The Brutal Soldiers that Changed the Fate of an Entire Country

The week of April 25, 1965, seemed like any other - until fighting broke out in the capital city of the Dominican Republic. Without warning, violence engulfed all quarters of Santo Domingo as Communist rebels launched a surprise attack, firing from building to building and spreading terror throughout the city.

Countless civilians sought refuge in the Embajador Hotel, anxiously awaiting their turn to be evacuated to US Navy ships. Many of them endured days without food or water for days, and while they waited, they could only lie on the ground and listen to the unnerving sound of bullets whizzing overhead.

By the end of the week, the US military had deployed thousands of soldiers and Marines to the Caribbean, and the 82nd Airborne Division had sustained its first combat casualties since World War 2. But despite the chaos and loss, one thing was certain: there would not be another Cuba…

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As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Docs sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect. I do my best to keep it as visually accurate as possible. All content on Dark Docs is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas. -

[gersonjimenez]

As a Dominican, I'm so glad this intervention took place. As a free man and former soldier, I detest communism.

[kma]

Save the clickbait. The 82nd Airborne was not "brutal", "brutish", or "brute-like" in any way based on your telling of the events. They were professional, capable, and carried out a primarily policing and humanitarian mission as fine soldiers, consistent with their reputation. You do good work. Let your work stand on its considerable merits. Stop with the clickbaiting.

[josephryan]

I served in the 82nd from 1980-84 and saw this same thing first-hand with Grenada. We went from a normal day on Monday, October 24th, 1983 to being alerted that evening to having troops on the island the next day, on the afternoon of the 25th.

Major General Edward Trobaugh, the 82nd commanding general at the time, was the first one off the plane when the 82nd arrived and he radioed back to Ft. Bragg: "Keep sending infantry battalions until I tell you to stop." And that's what the 82nd did, until two brigades and supporting units had been deployed there.

I arrived in Grenada on Friday, October 29th, with a support unit, after all of the infantry units had been sent, as they had first priority.

When I was in the 82nd, the standard was to have one infantry battalion airborne within 18 hours of notification, the next one two hours later, the next one two hours after that, and so on.

That's what makes the 82nd unique within the military, its ability to very quickly bring a significant number of troops into a fight on short or no notice, as they did in Dominican Republic, Grenada, Panama, the opening phase of Desert Shield (the defense of Saudi Arabia against a potential Iraqi incursion from Kuwait), and most recently, the 2020 New Year's Day deployment of 1st Brigade elements to help defend the U.S. embassy in Baghdad against Iranian-supported militia attacks.

Airborne!!!

[mannygon]

I was living in this city in 1965. I was 10 years old but I remember the worried looks of my family and the bullet holes in the front of the store across our apartment. It was an uncertain time, for a while.

[mkashay]

Your videos are great! You do not need to use the clickbait titles. Doing this stains the excellent work you do.

[fortesfortunajuvat]

Just curious but, what "brutal soldiers" does your title refer to?

[alexandercharehjoo]

We learned from our procrastination in Cuba and the disastrous result.

[MattBaker]

WOW 24-04-65 was the day I was born. I had no idea this happened

[James-nlfu]

An elite airborne unit can't be expected to behave like social workers

[Idahoguy]

When my brother was in Vietnam he knew soldiers with Combat Infantry Badges from combat in the DR

[southbayrickybobby]

We should’ve never stopped being like this….

[patrickkelley]

Great video on this piece of military history!

[christophersilsby]

My friend was there for the whole with special forces and they wanted to send him to veitnam, but his time was up and he didn't reup.

[sylversyrfer]

Title is clickbait as hell. You should be better than that

[Slcm]

God Bless America for stepping up again and again

[jewell]

My Dad flew in that airlift bringing supplies . I remember it quite clearly. Later he flew C-141's hospital evac in Nam.

[stefanschleps]

How is it that being a news junkie, this fact of history somehow flew under the radar?!
Thanks for sharing and educating me Dark! 🤨

[ironnerd]

Please do the Panama Invasion/ Just Cause! I knew a guy who was an advance person on that one, and his group needs some recognition. He looked like a broken Polar Bear and could convince you to shank your grandmother... in several languages.

I miss you.

[MichaelR]

Good video , thanks for sharing , God bless !

[richardmeyer]

The title is awful! I was there at the time and lived there 14 years after these events and I never heard any Dominican talk of brutality by the US troops. Many were very thankful for what they did. By the way I was a passenger on the USS Wood County.