Operation Nifty Package
Encyclopedia
Operation Nifty Package was a United States Navy SEALs
-operated plan conducted in 1989 designed to capture Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega
. When Noriega took refuge in the Vatican embassy, deafening music and other psychological warfare
were used to convince him to exit and surrender himself.
The United States claimed that after ten days of psychological harassment, Papal ambassador Monsignor Laboa had threatened to revoke Noriega's sanctuary if he didn't surrender to the United States, although Laboa insisted that he had made no threats of revoking the Right of Asylum
under the Church, but had used his own "precisely calibrated psychological campaign" to force Noriega's departure.
Although the operation was successful, National Security Advisor
Brent Scowcroft
would later point to the psychological harassment of the Papal Nuncio as "a low moment in US Army history", noting that their approach had been silly, reproachable and undignified.
. The SEALS challenged a pair of Panamanian soldiers they saw at the airfield, causing them to flee into a nearby hangar; the ensuing gunbattle killed four SEALS and wounded eight more. Despite the casualties, a well-aimed AT4
rocket destroyed Noriega's plane, resulting in the mission's strategic success.
Another Navy SEAL group, consisting of four divers and men on Zodiac attack boats
, was assigned to sabotage Noriega's heavily armed gunboat while it was tied to a pier on the canal. The four divers swam in the canal while being attacked with Panamanian grenades. They also had to avoid a boat that was a suspected Soviet
intelligence vessel
. Two of the divers descended to the bottom of the canal, beyond the maximum operating limit of their breathing units, and, with two bombs, successfully destroyed Noriega's gunboat.
Noriega fled to the Apostolic Nuncio
, the de facto embassy of Vatican City
, and took refuge there with four others, Lieut. Colonel Nivaldo Madrinan, head of Panama's secret police; Captain Eliecer Gaitan, who led the special force charged with protecting Noriega; Belgica de Castillo, the former head of the immigration department, and her husband Carlos Castillo. He turned over the majority of his weapons, and requested sanctuary within. He spent his time in a "stark" room with no air conditioning or television, reading the Bible for the duration of his stay.
American soldiers set up a perimeter outside this building, as any direct action against the embassy itself would have violated international laws, constituted an act of war on the Vatican
, and enraged Roman Catholics worldwide.
Secretary of State
James Baker
wrote to the Vatican, insisting that "this is an exception to diplomatic immunity. We've indicted him as a drug dealer...you must understand that having lost American lives to restore democracy in Panama, we cannot allow Noriega to go to any other country than the United States".
Joaquin Navarro-Valls, speaking on behalf of the Vatican, clarified that the strong messages left by American diplomats and military leaders would not be obeyed and Noriega would not be turned over. Navarro-Valls clarified that the Pope had not spoken on the issue except to lament the deaths caused by "absurd imprudence".
The army turned to psychological warfare
, blaring rock music at "deafening levels", gunning the engines of armoured vehicles against the Vatican fence, and setting fire to a neighboring field and bulldozing it to create a "helicopter landing zone". Reportedly the song "Eyes of Destruction" by Guns and Roses was played repeatedly, as was "I Fought The Law" by The Clash
.
On December 27th, the psychological warfare was turned over to the control of the 4th Psychological Operations Group
of Special Operations Command
. The Holy See complained to President George H.W. Bush about actions of the American soldiers surrounding the embassy, and after three days, the rock music was stopped.
On December 30, the Vatican clarified that it did not believe Noriega had asylum, "but [was] a person in refuge". Meanwhile, Monsignor Laboa petitioned both Panama and the Vatican to agree to extend the embassy property to include another building; where he had Noriega's four companions moved to prevent them from encouraging Noriega to stay under Vatican sanctuary - allowing him to convince Noriega to leave. A friend of Laboa later told the UPI that Laboa wanted to "go to work on Noriega, weave a sort of spell around him until he gives in".
Noriega asked permission to phone his wife and three daughters, who had taken refuge in the Cuban embassy; he ensured they would be flown to exile in the Dominican Republic
if he surrendered.
On January 3, Noriega attended Holy Mass in the Nuncio's chapel and took communion
; where Laboa's homily was about the thief on the cross who in one moment asked God to change his life, and reportedly brought tears to Noriega's eyes.
After Mass, Noriega retired to his room where he wrote two letters, one to his wife informing her "I go now on an adventure", and the other thanking the Pope and stressing that he believed himself innocent and that he had always acted in the best interests of the Panamanian people and requesting the Pope's prayers.
