Operation Grandslam

Katanga's secession Following the Republic of the Congo's independence from Belgium in 1960, the country fell into disorder as the army mutinied. Shortly thereafter South Kasai and the State of Katanga declared independence from the Congolese government. The latter contained the vast majority of the Congo's valuable mineral resources and attracted significant mining activity under Belgian rule. Many Katangese thought that they were entitled to the revenue generated through the lucrative industry, and feared that under the new central government it would be distributed among the Congo's poorer provinces. Resulting nativist politics with support from the Belgian government and private interests such as the Union Minière du Haut Katanga (UMHK) precipitated the Katangese secession. The deposition—and eventual murder—of Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba caused further issues in the country, leading to the declaration of a rival government in Stanleyville by the end of the year. To prevent a complete collapse of order within the country, the United Nations established a major peacekeeping mission, the United Nations Operation in the Congo (known under its French acronym as ONUC). In addition to a large body of troops (20,000 at its peak strength), a civilian mission was brought in to provide technical assistance to the Congolese government. Initially, ONUC limited its actions to ensuring the safety of Congolese citizens and foreign nationals and refrained from acting against the secessionist states, but the UN ran into trouble in Katanga. The state's leader and head of the locally entrenched Confédération des associations tribales du Katanga (CONAKAT), Moïse Tshombe, at first banned the UN from entering his territory and then greatly limited their peacekeeping efforts. Further issues derived from peacekeepers' attempts to deport foreign mercenaries, many of whom were employed by Katanga. United Nations response On 21 February 1961 the UN Security Council passed a resolution permitting ONUC to use military force to prevent civil war, make arrests, halt military operations, arrange ceasefires and deport foreign military personnel. Under the authorisation of this resolution, UN forces launched Operation Rumpunch and Operation Morthor (sometimes referred to as "Round One" of UN-Katangese conflict) with the aim of securing their own positions in Katanga and eliminating the presence of mercenaries. The former, though limited in scope, was largely successful, but the latter failed to achieve its objectives. As Morthor was underway, Special Representative Conor Cruise O'Brien announced, "The secession of Katanga has ended." This statement was quickly realised to be premature; Katanga fought the offensive to a stalemate. United Nations Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld attempted to meet Tshombe for negotiations in Northern Rhodesia, but on the night of 17 September his plane crashed, killing all aboard. Hammarskjöld's untimely death, combined with an overall rise in tensions, helped rally international support for a more robust peacekeeping approach. His replacement, U Thant, was less averse to using military force in the Congo and believed that the UN should intervene in internal Congolese affairs. Thant promptly requested that the Security Council grant ONUC a stronger mandate. This came in the form of a resolution on 24 November, which maintained the goals of previous ONUC resolutions and cleared up any remaining ambiguities surrounding the role and nature of the UN's intervention. It reaffirmed ONUC's ability to detain and deport foreign military personnel and mercenaries with force, described Katanga's secessionist activities as illegal, and declared the UN's support for the central government of the Congo in its efforts to "maintain law and order and national integrity". Tshombe immediately responded to the resolution by broadcasting an inflammatory speech against ONUC. This was followed by the assault of two UN officials and the murder of two Indian soldiers at the hands of the Katangese Gendarmerie. In turn ONUC's command structure in Katanga, mindful of the new mandate, issued instructions to UN troops to put "an end to Katangese resistance to UN policy by destruction of Gendarmerie and other anti-UN resistance." Escalation In December 1961, the UN initiated Operation Unokat (dubbed "Round Two") to ensure ONUC personnel's freedom of movement and reassert their authority in Katanga. Under military pressure, Tshombe was forced to enter serious negotiations with Congolese Prime Minister Cyrille Adoula. On 21 December 1961 