Limbang raid
| Limbang Raid | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United Kingdom
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Brunei People's Party | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Jeremy Moore | Salleh Bin Sambas | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| One company | ~150 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
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The Limbang raid (Malay: Serangan/Serbuan di Limbang) was a military engagement between British Royal Marine commandos and insurgents of the North Kalimantan National Army (Tentara Nasional Kalimantan Utara: TNKU), on 12 December 1962. After an amphibious assault on the town of Limbang in Sarawak, Borneo, the commandos managed to rescue the hostages being held there by the TNKU.
On 9 December 1962, as the Brunei Revolt broke out, TNKU militants led by Salleh bin Sambas seized the small town of Limbang. From the police station, they captured several rifles, Sterling submachine guns and one Bren light machine gun. This greatly enhanced their weaponry, as they had only been armed with shotguns. They imprisoned the British resident and his wife, along with 12 others, and announced their intention of hanging them on 12 December.
The task of freeing the hostages was given to L Company, 42 Commando, commanded by Captain Jeremy Moore, who were deployed from the commando carrier HMS Albion. To bring the commandos to their target, two cargo lighters were commandeered and crewed by Royal Navy personnel. One of them carried a Vickers machine gun. Moore planned to sail his force up the Limbang river, and then to assault the town directly, so as to avoid giving the rebels time to execute the hostages.
The lighters approached Limbang at dawn on the morning of 12 December. The sound of their engines warned the rebels, and the commandos lost the element of surprise. As they moved into their landing area, they were met by heavy fire from the police station, where Salleh himself was manning the Bren gun. The deck of the lighters offered little protection, and two marines were killed before landing. One craft provided covering fire with the Vickers gun, while the first disembarked its men.
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