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EspañolUNITED NATIONS OPERATION IN THE CONGO
'Organisation des Nations Unies au Congo', abbreviated 'ONUC', (English: 'The United Nations Organization in the Congo') was a United Nations peacekeeping force in Congo that was established after United Nations Security Council Resolution 143 of July 14, 1960. From 1963 the name changed to 'Opération des Nations Unies au Congo', keeping the same abbreviation.
Congo became independent in 30 June 1960, but the Belgian commander refused to "Africanize" the officers' corps of the army, and because of that disorder and multinies broke out. While the President and the Prime Minister were trying to negotiate with the mutineers, the Belgian government decided to interfere in order to protect the Belgians that remained in the country and to grant the request of Moïse Tshombé, head of an organization for the independence of the Katanga Province, one of the richest provinces in the country.
On July 10, Belgian troops were sent to Elisabethville, the capital of the Katanga province, to control the situation and protect Belgian civilians. With the help of the Belgians, Tshombé proclaimed the independence of the province.
On 12 July, the President and the Prime Minister asked for help of the UN. The Secretary-General addressed the Security Council at a night meeting on 13 July and asked the Council to act "with utmost speed" on the request.
At the same meeting, the Security Council adopted resolution 143 (1960), by which it called upon the Government of Belgium to withdraw its troops from the territory of the Congo. The resolution authorized the United Nations Secretary-General to take the necessary steps, in consultation with the Congolese government, to provide that government with the necessary military assistance until it felt that, through its efforts with the technical assistance of the United Nations, the national security forces were able to meet their tasks fully. Following Security Council actions, the United Nations Force in the Congo (ONUC) was established. In order to carry out these tasks, the Secretary-General set up a United Nations Force, which at its peak strength numbered nearly 20,000.[1]
The Force stayed in the Congo between 1960 and 1964, and was a peacekeeping force, not a military force. The blue helmets could use their arms only in self-defense.
The first troops reached Congo in the 15 July. This caused an immediate calming impact. The troops began to occupy the area and the withdrawal of Belgian troops was completed by September. Dag Hammarskjöld was successful when he tried to negotiate a pacific interference of the ONUC in Katanga.
Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba, dissatisfied with Dag Hammarskjöld's refusal to use UN troops to subdue the insurrection in Katanga, decided to attempt an invasion of Katanga on his own and turned to the Soviet Union for help. The invasion attempt never reached Katanga but led to dissension within the Central Government, the collapse of the Central Government, and eventually to Patrice Lumumba's arrest in December. After the withdrawal of the Belgians, the troops remained until 1964, to help the government to maintain the peace and consolidate de independence of the country. In the end, Katanga remaines as a province.
The Irish Army contributed troops to ONUC from 1958 onwards, however, the first large deployment was in 1960. The contribution of the 32nd Infantry Battalion was the first deployment of Irish troops overseas and they were woefully ill-equipped. The standard uniform was a heavy bullswool tunic and trousers and the service rifle was the .303 Lee-Enfield. If the equipment was considered obselete for a north-European war, it was totally unsuitable for warfare in the west African jungle. Issues with kit were eventually solved, new lightweight uniforms were issued and the FN FAL rifle replaced the venerable Lee Enfield. The Irish Battalions had a huge area to patrol and not much transport too patrol it with. Most patrols consisted of a couple of Land Rovers or Willys CJ3As, carrying soldiers armed with rifles, Gustav M45 submachineguns and Bren Guns. One such patrol was ambushed at Niemba on 8th November 1960 by Baluba Tribesmen. 9 Irish Troops died and only two escaped. One soldier who died was awarded the Military Medal for Gallantry (the highest Irish military award) for giving his life to save his comrade. It is the only time this medal has been awarded. As a result of the ambush, the army equipped it's contingent with 8 wholly obsolete Ford armoured cars. These had been constructed in Ireland during the Second World War as a stop-gap armoured vehicle when no chance of receiving exported armour from Britain existed. Armament consisted of a single turret-mounted Vickers HMG. Despite the fact that the cars were poorly armed and armoured, and were wholly unsuitable for the terrain, they were an extra-ordinary success, often fighting against much more modern vehicles and coming out on top. Modifications included extra ammunition storage, a searchlight and a cooling fan.
The Irish contingent fought with extreme bravery and skill considering their little experience of "real" warfare, or of the terrain encountered. Congo veterans sometimes speak of the ferocious Baluba warriors - stories are told about how an Irish soldier may have fired twice or three times into an oncoming warrior without apparent effect, but would be able to scare the same man into running for his life by simply taking out his false teeth. Such is the nature of a meeting of cultures in conflict.
The most famous Irish action of the operation was the Siege of Jadotville where 150 Irish troops held out against a much larger force of Katanganese. The Irish fought until their ammunition ran out, inflicting many casualties on their opponents but amazingly taking none themselves.
A total of 6000 Irish Troops served in the Congo from 1960 until 1964, taking 26 casualties in that time. The experience benefitted the army hugely, as it resulted in greater investment by the government in personal kit and eventually, armoured personnel carriers. The mission was also the start of over 40 years of peacekeeping with the UN, in the Lebanon, Kosovo, East Timor, Liberia and several other countries. Today, a UN peacekeeping school is based in the Curragh Camp, army training headquarters, and personnel from all over the world attend courses there.