Noriega dressed in his tan uniform, receiving permission to bring the Nuncio's bible with him, and went outside into the dark night with three priests who walked with him the fifty paces to the front gate; when he reached the front gate, a "gigantic, enormous" American soldier lunged at Noriega, described as "a broken man", and a number of other soldiers also tackled him to the ground and began searching his effects. His wrists were taped behind his back and he was bundled into a waiting American helicopter which took him to Howard Air Force Base
.
Monsignor Laboa later told the press that he was proud at having "outwitted" Noriega and convincing him to surrender himself to the Americans, noting "I'm better at psychology".
United States Navy SEALs
The United States Navy's Sea, Air and Land Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.The acronym is derived from their...
-operated plan conducted in 1989 designed to capture Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega
Manuel Noriega
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno is a Panamanian politician and soldier. He was military dictator of Panama from 1983 to 1989.The 1989 invasion of Panama by the United States removed him from power; he was captured, detained as a prisoner of war, and flown to the United States. Noriega was tried on...
. When Noriega took refuge in the Vatican embassy, deafening music and other psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
were used to convince him to exit and surrender himself.
The United States claimed that after ten days of psychological harassment, Papal ambassador Monsignor Laboa had threatened to revoke Noriega's sanctuary if he didn't surrender to the United States, although Laboa insisted that he had made no threats of revoking the Right of Asylum
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
under the Church, but had used his own "precisely calibrated psychological campaign" to force Noriega's departure.
Although the operation was successful, National Security Advisor
National Security Advisor (United States)
The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor , serves as the chief advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues...
Brent Scowcroft
Brent Scowcroft
Brent Scowcroft, KBE was the United States National Security Advisor under Presidents Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush and a Lieutenant General in the United States Air Force. He also served as Military Assistant to President Richard Nixon and as Deputy Assistant to the President for National...
would later point to the psychological harassment of the Papal Nuncio as "a low moment in US Army history", noting that their approach had been silly, reproachable and undignified.
Military execution
Executed in the starting hours of Operation Just Cause, this operation was handled by Seal Team Four. Consisting of 48 U.S. Navy SEALs (three SEAL Platoons), this SEAL Team was tasked with destroying Noriega's private jet on the ground at the Punta Paitilla Airport, a coastal airport in Panama CityPanama City
Panama is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 880,691, with a total metro population of 1,272,672, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province of the same name. The city is the political and administrative center of the...
. The SEALS challenged a pair of Panamanian soldiers they saw at the airfield, causing them to flee into a nearby hangar; the ensuing gunbattle killed four SEALS and wounded eight more. Despite the casualties, a well-aimed AT4
AT4
The AT4 is an 84-mm unguided, portable, single-shot recoilless smoothbore weapon built in Sweden by Saab Bofors Dynamics...
rocket destroyed Noriega's plane, resulting in the mission's strategic success.
Another Navy SEAL group, consisting of four divers and men on Zodiac attack boats
Rigid-hulled inflatable boat
A rigid-hulled inflatable boat, or rigid-inflatable boat is a light-weight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a solid, shaped hull and flexible tubes at the gunwale. The design is stable and seaworthy...
, was assigned to sabotage Noriega's heavily armed gunboat while it was tied to a pier on the canal. The four divers swam in the canal while being attacked with Panamanian grenades. They also had to avoid a boat that was a suspected Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
intelligence vessel
Spy ship
A spy ship or reconnaissance vessel is a dedicated ship intended to gather intelligence, usually by means of sophisticated electronic eavesdropping. In a wider sense, any ship intended to gather information could be considered a spy ship....
. Two of the divers descended to the bottom of the canal, beyond the maximum operating limit of their breathing units, and, with two bombs, successfully destroyed Noriega's gunboat.
Encircling the Vatican Embassy
On the fifth day of the American invasion, Noriega phoned Monsignor Laboa at the Vatican embassy and explained he would appreciate being able to seek sanctuary within; noting that he would otherwise have to flee to the countryside and wage a guerrilla war. Given only ten minutes to decide, Laboa said he did not confer with the Vatican, but agreed to allow Noriega to enter the Vatican grounds - although from the very start, he confessed that he deceived Noriega, noting that he believed that Panamanian politics necessitated that his own role be to convince Noriega to surrender to the American army, not to grant him asylum within Vatican territory. Laboa later confided he was "surprised and dismayed" that Noriega would choose to seek refuge with the Church.Noriega fled to the Apostolic Nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
, the de facto embassy of Vatican City
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
, and took refuge there with four others, Lieut. Colonel Nivaldo Madrinan, head of Panama's secret police; Captain Eliecer Gaitan, who led the special force charged with protecting Noriega; Belgica de Castillo, the former head of the immigration department, and her husband Carlos Castillo. He turned over the majority of his weapons, and requested sanctuary within. He spent his time in a "stark" room with no air conditioning or television, reading the Bible for the duration of his stay.
