Английская Википедия:Battle of Kabalo

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The Battle of Kabalo was a battle fought at Kabalo by United Nations peacekeeping forces and Baluba militias from 7 April to 11 April 1961 against mercenaries and the gendarmerie of the State of Katanga, a secessionist state rebelling against the Republic of the Congo in central Africa. The Katangese forces attacked the town as part of a larger offensive meant to restore their authority in northern Katanga which was challenged by the Baluba. A United Nations Operation in the Congo peacekeeping contingent garrisoning Kabalo, acting under the authority of their mandate to prevent civil war in the country, resisted the initial attack and arrested 30 mercenaries in Katanga's employ. Armed Baluba repelled a Katangese ferry carrying troops as well as an armoured train. The next day the ferry returned but was sunk by UN forces. Fighting continued over the next few days between the Baluba and Katangese until the latter withdrew. The battle led to a deterioration of relations between the Katangese government and the United Nations Operation in the Congo.

Background

Katangese secession

Шаблон:Main The Republic of the Congo became independent from Belgium on 30 June 1960. On 5 July, disgruntled soldiers of the Force Publique, unhappy with their lack of advancement relative to civilian politicians, began a nationwide mutiny against their white officers. The rebellions caused widespread instability and led to the flight of much of the Congo's European population, which was of vital importance to the economy. On July 9 the mutinies spread to the southern province of Katanga.Шаблон:Sfn Katanga contained the vast majority of the Congo's valuable mineral resources and had attracted significant mining activity under Belgian rule.Шаблон:Sfn Many Katangese thought that they were entitled to the revenue generated through the lucrative industry, and feared that under the new central government led by Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba it would be redistributed among the Congo's poorer provinces.Шаблон:Sfn

Файл:Tshombe with Operation Unokat casualty cropped.jpg
Moïse Tshombe in 1962

On 11 July Belgian metropolitan units were landed across the Congo, without the Congolese government's consent, to disarm the mutinous troops.Шаблон:Sfn Moïse Tshombe, President of Katanga Province, declared the independence of the "State of Katanga" and appealed for Belgian assistance.Шаблон:Sfn Immediately following the declaration of secession, the Katangese government worked to quickly establish its own armed force. Belgian officers and Katangese rank-and-file of the Force Publique formed the nucleus of the new Katangese Gendarmerie, bolstered by the recruitment of local militias.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

Lumumba and President Joseph Kasa-Vubu appealed to the United Nations (UN), requesting that international troops be dispatched to the Congo to replace the Belgian forces and reestablish order.Шаблон:Sfn The UN Security Council complied, passing several resolutions calling for the withdrawal of Belgian troops and establishing a large multinational peacekeeping mission, the United Nations Operation in the Congo (known by its French acronym, ONUC).Шаблон:Sfn Lumumba demanded that ONUC troops be used to forcibly put down the Katangese secession, but the Security Council resolved that "the United Nations Force in the Congo will not be a party to or in any way intervene in or be used to influence the outcome of any internal conflict." Frustrated, Lumumba appealed to Eastern Bloc nations for military assistance, resulting in a conflict with Kasa-Vubu and ultimately his removal from power in September and eventual murder in January 1961.Шаблон:Sfn In response to Lumumba's removal, his political allies gathered in Stanleyville in the eastern Congo and declared a rival regime to the central government in Léopoldville.Шаблон:Sfn

The announcement of Lumumba's death created a sense of urgency among the international community and motivated members of the UN Security Council to strengthen ONUC's powers.Шаблон:Sfn On 21 February 1961 the UN Security Council passed a resolution permitting ONUC to use military force as a last resort to prevent civil war. As the Congo was already more-or-less in a state of civil war, the resolution gave ONUC significant latitude to act. It also called for the immediate departure of all foreign military personnel and mercenaries from the country, though the use of force was not authorised to carry out that specific measure. Therefore, force could only be used to remove foreign soldiers and mercenaries if it was justified under the reasoning that such action would be necessary to prevent civil war.Шаблон:Sfn ONUC Headquarters implemented the resolution by adopting Operational Directive No. 10, which stated that UN troops "should at the earliest opportunity attempt either to interpose themselves between the parties [of an armed conflict] to stop or limit the clash. In doing so, they continue to have the right to defend themselves by force if necessary".Шаблон:Sfn ONUC was not authorised to impose a political solution by force or directly intervene in internal Congolese affairs.Шаблон:Sfn

Conflict in northern Katanga

Файл:Jeunesse BALUBAKAT.jpg
Armed Baluba fought against the Katangese secession.