Tshombe signed the Kitona Declaration, an agreement whereby he would recognise the authority of the central government and work to reintegrate Katanga into the Republic. However, Tshombe subsequently deferred to the Katangese Parliament and put off any action of reconciliation. In January 1962 the Stanleyville government was finally subdued and the UN was able to refocus its efforts on ending the Katangese secession. By then, contact between the central government and Katanga had broken down and ONUC intelligence reports indicated that the latter was rebuilding its forces. In August 1962 Thant proposed a "Plan for National Reconciliation" by which Katanga would rejoin a federalised Congo. Adoula and Tshombe both accepted the proposal. Thant was wary of Tshombe's delaying tactics and applied increasing political pressure on the Katangese government to abide by the plan's timetable. Belgian support for Katanga waned as the secession dragged on and the possibility of conflict increased, jeopardising investors' mining interests. The outbreak of the Sino-Indian War in October raised the potential of all Indian troops being withdrawn from ONUC, putting pressure on UN officials to quickly resolve the secession. The United States government, which had underwritten most of the costs of ONUC, also began pushing for a conclusion, having determined that the operation was financially unsustainable. Still doubting the likelihood of a peaceful resolution, Thant sent Special Representative Ralph Bunche to Léopoldville, the capital of the Congo. There, Bunche worked with Officer-in-Charge of ONUC Robert K. A. Gardiner and UN Force Commander Sean MacEoin to create a plan to achieve freedom of movement for ONUC personnel and eliminate the foreign mercenaries. By then it was obvious to ONUC that Tshombe did not intend on rejoining the Congo; there were 300 to 500 mercenaries in Katanga (as many as there had been before previous UN operations) and new airfields and defensive positions were being constructed. ONUC personnel and even diplomatic staff faced increasing harassment from Katangese gendarmes. Katangese jets were also attacking ONUC and central government forces, in effect waging civil war. Tshombe was fully aware of the military contingency operation and accused the UN of searching for a pretext to use force against Katanga. On 27 November the United States and Belgium issued a joint statement, announcing that Thant's plan had failed and calling for increased economic pressure on Katanga. On 10 December Gardiner announced that the UN would take economic measures against Katanga. He wrote a letter to Tshombe, accusing Katanga of failing to institute the Plan for National Reconciliation's provisions or otherwise end its secession. He also demanded that Katangese forces cease military action in northern Katanga, end their supply blockade against UN troops at Sakania, and release detained Tunisian peacekeepers. The letter stated that the UN "would take no offensive military action", but would respond greatly to an attack and take measures deemed necessary to prevent further attacks. The following day Belgian Foreign Minister Paul-Henri Spaak declared that the Belgian government would support the UN or the Congolese government should either one end the Katangese secession through force. He then denounced Tshombe as a "rebel". The United States Department of Defense shortly thereafter dispatched a team to the Congo to evaluate the UN's material requirements for carrying out an offensive and offered military intelligence aid to ONUC. The Katangese responded by organising anti-American demonstrations in Élisabethville. == Prelude ==

At 10:00 on 24 December 1962, Katangese forces in Élisabethville and along Avenue Tombeur attacked Ethiopian peacekeepers with small arms fire, wounding one. The shooting lasted five hours. The UN maintained that the Ethiopians held their fire, but an Associated Press correspondent reported that they responded with a recoilless rifle. At 11:00 gendarmes shot down an unarmed ONUC helicopter. An Indian member of the crew was mortally wounded while the rest were captured and beaten. A group of ONUC officers was later able to recover the prisoners without incident. Occasional fire continued the next day, and Katangese Foreign Minister Évariste Kimba promised it would cease. The situation was calm in Élisabethville on 26 December, but on 27 December the gendarmes resumed their sporadic fire against UN positions and by the late evening peacekeepers were under attack from roadblocks around the golf course and along Jadotville Road. In reaction to the increasing Katangese