★ General von Horn, Sweden, July 1960 – December 1960
★ General MacEoin, Ireland, January 1961 – March 1962
★ General Guebre, Ethiopia, April 1962 – July 1963
★ General Christian cRoy Kaldager, Norway, August 1963 – December 1963
★ General Ironsi, Nigeria, January 1964 – June 1964
1. ONUC
★ ONUC from the official UN peacekeeping site
Congo became independent in 30 June 1960, but the Belgian commander refused to "Africanize" the officers' corps of the army, and because of that disorder and multinies broke out. While the President and the Prime Minister were trying to negotiate with the mutineers, the Belgian government decided to interfere in order to protect the Belgians that remained in the country and to grant the request of Moïse Tshombé, head of an organization for the independence of the Katanga Province, one of the richest provinces in the country.
On July 10, Belgian troops were sent to Elisabethville, the capital of the Katanga province, to control the situation and protect Belgian civilians. With the help of the Belgians, Tshombé proclaimed the independence of the province.
On 12 July, the President and the Prime Minister asked for help of the UN. The Secretary-General addressed the Security Council at a night meeting on 13 July and asked the Council to act "with utmost speed" on the request.
At the same meeting, the Security Council adopted resolution 143 (1960), by which it called upon the Government of Belgium to withdraw its troops from the territory of the Congo. The resolution authorized the United Nations Secretary-General to take the necessary steps, in consultation with the Congolese government, to provide that government with the necessary military assistance until it felt that, through its efforts with the technical assistance of the United Nations, the national security forces were able to meet their tasks fully. Following Security Council actions, the United Nations Force in the Congo (ONUC) was established. In order to carry out these tasks, the Secretary-General set up a United Nations Force, which at its peak strength numbered nearly 20,000.[1]
The Force stayed in the Congo between 1960 and 1964, and was a peacekeeping force, not a military force. The blue helmets could use their arms only in self-defense.
The first troops reached Congo in the 15 July. This caused an immediate calming impact. The troops began to occupy the area and the withdrawal of Belgian troops was completed by September. Dag Hammarskjöld was successful when he tried to negotiate a pacific interference of the ONUC in Katanga.
Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba, dissatisfied with Dag Hammarskjöld's refusal to use UN troops to subdue the insurrection in Katanga, decided to attempt an invasion of Katanga on his own and turned to the Soviet Union for help. The invasion attempt never reached Katanga but led to dissension within the Central Government, the collapse of the Central Government, and eventually to Patrice Lumumba's arrest in December. After the withdrawal of the Belgians, the troops remained until 1964, to help the government to maintain the peace and consolidate de independence of the country. In the end, Katanga remaines as a province.
| Contents |
| Irish Army Involvement |
| Commanders of the ONUC |
| References |
| External links |
Irish Army Involvement
The Irish Army contributed troops to ONUC from 1958 onwards, however, the first large deployment was in 1960. The contribution of the 32nd Infantry Battalion was the first deployment of Irish troops overseas and they were woefully ill-equipped. The standard uniform was a heavy bullswool tunic and trousers and the service rifle was the .303 Lee-Enfield. If the equipment was considered obselete for a north-European war, it was totally unsuitable for warfare in the west African jungle. Issues with kit were eventually solved, new lightweight uniforms were issued and the FN FAL rifle replaced the venerable Lee Enfield. The Irish Battalions had a huge area to patrol and not much transport too patrol it with. Most patrols consisted of a couple of Land Rovers or Willys CJ3As, carrying soldiers armed with rifles, Gustav M45 submachineguns and Bren Guns. One such patrol was ambushed at Niemba on 8th November 1960 by Baluba Tribesmen. 9 Irish Troops died and only two escaped. One soldier who died was awarded the Military Medal for Gallantry (the highest Irish military award) for giving his life to save his comrade. It is the only time this medal has been awarded. As a result of the ambush, the army equipped it's contingent with 8 wholly obsolete Ford armoured cars. These had been constructed in Ireland during the Second World War as a stop-gap armoured vehicle when no chance of receiving exported armour from Britain existed. Armament consisted of a single turret-mounted Vickers HMG. Despite the fact that the cars were poorly armed and armoured, and were wholly unsuitable for the terrain, they were an extra-ordinary success, often fighting against much more modern vehicles and coming out on top. Modifications included extra ammunition storage, a searchlight and a cooling fan.
The Irish contingent fought with extreme bravery and skill considering their little experience of "real" warfare, or of the terrain encountered. Congo veterans sometimes speak of the ferocious Baluba warriors - stories are told about how an Irish soldier may have fired twice or three times into an oncoming warrior without apparent effect, but would be able to scare the same man into running for his life by simply taking out his false teeth. Such is the nature of a meeting of cultures in conflict.
The most famous Irish action of the operation was the Siege of Jadotville where 150 Irish troops held out against a much larger force of Katanganese. The Irish fought until their ammunition ran out, inflicting many casualties on their opponents but amazingly taking none themselves.
A total of 6000 Irish Troops served in the Congo from 1960 until 1964, taking 26 casualties in that time. The experience benefitted the army hugely, as it resulted in greater investment by the government in personal kit and eventually, armoured personnel carriers. The mission was also the start of over 40 years of peacekeeping with the UN, in the Lebanon, Kosovo, East Timor, Liberia and several other countries. Today, a UN peacekeeping school is based in the Curragh Camp, army training headquarters, and personnel from all over the world attend courses there.
Commanders of the ONUC
★ General von Horn, Sweden, July 1960 – December 1960
★ General MacEoin, Ireland, January 1961 – March 1962
★ General Guebre, Ethiopia, April 1962 – July 1963
★ General Christian cRoy Kaldager, Norway, August 1963 – December 1963
★ General Ironsi, Nigeria, January 1964 – June 1964
References
1. ONUC
External links
★ ONUC from the official UN peacekeeping site
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