Given the fairly substantial lead in time for the operation and the fact that the navy was virtually obliterated in the first half of 1997, there's a good chance that all naval personnel assigned to the mission would have received substantial opportunities for training and could well be up to the same standard as the actual marines.
Even those assigned during the previous winter should be fairly well up to speed with their new roles (which may not be actual combat, but support - engineering, mechanical, supply, etc).
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If it moves, shoot it, if not push it, if it still doesn't move, use explosives.
Nothing happens in isolation - it's called "the butterfly effect"
Mors ante pudorem
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