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==Rural guerrilla warfare==

==Rural guerrilla warfare==

A determined effort on the part of the Argentinian left was made at creating a  guerrilla front in Tucumán province. In 1974, Marxist guerrillas led by Roberto Santucho in the form of the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP) took control of the remote province of Tucumán and declared it an independent state. In 1975 the Argentinian Army 5th Mountain Infantry Brigade was ordered to Tucumán to eradicate the insurgents and restore the province to the Argentinian state, and did so swiftly and ruthlessly.

A determined effort on the part of the Argentinian left was made at creating a  guerrilla front in Tucumán province. In 1974, Marxist guerrillas led by Roberto Santucho in the form of the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP) took control of the remote province of Tucumán and declared it an independent state. In 1975 the Argentinian Army 5th Mountain Infantry Brigade was ordered to Tucumán to eradicate the insurgents and restore the province to the Argentinian state.

It guerrilla campaign started with no more than 100 men and women of the ERP guerrilla company and ended with about 300 in the mountains (including reinforcements in the form of the elite Montoneros 65-strong ''Jungle Company'' that arrived in February 1976 and latter the ERP's ''Decididos de Córdoba'' Urban Company)<ref>Guerrillas & Generals: The Dirty War in Argentina, Paul H. Lewis, p. 126, Praeger Paperback, 2001</ref>, which the Argentinian Army 4th Airborne Infantry Brigade managed to defeat, but at a cost.

The Marxist guerrilla campaign in northern Argentina started with no more than 100 men and women of the ERP ''Compañía de Monte Ramón Rosa Jiménez'' Mountain Company and ended with about 300 in the mountains of Tucumán (including reinforcements in the form of the elite Montoneros 65-strong Jungle Company that arrived in February 1976 and latter the ERP's ''Decididos de Córdoba'' Urban Company)<ref>Guerrillas & Generals: The Dirty War in Argentina, Paul H. Lewis, p. 126, Praeger Paperback, 2001</ref>, which the Argentinian Army 4th Airborne Infantry Brigade managed to defeat, but at a cost.

On January 5th 1975, an Army DHC-6 transport plane was downed near the Monteros mountains, shot down by Marxist Guerrillas.<ref>''Fue derribado un helicóptero como mínimo —hay gente que dice que nuestros compañeros abatieron dos helicópteros y un avión— y se produjeron alrededor de 60 muertos y numerosos heridos en el enemigo ...'' A Vencer o Morir: PRT-ERP Documentos, Volumen 2, Daniel De Santis, p. 496, Eudeba, 2000</ref><ref>Allí hubo gran acción en combates como el de Acheral, Pueblo Viejo y Famailla donde se volaron mas de 3 400 horas. Como consecuencia de los mismos, se produjo el derribo de un Twin Otter, un Piper L-21B y dos Bell UH-1H." Tecnología Militar, Tomo 24, p. 26, Grupo Editorial Mönch. 2002</ref>All thirteen on board were killed.  

On January 5th 1975, an Army DHC-6 transport plane was downed near the Monteros mountains, shot down by Marxist Guerrillas.<ref>''Fue derribado un helicóptero como mínimo —hay gente que dice que nuestros compañeros abatieron dos helicópteros y un avión— y se produjeron alrededor de 60 muertos y numerosos heridos en el enemigo ...'' A Vencer o Morir: PRT-ERP Documentos, Volumen 2, Daniel De Santis, p. 496, Eudeba, 2000</ref><ref>Allí hubo gran acción en combates como el de Acheral, Pueblo Viejo y Famailla donde se volaron mas de 3 400 horas. Como consecuencia de los mismos, se produjo el derribo de un Twin Otter, un Piper L-21B y dos Bell UH-1H." Tecnología Militar, Tomo 24, p. 26, Grupo Editorial Mönch. 2002</ref>All thirteen on board were killed.  

The Argentinian Army 5th Brigade (then consisting of the 19th, 20th and 29th Mountain Infantry Regiments and commanded by Brigadier-General Acdel Vilas) received the order to move to Famailla in the foothills of the Monteros mountains on February 8th 1975. While fighting the guerrillas in the jungle, Vilas concentrated on uprooting the ERP civilian support network in the towns, using tactics later adopted nationwide, as well as a hearts and mind campaign. The Argentinian security forces used techniques no different from their US and French counterparts in Vietnam and Algeria.

The Argentinian Army 5th Brigade (consisting of the 19th, 20th and 29th Mountain Infantry Regiments and commanded by Brigadier-General Acdel Vilas) received the order to move to Famailla in the foothills of the Monteros mountains on February 8th 1975. While fighting the guerrillas in the jungle, Vilas concentrated on uprooting the ERP civilian support network in the towns, using tactics later adopted nationwide, as well as a hearts and mind campaign. The Argentinian security forces used techniques no different from their US and French counterparts in Vietnam and Algeria.

 

On September 28th 1977 counterinsurgency operations in Tucumán province finally came to an end, with the Argentinian military and police reporting 100 killed and 500 wounded in defeating the guerrillas.

==Urban guerilla warfare==

==Urban guerilla warfare==