Operation Grandslam

Operation Grandslam

The State of Katanga was a secessionist state rebelling against the Republic of the Congo in central Africa. The United Nations had tried several times to reconcile the Congo with Katanga, which had declared independence under Moïse Tshombe with Belgian support in 1960. The situation reached a breaking point in December 1962 when Katangese gendarmes attacked peacekeepers in Katanga. United Nations Secretary-General U Thant authorised a retaliatory offensive to eliminate secessionist opposition. The operation was largely successful, though limited in scope, but failed to achieve its objectives.

About Operation Grandslam in brief

Summary Operation GrandslamDecisive ONUC victory ONUC Katanga Operation Grandslam was an offensive undertaken by United Nations peacekeeping forces from 28 December 1962 to 15 January 1963. The State of Katanga was a secessionist state rebelling against the Republic of the Congo in central Africa. The United Nations had tried several times to reconcile the Congo with Katanga, which had declared independence under Moïse Tshombe with Belgian support in 1960. The situation reached a breaking point in December 1962 when Katangese gendarmes attacked peacekeepers in Katanga. United Nations Secretary-General U Thant authorised a retaliatory offensive to eliminate secessionist opposition. On 17  January 1963, he signed an instrument of surrender and declared theKatangese secession to be over. The operation was largely successful, though limited in scope, but failed to achieve its objectives. An insurgency for Katanges secession continues to the present day. Operation Rumpor and Operation Munchor were launched in October and November 1963. They were aimed at eliminating the presence of mercenaries in the Katanga and eliminating their own positions in the country. The latter was largely unsuccessful, but Operation Runchor was successful in eliminating the former mercenaries, though the latter failed in its aim of eliminating their positions inKatanga and eliminate their own presence in the Congolese capital, Élisabethville. The U.N. Operation in the Congo was established in 1960 to prevent a complete collapse of order within the country, the United Nations established a major peacekeeping mission.

In addition to a large body of troops, a civilian mission was brought in to provide technical assistance to the Congo government. The mission was known as ONUC. It was based in the town of Stanleyville, in the east of the country and was responsible for security in the north and east. It has been described as the “mother of all peacekeeping operations” in Africa. It is the only mission to date that has been able to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and malaria in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It has also been called the “father of peace” in the DRC and is responsible for the creation of the modern-day Republic of Zambia (DR Congo) and Rwanda (Rg Congo). It was established to ensure the safety of Congoles citizens and foreign nationals and refrained from acting against the secessionist states, but the UN ran into trouble in Katang. The state’s head of the Confédération des associations tribales du Katanga (CDAT) banned the UN from entering his territory and greatly limited their peacekeeping efforts to deport foreign mercenaries. The UN then banned the leader of the CDAT from entering the Congo and greatlylimited their peacekeepers’ attempts to deportForeign mercenaries, many of whom were employed by Katanga by the state’s gendarmerie. This led to a number of issues, including the use of military force to prevent civil war, make arrests, halt military operations, arrange ceasefires, arrange military operations and deport foreign personnel.