End of lightning operations
The Peruvian Army's lightning operations on the Huallaga River ended in 1990 after six years of surprise military actions against drug traffickers and the Shining Path. These operations caused numerous casualties among both combatants and innocent civilians.
Between 1984 and 1990, the Peruvian Army carried out successive lightning operations on both banks of the Huallaga River in order to surprise drug traffickers and the Shining Path organization operating in the area. These operations led to confrontations with PCP-SL companies operating on both banks of the Huallaga River, resulting in many deaths on both sides, but also many innocent people who died because they remained in the area guarding their farms or waiting for it all to end. In 1990 these lightning operations ended, giving way to a change of counter-subversive strategy that improved the image of the armed forces in the emergency zones of the Upper Huallaga. Military actions changed: there were no more surprise military operations or forcing people to attend meetings to inform on Shining Path commanders; instead, emphasis was placed on treating the civilian population better and on effective intelligence work.