Siege of Jadotville
| Siege of Jadotville | |||||||
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| Part of Operation Morthor (Congo Crisis) | |||||||
 A mercenary serving with the Katangese gendarmerie and four Irish ONUC personnel, taken captive just prior to the siege at Jadotville |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Belgian, French, and Rhodesian mercenaries | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Roger Faulques (overall command of Gendarmerie Katangaise) Michel de Clary (field commander) Henri Lasimone (field commander) |
 Pat Quinlan (POW) Billy Ready (POW)
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| Strength | |||||||
| Estimates vary widely, from some 500 to up to 4,000 or even 5,000 1 Fouga Magister aircraft |
Irish Company: 155–158 soldiers In Support: 500 Irish and Swedish soldiers |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 300 dead Up to 1,000 wounded |
5 wounded 158 prisoners One transport destroyed One helicopter damaged |
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Katangese victory
The Siege of Jadotville took place in September 1961, during the United Nations intervention in the Katanga conflict in Congo-Léopoldville, in Central Africa. "A" Company, 35th Battalion (UN service) of the Irish Army ONUC contingent was attacked by Katanga Gendarmerie troops loyal to the Katangese Prime Minister Moise Tshombe. The lightly armed Irish soldiers, besieged in Jadotville (modern Likasi), resisted Katangese assaults for six days as a relief force of Irish and Swedish troops unsuccessfully attempted to reach the Irish force.
The outnumbered Irish company was eventually forced to surrender after ammunition and supplies were exhausted, but not before inflicting heavy casualties on the Katangese and their mercenaries. They were held as prisoners of war for approximately one month, with no loss of life. It was the last engagement of the United Nations Operation in the Congo (ONUC) peacekeeping mission to use Irish and Swedish troops in hostile action.
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