hostility, the ONUC Air Division issued Fighter Operations Order 16, directing UN aircraft to retaliate against Katangese aircraft mounting any attack (including against non-UN targets) and to shoot down any others deemed to be carrying "visible offensive weapons, such as bombs or rockets". Tshombe sent a letter to UN representative Eliud Mathu, accusing the peacekeepers of having obstructed the passage of Katangese government ministers on 24 December and engaging in "a general plan" of military operations. Mathu responded by saying that the ministers' movements had been restricted only to ensure their presence so they could order the gendarmes to back down and mediate the release of the helicopter crew. Mathu proceeded to invite Tshombe to his house so he could be brought to a scene of conflict and see what was occurring. Tshombe agreed, and peacekeepers escorted him to the front lines where he agreed that his own forces were attacking UN positions without provocation. After the tour, Tshombe returned to his residence. Though he initially proclaimed his intent to end the fighting, he went into an adjacent room and telephoned the Katangese forces in Kolwezi. Speaking in Kiswahili, he instructed the Katangese Air Force to raid UN positions. Radio intercepts also revealed to the UN that General Norbert Muke, the commander of the Katangese Gendarmerie, had ordered the air force to bomb the Élisabethville airport on the night of 29 December. With the failure to enact a ceasefire, Major General Dewan Prem Chand of India convinced Thant to authorise a strong, decisive offensive to pre-emptively eliminate Katangese forces. This brought relief to some of the UN peacekeepers, mindful that they now had justification to act forcefully against Katanga. Determined to avoid civilian casualties and widespread destruction, the secretary-general sent a wire to the UN Force Commander in the Congo to explain that napalm was to be prohibited from use in combat. In a final attempt to prevent further conflict, Mathu presented Tshombe a document at 11:30 on 28 December for his signature. It stipulated the removal of Katangese roadblocks and the cessation of attacks. Tshombe said he could not sign it without the consent of his ministers and left the meeting. The UN subsequently announced that it would take action to remove the roadblocks on its own. For unknown reasons, Tshombe quietly departed Élisabethville. == Opposing forces ==

Katanga In addition to the 300 to 500 mercenaries, Katanga had approximately 14,000 to 17,000 gendarmes in its service, of whom around 7,000 had not received military training. Through reconnaissance, the UN had learned that these forces were concentrated on defending the southern tier of the province (much of the north was already under central government control), with about 5,150 troops in and around the towns of Jadotville, Kolwezi and Bunkeya. Another 2,000 garrisoned Élisabethville. The UN also estimated that the Katangese Air Force possessed a number of Harvards, Magisters and de Havilland Vampires, amounting to a dozen combat aircraft, as well as some other transport aircraft and small planes. However, they believed that many Katangese aircraft were unserviceable. ONUC intelligence observed limited stockpiles of ammunition, petroleum, oil and lubricants at a few airfields. ONUC ONUC forces in Katanga were under the command of Major General Chand and his operational deputy, Brigadier Reginald Noronha. ONUC force strength had been raised to 18,200, 70 per cent of whom were deployed in and around Katanga. Peacekeeping contingents from Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Ireland, Sweden and Tunisia were earmarked by the UN to carry out Operation Grandslam. In order to simultaneously deploy these troops for the operation, the UN required a large airlift capability. ONUC had amassed an air transport fleet of 65 planes, the largest being Douglas DC-4s, but it was still insufficient for Operation Grandslam. Thant's military attaché, Indar Jit Rikhye, had requested assistance from the United States Department of Defense. Several days later, the United States committed its air force to provide logistical support. In November United States President John F. Kennedy offered to supply the UN with American fighter jets to exert an "overwhelming show of strength from the air". Thant, though desiring forceful UN ground and air action, was eager to keep ONUC impartial and wanted to refrain from calling on too much support from any major world powers. On 16 December he declared that he would consider the American offer if the situation remained deadlocked by the spring