American soldiers set up a perimeter outside this building, as any direct action against the embassy itself would have violated international laws, constituted an act of war on the Vatican
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
, and enraged Roman Catholics worldwide.
Secretary of State
Secretary of State
Secretary of State or State Secretary is a commonly used title for a senior or mid-level post in governments around the world. The role varies between countries, and in some cases there are multiple Secretaries of State in the Government....
James Baker
James Baker
James Addison Baker, III is an American attorney, politician and political advisor.Baker served as the Chief of Staff in President Ronald Reagan's first administration and in the final year of the administration of President George H. W. Bush...
wrote to the Vatican, insisting that "this is an exception to diplomatic immunity. We've indicted him as a drug dealer...you must understand that having lost American lives to restore democracy in Panama, we cannot allow Noriega to go to any other country than the United States".
Joaquin Navarro-Valls, speaking on behalf of the Vatican, clarified that the strong messages left by American diplomats and military leaders would not be obeyed and Noriega would not be turned over. Navarro-Valls clarified that the Pope had not spoken on the issue except to lament the deaths caused by "absurd imprudence".
The army turned to psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
, blaring rock music at "deafening levels", gunning the engines of armoured vehicles against the Vatican fence, and setting fire to a neighboring field and bulldozing it to create a "helicopter landing zone". Reportedly the song "Eyes of Destruction" by Guns and Roses was played repeatedly, as was "I Fought The Law" by The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
.
On December 27th, the psychological warfare was turned over to the control of the 4th Psychological Operations Group
4th Psychological Operations Group
The 4th Military Information Support Group or 4th MISG is one of the United States Army's active military information support operations units alongside with the 8th Military Information Support Group, which was activated August 26, 2011 at Fort Bragg...
of Special Operations Command
United States Special Operations Command
The United States Special Operations Command is the Unified Combatant Command charged with overseeing the various Special Operations Commands of the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps of the United States Armed Forces. The command is part of the Department of Defense...
. The Holy See complained to President George H.W. Bush about actions of the American soldiers surrounding the embassy, and after three days, the rock music was stopped.
On December 30, the Vatican clarified that it did not believe Noriega had asylum, "but [was] a person in refuge". Meanwhile, Monsignor Laboa petitioned both Panama and the Vatican to agree to extend the embassy property to include another building; where he had Noriega's four companions moved to prevent them from encouraging Noriega to stay under Vatican sanctuary - allowing him to convince Noriega to leave. A friend of Laboa later told the UPI that Laboa wanted to "go to work on Noriega, weave a sort of spell around him until he gives in".
Surrender
After ten days of psychological warfare, Monsignor Jose Sebastian Laboa told Noriega that he had no choice but to surrender to the American soldiers at the front gate. Time Magazine later noted that Monsignor Laboa was not entirely honest with Noriega, falsely telling him that no country in the world was willing to grant him refuge. Monsignor Laboa had also written to the US Army, granting his permission for them to storm the property if they believed his life was in danger. The final straw, Monsignor Laboa said that if Noriega did not surrender to the Americans, the Papal staff would evacuate the building, move into a Catholic high school and declare it the new embassy - leaving Noriega alone in the abandoned building to face the Americans without any benefit of Vatican sanctuary.Noriega asked permission to phone his wife and three daughters, who had taken refuge in the Cuban embassy; he ensured they would be flown to exile in the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
if he surrendered.
On January 3, Noriega attended Holy Mass in the Nuncio's chapel and took communion
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
; where Laboa's homily was about the thief on the cross who in one moment asked God to change his life, and reportedly brought tears to Noriega's eyes.
After Mass, Noriega retired to his room where he wrote two letters, one to his wife informing her "I go now on an adventure", and the other thanking the Pope and stressing that he believed himself innocent and that he had always acted in the best interests of the Panamanian people and requesting the Pope's prayers.
Noriega dressed in his tan uniform, receiving permission to bring the Nuncio's bible with him, and went outside into the dark night with three priests who walked with him the fifty paces to the front gate; when he reached the front gate, a "gigantic, enormous" American soldier lunged at Noriega, described as "a broken man", and a number of other soldiers also tackled him to the ground and began searching his effects. His wrists were taped behind his back and he was bundled into a waiting American helicopter which took him to Howard Air Force Base
Howard Air Force Base
Howard Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Panama. It was closed on 1 November 1999 as a result of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties which specified that United States military facilities in the former Panama Canal Zone be closed and the facilities be turned over to the...
.
Monsignor Laboa later told the press that he was proud at having "outwitted" Noriega and convincing him to surrender himself to the Americans, noting "I'm better at psychology".