on patrol daring a recent exercise in the Saudi Arabian desert. roti appftj IHiamto sneo (dlesQini; Then there is surveillance. "There's a lot of watching and listening," Johnson said. "You can never get too much intelligence." In military jargon. Special Forces are known as "spooks" for their shadowy, clandestine ways. That makes Johnson the chief spook. "I dont like the word," he says. Be also doesnt like to say bow many men be has, what their units are or what they do. That's the Special Forces way.' But if war is waged, it would be normal practice for Special Faroes teams to go behind Iraqi lines and op spread confusion by btowt mmand bunkers, destroying fad Aarrys and disrupting communications. ':. British sources in the Middle East say Britain is understood to have sent to the region a continthe gent of its military elite Special Air Service Regiment The SAS has wide experience fighting on the Arabian peninsula. It helped Sultan Qaboos of Oman put down a Yemen-backe- rebel- d And in an earlier lion in 1965-7insurrection in 1959, the SAS led forces that stormed a supposedly impregnsbls rebel stronghold in Oman. Among the British commandos was a young captain named Peter de la Billiere, who won a Military Cross for his actions. He is now LL Gen. Sir Peter de la Billiere, comBritish mander of the 15,000-ma- n force in Saudi Arabia. Special operations in the ILS. Army, Navy and Air Force were consolidated under a single command in 1967. The Marines dont participate. 5. The command renorts directly to Geo. Norman SdiwaiiLcpf, commander of Operation Desert Shield and the US. Central Command "It's actually the fifth breach of the service," Johnson said. staff meetings, the In high-levcolonel is serrwinded by generals. Tm a ffcifaiahua surrounded by pachyderms," he said. ' Johnson, 44, began bis mflitary-caree- r 33 years ago in conventional forces. An airborne paratrooper, el a field commission in Vietnam and served a second tour commanding an infantry company. Re became a batUation command- -' er in the 82nd Airborne Division before he switched to Special Forces. The desert offers a stark contrast to the jungles and rice paddies of Vietnam, the Special Forces last big battleground. "There's nothing to hide behind out here. And you have to be much, harsh envirosv more mobile. It' roent, but it's not insurmountable" Johnson said. One of the toughest assignments is figuring out what Saddam might do with the 430,000 troops dug in behind earthen berms and tank, traps in Kuwait "He sees himself as a direct descendant of Nebuchadnezzar,"; the king of ancient Babylon, Johnson said "He's positioned himself as a god Gods dont back down. He's capable of almost anything. - TT ' r 1 J If 1 A h ' it t h Ia ? ' l' . j v Of rv ? " 4 r AP laserphoto Marine Lance Corporal Troy Cockerham of Cohmibas, Ohio, writes to a girl at home from aboard fte USS GuEston IlalL Troops get to shop for Christmas, little luxuries It's not exactly but a mail-ordcatalog from Dallas will allow soldiers in Saudi Arabia to play Santa DALLAS (AP) NeimaD-Marcu- s, er Glaus. With the Army and Air Force Exchange Service catalog, the 200,-00- 0 soldiers in the Persian Gulf can shop for loved ones back home without leaving their desert tents. Tens of thousands of copies of the Christmas catalog are on their way to the Middle East fry 3i -- "'One of the things I of our American troops think most over there are accustomed to is the ability to go in and browse in nice stares. And we want to give them that capability, every day if their duties will allow that," said Maj. Gen. Jeffery B. Kanla, who heads 1- 1 siMnjcrrv patterns. . l UmH 3 pattern with ,:' SSPCOZ-BT- j 'T, fabric purchase! otters apply. iSli Z ottwr DOU5LE VELVET HOLIDAY TAFFETA Our best quality Velvet in jeweltone solids. 45" Rayon. Dry clean. Great tor holiday dressing, crafts or making a tree skirt. 60" Acetate. a Dry clean. Reg $4.98 yard SWEATSHIRT FLEECE Wrap up on a cool winter's eve. 60" PolyesterCotton. Washable. Reg. $5.96 yard ALL CALICOS " Coordinating prints tor holiday crafts. quilts and morel 45" Cotton. Washable. Refl. $3.96 yard $363 make a wonderful holiday gilt. Reg. $19.95 to $49.95 each . ALL SCISSORS S 9 88 va (jee Gingher, Fiskar, Kai and others. Reg. $2.66 to $35.95 each (izes and ttiree colors. Reg. S9.00 to S22.50 each can 333eceg;i323IS3 VISAj STORE HOURS: Fri BAM-9P- Sat Orem 8AM-7P- r)BH sWoff aW off CO 1335 South State Street r)C aWoff CUTTING BOARDS A ROTARY CUTTERS In two 224-327- 4 closed Sun as." servIn addition to a mail-ordice, the organization with headquarters in Dallas runs cut-rastores on bases in the United States and around er te SEWING BASKETS FLAT FOLD FLANNELS Soft and cuddly. 45" Cotton. Washable, Reg. 2.98 yard J f $097 4 OQQ w Reg. $15.98 yard 2 Mo AAFES. "Our goal is customer .satisfaction, whether people are in the sands of Saudi Arabia or living in a beautiful house in Dallas, Tex- the world for members of the military and their dependents. The stores are known in Air Force slang as "BX,' for base exchange; in the Army, it's "PX," for post exchange. Altogether, AAFES generates about $7 billion in annual sales and employs 82,000 mostly civilian employees. The AAFES set up field exchange stores within 15 days of the beginning of Operation Desert Shield, Kahla said. The 50 shops in Saudi Arabia offer soldiers candy, sodas, cigalots rettes, lotion and batteries of batteries, mostly for cameras and personal stereos, also for sale. Shoppers also can buy socks, underwear and plastic thongs, popular for walking across the burning sand to the showers, Kahla said. The only things missing are alcohol and adult magazines, barred by the Saudis, Kahla said. Exchange sales in Saudi Arabia have reached about $3 million a month, he said. Some of the shops operated originally from the backs of trucks. Most are now in cramped tents, with shelves of wooden slats and sand or wood floors. Few as yet have air conditioning or refrigera- tors. the inventory is limited to items, which means, for example, that the only cassette tapes far sale are those in the Top 10. . But it's still a link to home. "It probably looks just like to them,' Kahla said, referring to the luxurious Dallas-base-d department stare. About 98,000 copies of the Christmas catalog save been sent to Saudi Arabia, and an equal number are ready to be .shipped. The troops' orders will be processed at AAFES in Dallas and filled from a I warehouse or vendor. And 350 The Christmas catalog is available at military exchanges around the world But orders from those stationed in the Persian Gulf will get top priority. "We just dont want them to order something for their girlfriend or their mother and have it come back not in stock. Because they dont have another choice," Kahla said. The catalog includes items found in most any stateside stare: model planes and tanks, puzzles, roller skates, walkie-talkiand wagons. There is the Bear Forces of h America teddy bears wearing the uniforms of the four service branches, available in desert camouflage. ; There are housewares, jewelry, clothing and a grandfather clock," Soldiers can even order a personal tanner, although the idea may not have much appeal in the desert Despite the Saudi ban on hoik Moslem religious symbols, angel ornaments and creche figures are available in the catalog. '1 know that the BX is important because I've been to war. It's very important to the morale of the troops," Kahla said. "It made me feel like 1 was a little bit back home." In the Gulf, AAFES also circulates hit movies, operates vending machines, manages pay phones and plans to open barber shops within about two weeks. es 20-inc- ; '. One walk-u- p "generic fast-foo- d outlet" has opened, with plans for four or five more. Next may be mobile Popeye's fried chicken |