of 1963. The need for combat aircraft was long-standing a problem for ONUC, which had been delaying the commencement of the operation until sufficient air strength had been amassed to conduct a single attack that could destroy the Katangese Air Force. It was feared that a limited attack would fail to eliminate all Katangese aircraft and stretch their own forces thin, thereby allowing Katanga to disperse its air forces among hidden airfields and launch retaliatory attacks on Kamina Air Base. India had withdrawn its Canberra bombers in October to guard against China, and Ethiopia repatriated its force of Sabres after one was lost in an accident. However, new air surveillance radar equipment was deployed in Kamina and Élisabethville. The ONUC Air Division was bolstered in November by the delivery of two Saab 29 Tunnan (J 29) reconnaissance-variant jets from Sweden, greatly enhancing the force's intelligence capabilities. This was followed shortly thereafter by the arrival of several Swedish J 29 combat aircraft and a 380-strong anti-aircraft unit from Norway. In all, the UN would field 10 combat J 29s in the operation. == Operation ==

Plan Operation Grandslam was planned to include three phases, but was successfully completed in two. The first phase was designed to "restore the security of ONUC troops in the Élisabethville area and their freedom of movement by clearing the gendarmerie road-blocks from which fire had been directed at United Nations troops." The second phase would involve advances into Jadotville and Kolwezi to arrest foreign mercenaries. The third phase was designed to deal with the mercenaries in Kamina. First phase Operation Grandslam commenced in the mid-afternoon on 28 December 1962 after Thant's ultimatum that the gendarmerie back down by 15:00 went unanswered, kicking off "Round Three" of the fighting in Katanga. The initial attacks triggered the flight of 50,000 refugees, many towards the Rhodesian border, though most would quickly return. In the first day, UN forces killed 50 Katangese gendarmes before securing downtown Élisabethville, the local Gendarmerie headquarters, the radio station, and Tshombe's presidential palace. Early on 29 December, the ONUC Air Division launched a surprise assault on the Kolwezi airfield. The J 29 fighter jets strafed with their 20mm cannons, as their 13.5mm rockets were inoperable in the overcast skies. Five fuel dumps and the local administrative building were destroyed. To prevent civilian casualties, ONUC did not target the Kolwezi civilian airport. Katangese Air Force Commander Jeremiah Puren had, however, managed to evacuate six Harvard trainers before the attack occurred. Mercenary Jan Zumbach remained with the other portion of the air force in Portuguese Angola and did not intervene, infuriating Puren, who was ordered by General Muke to fall back to Jadotville. For the rest of the campaign most of the Katangese Air Force remained grounded, as Puren feared his Harvards would perform poorly against the UN's faster J 29 jets. Swedish and Ghanaian troops were ordered out of Kamina Air Base the following morning at 05:20. By 06:00 they were advancing down the main road towards the town of Kamina (dubbed Kamina-ville), while a detached Swedish company took back roads to the city through Kiavie. At 06:20 the company spearheading the advance came under heavy machine gun and mortar fire from the Katangese two or three kilometres northeast of Kamina and was ordered by Major Sture Fagerström to retreat 600 meters. The Swedes took cover and regrouped while Fredman organised an armoured car unit. He arrived at the front lines at 07:05 and the peacekeepers began their attack. Supported with mortars, a combat patrol advanced down the road and by 07:55 it had broken through the gendarmerie's defences. Swedish medics attended to the wounded Katangese that were left behind while the rest of the forces began entering the city. Altogether the Indian forces faced unexpectedly light resistance and reached the east bank of the Lufira on 3 January. The main bridge over the Lufira to Jadotville had been destroyed after the local mercenary commander blew up a truck parked halfway across it. Between 31 December 1962 and 4 January 1963, UN jets were only used for reconnaissance and providing cover to ground forces. By 4 January, the ONUC Air Division had conducted 76 air sorties, while patrolling by the J 29 jets had cut off Katanga from support in Angola and Southern Africa. Meanwhile, international opinion rallied in favour of ONUC. Belgium and France strongly urged Tshombe to accept Thant's Plan for National Reconciliation and resolve the