Congo Crisis was as confusing as it could.
So there are two Congo now, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Republic of the Congo. The DRC was part of Congo that was colonized by the Belgian and Republic of the Congo was colonized the French. The main problems were in what now called as DRC.
The DRC back then was called as Republic of Congo–Leopoldville (Kinshasa) and the other was Republic of Congo–Brazzaville. There were some influential political parties in Leopoldville Congo, the big MNC with Patrice Lumumba on the top, ABAKO with Joseph Kasa Vubu and Katangese secessionist Moise Tshombe’s CONAKAT.
After they gained their independence from Belgian, they made the country as parliamentary republic, with big portions of the seats were MNC. Lumumba appointed as Prime Minister, Kasa Vubu as President. And then Lumumba put his friend from MNC as the chief of the army, Mobutu Sese Seko.
With the conditions seen as not to their favors and Belgian forces still around, President and PM asked for help from the UN, resolution made by the UN to pressured the Belgian to get out and UN peacekeeping force deployed to support the government. United Nation Operation in the Congo (UNOC) became the most expensive UN mission ever in history, with view that you don’t see today, UN peacekeepers with fighter jets, including from Philippines Air Force’s F-86 Sabre.
With secessionists came up, especially in mineral-rich Katanga, Lumumba, that known for its pro-Soviet worldview, asked the Soviet to helped them fought the secessionists. Kasa Vubu against that move asked Mobutu to caught Lumumba, and Lumumba asked Mobutu to caught Kasa Vubu also lol, holy shit moment.
Belgian and other western powers, for sure the US also, openly and secretly backed the Congolese military, Mobutu and Moise Tshombe’s CONAKAT. With the odds of President’s and PM’s both ordered Mobutu to captured each others, he arrested Lumumba and took control over the country.
Lumumba put to house arrest and at one moment moved to Elisabethville, the capital of Katanga. Right there he was kidnapped by Tshombe’ force and killed. Tshombe unilaterally declared the State of Katanga, with the backing of western countries and mining companies who feared that their companies would be ‘nationalized’ by Lumumbists.
UNOC launched Operation Morthor against Tshombe secessionist. Tshombe with the help of western powers (secretly), mining companies and mercenaries fought against UN peacekeepers, the most well known siege of Jadotville, where Irish company UN peacekeepers were under siege for 5-days by mercenaries with Algerian War veteran ex-FFL Roger Faulques as its commander.
UN Secretary General during that time tried to stop the fight, but his plane was crashed on the way to Congo. Lots of speculations about the crash.
I ever posted it here, post it again lol