The secession of Katanga was opposed by the Association Générale des Baluba du Katanga (BALUBAKAT) a political party which represented the Luba people of northern Katanga.Шаблон:Sfn Some prominent BALUBAKAT politicians allied themselves with the Stanleyville government.Шаблон:Sfn On 7 January 1961 troops from Stanleyville occupied Manono in northern Katanga. Accompanying BALUBAKAT leaders declared the establishing of a new "Province of Lualaba" that extended throughout the region.Шаблон:Sfn Since October 1960, northern Katanga was ostensibly a "neutral zone" under the control of ONUC contingents,Шаблон:Sfn but in reality they were too weak to exercise authority and were completely surprised by the takeover in Manono. Tshombe and his government accused ONUC of collaborating with the Stanleyville regime and declared that they would no longer respect the neutral zone.Шаблон:Sfn By late January groups of Baluba were launching attacks on railways. UN officials appealed for them to stop, but the Baluba leaders stated that they aimed to do everything within their power to weaken the Katangese government and disrupt the Katangese Gendarmerie's offensive potential.Шаблон:Sfn

On 11 February 1961, the Katangese government announced that it would begin an offensive to eliminate the Baluba opposition in northern Katanga. Approximately 5,000 troops were earmarked for the operation, which focused on a northward offensive from Lubudi. At the same time, they were to recapture the town of Manono, secure the area south of it, and launch attacks on Kabalo from Albertville to the east and Kongolo to the north.Шаблон:Sfn Kabalo served as a port for steamers along the Lualaba River and was connected to the railway from Albertville.Шаблон:Sfn The Katangese government disregarded the UN Security Council resolution of 21 February and carried forward with its plans to suppress rebellious Baluba in the northern sections of the province.Шаблон:Sfn On 30 March the Katangese Gendarmerie seized Manono.Шаблон:Sfn After the town's fall the BALUBAKAT designated Kabalo the "provisional capital" of the Province of Lualaba.Шаблон:Sfn About 3,500 Baluba from the surrounding area fled to Kabalo, where they were granted ONUC's protection.Шаблон:Sfn

Prelude

The Katangese operation to take Kabalo was organised by Colonel Jean-Marie CrèvecoeurШаблон:Sfn and was chiefly intended to secure the railway.Шаблон:Sfn Captain William Richard Browne was to lead a group of 30 mercenaries of the Compagnie Internationale, a Katangese mercenary unit mostly composed of Brits and South Africans, in landing at the Kabalo airstrip via Douglas DC-4, followed by three more planes carrying gendarmes and additional mercenaries.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn At the same time, a ferry, the Constant de Burlet, carrying Katangese gendarmes with Belgian officers and members of the Compagnie Internationale under Captain R. Wauthier would arrive, as would an armoured train transporting more gendarmes and Compagnie Internationale men.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn According to two gendarmes later captured by the Baluba, the ferry carried 150 African gendarmes, four white gendarmes, and 11 crewmen.Шаблон:Sfn The entire attack force consisted of over 1,000 men.Шаблон:Sfn On 27 March the armoured train departed Albertville, collected about 350 gendarmes, and proceeded in the direction of Nyunzu, towards Kabalo. Katangese troops advancing from Kongolo burnt Luba villages as they advanced.Шаблон:Sfn

Kabalo was garrisoned by two companies of an Ethiopian battalion serving with ONUC,Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn totaling 400 troops.[1] It was led by Colonel Alemu.Шаблон:Sfn According to Katangese mercenary Jerry Puren, ONUC had been warned in advance of the attack when a Belgian officer handed a copy of the Katangese battle plan to UN officials in Léopoldville.Шаблон:Sfn One injured BALUBAKAT partisan retreated to Kabalo and reported of fighting in the north.Шаблон:Sfn

Battle

On 7 April 1961, the Katangese DC-4 carrying Browne and his mercenaries launched from Kongolo and landed at the Kabalo airstrip at about 10:30 unopposed.Шаблон:Sfn The mercenaries disembarked and the plane took off.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn They then ran to secure the railway station, but found that 200 Ethiopian soldiers had taken up position around the location and trained their guns on them. The mercenaries surrendered to them.Шаблон:Sfn They were arrested and imprisoned in the railway station.Шаблон:Sfn The next plane circled the airstrip but did not land and ultimately none of the additional aircraft attempted to do so.Шаблон:Sfn At about 13:10, the Constant de Burlet attempted to dock at Kabalo but was taken under fire by Baluba partisans positioned on the opposite side of the river.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The gendarmes aboard returned fire with machine guns and mortars, killing at least one Muluba and wounding anotherШаблон:Sfn before withdrawing behind a bend in the river. Baluba also attacked the armoured train at Kitule, 35 kilometers north of Kabalo. Though seven Baluba reportedly died and three were wounded, they inflicted some casualties among the gendarmes and prevented the train from reaching its objective.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The Ethiopians then dispatched a patrol to investigate the engagement at the river, which was ambushed by Katangese gendarmes. Three Ethiopians—an officer and two soldiers—were gravely wounded, while a fourth became separated from the patrol.Шаблон:Sfn Despite the gendarmerie's failures, the Katangese government declared that its forces had secured Kabalo.[2]