conflict. Two days the later United States Air Force flew amphibious troop-carriers and armoured vehicles into Élisabethville. The 99th Indian Brigade had been waiting for their arrival, as the equipment was necessary in order to cross the dozen rivers and streams between Jadotville and Kolwezi. The troops began their advance three days later, but faced armed opposition and struggled to navigate the troop carriers through strong currents. On 8 January, Tshombe reappeared in Élisabethville. The same day Prime Minister Adoula received a letter from the chiefs of the most prominent Kantangese tribes pledging allegiance to the Congolese government and calling for Tshombe's arrest. Thant, at the urging of the United States, considered making contact with Tshombe to negotiate. Bunche advised against this, saying to the secretary-general, "[Tshombe] is maneuvering in every possible way to get some recognition. His position, after all, is only that of a provincial president, and now, for the first time, he is reduced to size. He should be kept there." He shortly thereafter clarified his opinion, stating, "If we could convince [Tshombe] that there is no more room for maneuvering and bargaining, and no one to bargain with, he would surrender and the gendarmerie would collapse." The following day Tshombe was briefly detained by UN soldiers, but he was released so he could meet with his minister of interior, Godefroid Munongo, and several of his other cabinet officials in Mokambo. It was alleged that along the way Tshombe urged his supporters to resist UN forces, but, regardless, Mokambo and Bakania were soon occupied. He expressed his willingness to negotiate with the central government, but warned that any advance on Kolwezi would result in the enactment of a scorched earth policy. In accordance with the threat, the Delcommune and Le Marinel dams were prepared for demolition. On 10 January, UN troops seized an abandoned gendarmerie base and secured Shinkolobwe. Tshombe fled to Northern Rhodesia on a Rhodesian Air Force plane. Adoula and many ONUC officials were determined to keep him out of the country, but he managed to reach Kolwezi, the only significant location that remained under Katangese control. Outside of the city several French mercenaries were skirmishing with UN troops when one patrol accidentally drove their jeep into a ditch. Nearby Indian Gurkhas believed them to be Swedish peacekeepers and helped them retrieve their vehicle. One of the mercenaries then spoke in French and the Indians realised their mistake. A firefight ensued in which all but one of the mercenaries, desperate to avoid capture, escaped. Meanwhile, mercenaries in the Kolwezi area had taken Tshombe's threats about a scorched earth policy seriously and had planted explosives on all nearby bridges, the Nzilo Dam (which provided most of Katanga's electricity) and most of the UMHK mining facilities. When Tshombe arrived on 12 January, he was informed by UMHK officials that they had negotiated a tax deal with the central government and were withdrawing their support for secession. They asked him to not spread the news, fearing the mercenaries would feel betrayed and destroy their facilities as revenge. Realising in a final meeting in Kolwezi that the situation was grim, Colonel Bob Denard suggested that, before fleeing, the mercenaries should destroy the Nzilo Dam to make a political statement. Tshombe, knowing that the UMHK would disapprove, told him that such an action would be "criminally irresponsible." Company representatives met with Brigadier General Noronha to discuss the best way for UN troops to enter Kolwezi without causing collateral damage. General Muke vainly attempted to organise the 140 mercenaries and 2,000 gendarmes under his command to prepare a final defence of the city. His efforts, undermined by the force's low morale and indiscipline, were further hampered by an influx of refugees. Discipline in the garrison increasingly faltered; in once instance, two mercenaries attempted to steal Puren's jeep. Tshombe ordered the Katangese garrison of Baudouinville to surrender to besieging UN and Armée Nationale Congolaise (ANC) forces. Instead, they and most of the population deserted the city while a handful of gendarmes near Kongolo laid down their arms to Nigerian and Malaysian soldiers. On 14 January, Indian troops found the last intact bridge into Kolwezi. After a brief fight with gendarmes and mercenaries they secured it and crossed over, stopping at the city outskirts to await further instruction. On 15 January, Tshombe sent a formal message to Thant, "I am ready to proclaim immediately before the world that the Katanga's secession is ended." Munongo fled Kolwezi and angrily declared that he would continue the campaign from Rhodesia, though he soon returned. Tshombe offered to return to Élisabethville to oversee the implementation of Thant's proposal for reunification if Prime Minister Adoula granted amnesty to himself and his government. At a press conference, Adoula accepted Tshombe's proposition and announced that what remained of the Katangese Gendarmerie would be integrated into the ANC. == Aftermath and analyses ==

