December 20th is commemorated as National Mourning Day in Panama to remember the US invasion in 1989. Unofficial figures suggest between 500 and 4,000 civilian deaths. On this day, 36 years ago, US President George H.W. Bush launched 'Operation Just Cause'—the invasion of Panama to overthrow General Manuel Noriega, who was accused of drug trafficking. The attack, involving 26,000 American soldiers, was a complete surprise to the Panamanian people. The stated objectives of the operation were to protect American lives, safeguard the Panama Canal treaties, restore democracy, and combat drug trafficking. Official data reports 202 civilian deaths and 314 military deaths, the majority being Panamanians. However, the exact death toll remains unknown. Noriega, who was a CIA agent, ruled Panama de facto from 1983 to 1989. After more than two weeks of resistance, he surrendered on January 3, 1990, and served over 20 years in prisons in the United States and France. He died in 2017 at the age of 83. Retired Panamanian Colonel Roberto Díaz Herrera called the number of troops mobilized to capture Noriega 'a complete exaggeration'.
