Marcelo Llambías Pravaz

Marcelo Llambías Pravaz was born in 1961. He was a highly decorated officer of the Argentine Army, having won the Gallantry In Combat Medal,[1] Argentina's second highest military decoration, for his part in the Battle of Two Sisters during the Falklands War. He entered the Colegio Militar de la Nación (Argentine Army Military Academy) in January 1979, graduating as a Second Lieutenant of Class 113 (nicknamed "Islas Malvinas") on 7 April 1982.

In December 2000 he was appointed as deputy commander of the 29th Jungle Infantry Regiment, a prestigious unit in Northern Argentina. However, he was never able to take over his new position, for in January 2001, after a discussion in a street of Buenos Aires, he shot and killed a retired Army officer. He tried to escape and hide but, after a few days, he was arrested, charged with murder and sentenced to some time in prison. Following his release, he was discharged from the Army. Reportedly, the origin of the incident was that both men were having an affair with the same woman, who was in turn another officer´s wife. For a time, he used to show up at some military ceremonies but, despite his performance during the war, he received few signs of support from his former colleagues, who disapprove of his later behavior.

Almost 30 years after the Falklands War, Llambias Pravaz had the opportunity to meet British war veteran Nick Taylor, a squad leader from 45 COMMANDO, in the same place where their respective units fought it out and former Corporal Taylor confessed his admiration of Llambias Pravaz's 3rd Platoon and presented him with a photo album with the photographs he and the Royal Marines found of the Argentine Second Lieutenant and his platoon of conscripts on Two Sisters. British television filmed the event.

References
  1. Llambias-Pravaz had been commissioned in April 1982 and for his outstanding courage and leadership during the battle was awarded the Gallantry in Combat Medal. 5th Infantry Brigade in the Malvinas, Nicholas Van der Bijl, p. 178, Leo Cooper, 2003
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.