Operation South
Operation South was a military offensive conducted by the forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Kivu against insurgents during the Simba rebellion. It was carried out by the DR Congo's regular military, the Armée Nationale Congolaise, mercenaries, and various foreign soldiers employed by Belgium and the United States. The operation aimed at destroying the remaining Simba strongholds and ending the rebellion. Though the insurgents were supported by allied Communist Cubans under Che Guevara and Rwandan Inyenzi groups, the operation resulted in the conquest of most rebel-held areas and effectively shattered the Simba insurgents.
Background
Following its independence in 1960, the Republic of the Congo became the subject to a series of political upheavals and conflicts collectively termed the "Congo Crisis". In 1964, various insurgent groups launched a major rebellion in the eastern regions, inflicting heavy losses on the Armée Nationale Congolaise, the national military. The rebels captured much of Orientale Province and Kivu, proclaimed a leftist "People's Republic", and declared their militias the "Armée Populaire de Libération". However, the rebels became more commonly known as "Simbas" and were never able to unite organisationally or politically. Regardless, they were perceived as anti-Western and anti-colonialist socialists by outside powers and thus various sympathetic foreign states, including Cuba, began to funnel aid to the Simba insurgents. On the opposing side, the Congolese government received backing by Western powers such as the United States whose CIA sent Cuban exiles as military pilots to support the ANC. President Joseph Kasa-Vubu appointed Moïse Tshombe new Prime Minister to solve the crisis. Tshombe had previously led the separatist State of Katanga, whose military had consisted of the Katangese Gendarmerie and supportive mercenaries.File:Dragonrouge2.jpg|thumb|left|ANC soldiers, including black and white mercenaries, in combat with Simba rebels.
After negotiations with the Simbas failed, Tshombe recruited a large number of ex-gendarmes and mercenaries to bolster the ANC. These troops were led by Mike Hoare and organized as units termed "Commandos", relying on speed and firepower to outgun and outmaneuver the insurgents. The restrengthened security forces were able to halt the Simbas' advance. In late 1964, the Congolese government and its allies, including Belgium and the United States, organized a major counter-offensive against the Simba rebels. This campaign resulted in the recapturing of several settlements in northeastern Congo, most importantly Stanleyville. The mercenaries played a major role in the offensive, bolstering their reputation and causing Tshombe to extend their contracts as well as enlist more of them.
In January 1965, Hoare was promoted to lieutenant colonel by General Joseph-Desiré Mobutu, chief of staff of the ANC, and given command of a military zone termed "Operation North-East" in Orientale Province. From March to June 1965, ANC contingents and mercenaries under Hoare and Jacques Noel organized Operations "White Giant" and "Violettes Imperiales", military offensives aimed at retaking the areas bordering Uganda, Sudan, and the Central African Republic. These operations cut off important rebel supply routes, recaptured a number of large towns in northern Orientale Province, and deprived the insurgents of local gold mines. This greatly weakened the Simba rebellion. By mid-1965, the Simbas had lost a majority of their territory in northeastern Congo, and largely ceased to attack the ANC, instead focusing on exploiting the resources of their remaining holdings.
From April 1965, the Simba rebels were reinforced by several waves of Communist Cuban volunteers under Che Guevara, most of them Afro-Cubans. These intended to provide training to the rebels, and also assisted in logistics. In contrast, other forms of foreign support for the rebels declined as their international allies fell into disputes. The Cubans were soon disappointed by the lack of fighting ability of the Simba insurgents and their infighting leadership. By late 1965, the remaining Simba forces mainly consisted of Laurent-Désiré Kabila's followers; other Simba factions such as the ones of Gaston Soumialot and Christophe Gbenye had been largely defeated. Regardless, Soumialot and Gbenye continued to pose as the insurgency's leaders in exile, while also quarreling with each other. On 5 August 1965, Soumialot declared in Egypt that the Congolese "Revolutionary Government" was dissolved and Gbenye had been dismissed as President of the People's Republic. The exiled Simba leadership in Egypt and Sudan subsequently intensified their infighting, with two rebel leaders even being murdered. Annoyed at this unrest, the Egyptian and Sudanese government responded by expelling many Simba leaders and interning other members of the rebel movement.