Katangese surrender On 17 January, forward elements of the 99th Brigade reached the Tshilongo River where they were ordered to halt. Robert Gardiner refuted both accusations in an open letter to the vicar general of the Roman Catholic archbishopric in Élisabethville. Writing on the first charge, he said that Irish troops were not even in the area at the time. Instead, he detailed that Ethiopian soldiers had stormed the hospital compound after being subjected to heavy firing from Katangese gendarmes who had dug in there. Gardiner reported that the nun on duty had said some of the patients were wearing khaki clothing similar to the gendarmes' uniforms. He conceded that one patient was shot in the leg while another received a grazing wound. Gardiner also said no protests of the presence of gendarmes was ever forwarded to the International Red Cross and that the mother superior of the hospital testified that medical authorities had been advised by Union Minière officials to refrain from taking any action against the gendarmes and to avoid involving themselves in the matter altogether. As for the 70 corpses brought to Prince Leopold Hospital, Gardiner stated that "[n]o evidence has been produced to substantiate this allegation." As per the central government's decision, Katanga was divided into two provinces: North Katanga and South Katanga. Tshombe protested the "Balkanization" of the province, but cooperated and established his own provincial government in South Katanga by April. Godefroid Munongo also remained in the Katangese government, though he was removed from the interior ministry and made provincial minister of health. Prime Minister Adoula reshuffled his cabinet to include four CONAKAT members, including their floor leaders from both houses of Parliament. The central government also assumed control of Katanga's shares in UMHK, as well its holdings in 18 other companies, facilitating a financial rapprochement with Belgium. Tshombe's rivalry with Association Générale des Baluba du Katanga (BALUBAKAT) leader Jason Sendwe, a northern Katangese politician, led to ethnic violence in Jadotville in which an estimated 74 people were killed. The following month ANC soldiers raided Tshombe's residence on accusations that he was maintaining a private militia. Later, the central government seized documents revealing his continued contact with foreign mercenaries. Fearing arrest and claiming political persecution, Tshombe fled to Paris, France, in June, eventually settling in Madrid, Spain. From there he developed plans with his gendarmerie commanders for a return to power, further complicating the central government's efforts to absorb the force. Halfway through the year South Katanga was further divided into the provinces of Katanga Oriental and Lualaba (also known as the new South Katanga). Though they were opposed to such divisions, many Katangese leaders from the secession joined the new provincial governments. A new constitutional commission was established, and in March 1964 it recommended that the Congo switch from its parliamentary system to a presidential model of government. In June 1964, following the withdrawal of ONUC, the communist Kwilu and Simba rebellions overwhelmed the ANC in eastern and central Congo. The weak central government was unable to effectively deal with the problem, so President Joseph Kasa-Vubu dismissed Prime Minister Adoula and requested Tshombe to replace him. Tshombe arrived in the capital on 24 June and assumed the premiership on 9 July. The insurgencies were successfully quelled with the use of former gendarmes and mercenaries, but in October 1965 Kasa-Vubu dismissed Tshombe. In November, Colonel Joseph-Desiré Mobutu seized power in a coup and Tshombe returned to exile in Spain. Though he had designs on a return to power, Tshombe was imprisoned in Algeria in 1967 and remained there until his death. Fate of Katanga's military UN troops began disarming the remainder of the Katangese Gendarmerie after occupying Kolwezi. The ceasefire failed, however, and Mai-Mai Kata Katanga had resumed its insurgency by 2019. == Notes ==