On the morning of 8 April the Ethiopians sent out a patrol to search for their missing soldier.Шаблон:Sfn The gendarmes launched another ambush at a bridge eight miles outside of Kabalo, killing two.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn The Ethiopians managed to wound and capture three gendarmes. The missing soldier was later brought back to the ONUC contingent by Baluba.Шаблон:Sfn Meanwhile, the Constant de Burlet made another attempt to dock and was brought under fire from Baluba militia. The Ethiopian troops also fired on the ferry, and sank it when one of their mortar shells landed down the funnel and blew it up. A Katangese boat retrieved the survivors further down the river. One of the mercenaries claimed that an ONUC soldier shot a priest that was accompanying them when he swam to shore and pleaded for a ceasefire. According to Browne, Ethiopians troops at the railway stationed were angered by the death of their two comrades at the bridge, and a lieutenant brought the mercenaries out of their confinement and prepared to execute them with a firing squad. Colonel Alemu arrived and, after accosting the lieutenant, sent the mercenaries back into the station.Шаблон:Sfn A Katangese aircraft flew around Kabalo before bombing an outlying village, setting it ablaze. That evening the Baluba and Katangese gendarmes clashed with each other approximately 10 kilometres south of the town.Шаблон:Sfn

The ONUC garrison played no further role in the fighting after 8 April. The Katangese made numerous attempts to enter Kabalo during the following days, but were bogged down by heavy resistance from Baluba militia.Шаблон:Sfn A number of Baluba villages east of the town were reportedly torched by CONAKAT partisans.Шаблон:Sfn On 10 April ONUC flew in an additional Ethiopian company and 400 Malayan peacekeepers to reinforce the garrison.Шаблон:Sfn They also transferred the captive mercenaries to Kamina Air Base.Шаблон:Sfn On 11 April a gendarmerie helicopter landed near the town and fired on local fishermen, wounding one. Fighting between the Baluba and gendarmes reportedly resulted in the deaths of five of the latter.Шаблон:Sfn That day Katangese troops withdrew from the area to focus their operations further south.Шаблон:Sfn

Aftermath

Luba casualties from the battle were unknown. Five UN soldiers were killed and four wounded. The ONUC troops arrested 30 white mercenaries, while three Katangese gendarmes were wounded and an unknown number killed.Шаблон:Sfn The wounded gendarmes—two of which were of European descent—were treated by ONUC personnel before being flown to Albertville.Шаблон:Sfn ONUC interrogated the captured mercenaries.Шаблон:Sfn Browne testified that he had only signed up for policing duties and had been "sold up the river" by the Belgian officers in the Katangese Gendarmerie.Шаблон:Sfn All admitted participating in the capture of Manono, and the information they provided revealed to ONUC the extent to which Katanga had been recruiting mercenaries in southern Africa;Шаблон:Sfn recruiting stations were present in both Rhodesia and South Africa.Шаблон:Sfn Following questioning, the mercenaries were transferred to Léopoldville before being deported from the Congo to Brazzaville.Шаблон:Sfn The capture of the mercenaries was given a great deal of public attention and affirmed that British nationals had been working in Katanga's employ. In response the United Kingdom government declared that any British national engaged in a military capacity in the Congo outside of service with ONUC would have their passport invalidated.Шаблон:Sfn

Due to the action of the ONUC garrison, Kabalo remained the only major town in northern Katanga not controlled by the Katangese Gendarmerie at the conclusion of their offensive.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn Though ONUC was able to retain control of the locale, it lacked the ability to patrol the surrounding area to intervene in further conflicts. Having been defeated, the Katangese began conducting punitive attacks on Luba villages. Opposed only by poorly armed bands of Baluba, the conflict resulted in the commission of numerous atrocities by both belligerents.Шаблон:Sfn Puren attributed the defeat of the attack on Kabalo to the alleged leak of the battle plan to ONUC and Browne's decision to surrender his force instead of resisting the Ethiopians until reinforcements arrived.Шаблон:Sfn

The ONUC garrison's resistance to the attack at Kabalo and the arrest of the mercenaries marked peacekeepers' first use of the powers granted to them under the UN Security Council resolution of 21 February. In response to a parliamentary inquiry, the Lord Privy Seal of the United Kingdom wrote that it was the position of the British government that ONUC's action at Kabalo was authorised under the Security Council resolution.Шаблон:Sfn

The battle heightened tensions between the UN and the Katangese government.Шаблон:Sfn Tshombe penned a letter of protest to Hammarskjöld, accusing the Ethiopians of acting contrary to ONUC's mandate. He also maintained that Katangese gendarmes had only fired upon the ONUC contingent because they wore khaki. He finished by saying, "If the UN units in Katanga do not stop provoking incidents in a country that only desires to work in peace the Katangese government will be obliged to contemplate other measures, whose consequences will be the entire responsibility of certain elements in the United Nations who are pursuing a personal policy in the former Belgian Congo."Шаблон:Sfn Tshombe also put further pressure on ONUC contingents in Katanga by encouraging public demonstrations against them and ordering local businesses not to serve ONUC personnel.Шаблон:Sfn The failure of the UN to convince the Katangese to peaceably dispel mercenaries from its forces led ONUC to commission Operation Rum Punch in August.Шаблон:Sfn

Citations

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References

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Шаблон:Congo Conflict: 1960–1968