Prelude
Following the successes of Operations White Giant and Violettes Imperiales, the ANC planned a new offensive, "Operation South". This campaign would target the last major Simba stronghold which was located at Fizi-Baraka in South Kivu. This was the center of the remaining rebel-held territory which stretched for along Lake Tanganyika, and reached inland. The campaign area was designated as covering the territory between Albertville, Uvira, and Bukavu in the north and Mwenga, Kalole, Wamaza, Kasongo, Kongolo, and Nyunzu. This region was difficult to access and traverse, dominated by Mitumba Mountains. The local rebels still received supplies from foreign states; these were shipped across Lake Tanganyika. To defeat these rebel holdouts, the government forces thus had to cut the naval supply routes. Hoare planned to combine ground-based, amphibious, and airborne attacks for the upcoming operation. As he outlined the operation, he attempted to avoid mistakes made in a previous amphibious attack, Operation White-Chain, by enlisting a large naval force. He also spread false information about an alleged offensive across the mountains, hoping to deceive the insurgents. After realizing the extent of the Communist Cuban support for Kabila's rebels, the Belgian and CIA agents in the Congo urged Hoare to push ahead with the planned offensive. The Belgian embassy arranged for the recruitment of additional South African mercenaries.Even as preparations for Operation South proceeded, the Congolese central government suffered from considerable political infighting. Thanks to Tshombe's growing popularity across the country due to his successes against the insurgents, Tshombe and his party CONACO had won a majority in the parliamentary elections of March–April 1965. Despite this, President Kasa-Vubu called for a "government of national unity", leading to a fierce political struggle between the President and Tshombe over the next months.
Opposing forces
Congolese government and allies
The government forces involved in Operation South were headed by Lieutenant Colonel Eustache Kakudji, a Congolese ANC officer. A Belgian officer, Lieutenant Colonel Roger Hardenne, acted as Kakudji's chief of staff and effectively served as head of the anti-Simba operations. In addition, Louis Bobozo played a major role in the operation. Operation South's headquarters was placed at Albertville, where the local Belgian military mission was also located and assisted the ANC. Overall, about 30 Belgian officers and non-commissioned officers assisted Hardenne. Hoare once again led the mercenary contingent, and was chiefly involved in carrying out the amphibious element of the offensive. Regular ANC troops played a marginal role in the operation which was mainly carried out by mercenaries and ex-Katangese gendarmes. The ANC soldiers were often poorly trained and suffered under low morale; their officers were mostly Belgians. In contrast, the mercenaries and gendarmes involved in the operation were regarded as relatively effective, though they also treated civilians and POWs brutally and clashed with other ANC troops. Tshombe deliberately did not deploy some of his most well trained and loyal units against the Simbas, instead conserving their strength for future political struggles in the DR Congo. The mercenaries and ex-Katangese gendarmes were well supplied with vehicles, including several trucks, jeeps, and at least one Ferret armoured car. Overall, the following units were deployed during Operation South: 5 Commando, 6 Commando, 9 Commando, Codoki Commando, 5 Infantry Battalion, 8 Infantry Battalion, 13 Infantry Battalion, 14 Infantry Battalion, and Kongolo Battalion. According to historian Frank Villafana about 2,400 soldiers were involved in the operation, whereas sociologist Ludo De Witte put the numbers at about 3,000 ANC troops and 350 mercenaries.File:Cuban-exile pilots.jpg|thumb|left|Cuban exile CIA pilots during the Simba rebellion.
To facilitate the planned amphibious landings as well as naval transportation, the government forces included the so-called Force Navale or Force Navale Congolaise. This contingent initially consisted of six machine gun-armed Chris-Craft P boats and the armed trawler Ermans captained by Iain Peddle, manned by mercenaries. Several civilian ships were also provided by the Belgian navigation company operating on Lake Tanganyika, including the steamer Urundi, the tug Ulindi, and the barges Uvira as well as Crabbe. These ships carried soldiers and vehicles to allow the planned landing force to quickly expand its beachhead. However, the CIA deemed these naval assets to be too few as well as lackluster in quality to perform a naval blockade in the upcoming operation. The agency thus ordered Thomas G. Clines, Deputy Director of Plans Special Operations Division maritime branch, to create a new covert navy on Lake Tanganyika. Clines acquired several Swift Boats manned by CIA-employed Cubans; these Cubans belonged to the Movimiento Recuperación Revolucionaria, a CIA-organized anti-Castro maritime rebel group. Locally, CIA agent Jordy McKay and later Navy SEAL James M. Hawes oversaw the creation of the covert navy, and personally led the local naval operations. In addition, the pro-government force was supported by eight to twelve T-28 and two to four Douglas A-26 Invader military aircraft, one Bell 47 helicopter, and a Douglas DC-3, crewed by "Makasi" pilots. The Cuban CIA agents were strongly motivated by their hatred for their Communist compatriots; upon realizing that Guevara was one of the enemy commanders, they wanted to kill him at all costs. Some Belgian officers and pilots involved in Operation South were also connected to or even employed by the CIA.
The pro-government forces were also backed by some tribal groups. In South Kivu, the Banyamulenge sided with security forces, as they had largely mistrusted the Simba rebels from the start. The Banyamulenge feared the insurgency was mainly a ploy by the Bembe people to steal their cows. These fears were realized when the rebels, lacking supplies due to their defeats, started killing Banyamulenge cows for food. In revenge, the Banyamulenge organized militias and began to hunt for the rebels.