CURRENT INTELLIGENCE WEEKLY SUMMARY: CONGO

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 00202797
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: March 16, 2022
• Document Release Date: June 13, 2016
• Case Number: F-2014-01825
• Publication Date: September 21, 1961

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CO
COPY NO.
OCI NO. 0298/61
21 September 1961
CURRENT
INTELLIGENCE
WEEKLY
SUMMARY
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
OFFICE OF CURRENT INTELLIGENCE
DOCUMENT NO
10
NO CFL'ANCE IN CLASS.
CLASS. til: i\:E.L: TO: TS S 1/4�9. .icio
Ht.:1 E.A'�..,hi HATE'
AUlli: UN 14-2
(b)(3)
L (b)(3)
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CURRENT INTELLIGENCE WEEKLY SUMMARY
CONGO
Moise Tshombe and Mahmound
Khiari, the Tunisian head of
the UN's civil operations in
the Congo, reached agreement
late on 20 September for a pro-
visional cease-fire in Katanga.
This will provide an opportu-
nity for substantive negotia-
tions concerning Katanga's re-
integration with the Congo.
Tshombd probably believes
that the stipulated "freeze" on
the movement of troops and sup-
plies will permit him to main-
tain his military superiority
and to drive a hard bargain in
the negotiations. UN officials
in Leopoldville indicated on 20
September that he was continuing
to demand major concessions from
the UN. Earlder he had insisted
that the UN not only forego any
reinforcements but that its
forces retire to their Katanga
bases in return for a cease-
fire.
The UN's military position
had been deteriorating. A
besieged Irish unit at Jadot-
ville was overcome early this
week, and UN officials in New
that the 3,000 Katangans
been engaged in the
operation were being organized
by Interior Minister Munongo
for a move to Elisabethville.
The UN garrison at Kamina was
under attack from 1,000 well-
armed tribesmen with Belgian
officers.
A planned UN airlift of
one Indian and one or two
Ethiopian battalions into Katanga
had been halted by a combinition
of Katangan air activity and
the inadequacy of night-flying
aids.
The flight to Elisabethville
of three Ethiopian F-86 jets,
which the UN had counted on to
end Katangan air superiority,
was held up pending UN as-
surances that adequate naviga-
tional aids, fuel, and s are
parts were aVailable..
(b)(1)
(b)(3)
UN c ie representative Linner
had told his headquarters that
unless the airlift could be
resumed, "we seriously risk the
defeat of UN forces."
Brigadier Inder Jit Rikhye,
--an Indian who was Hammarskjold's
military adviser and who, with
Under secretary Ralph Bunche,
seems to have assumed direction
of the Congo operation--on 18
September gave m(1)
his analysis of the difficulti(b)(3)
encountered by' the UN forces in
Katanga. According to Rikhye,
the original UN plan had had the
limited objective of closing
down the Elisabethville radio
station. However, the action
triggered the return to their
units of many of the European
mercenaries who were in the proc-
ess of repatriation, and fight-
ing spreadunexpectedly. The
UN then found that the Katanga(b)(1)
in addition to their overwhelm(b)(1)
numerical superiority, often 020(3)
were better armed than the UN
troops.
Rikhye added that the
limited UN airlift capability--
no aircraft larger than a DC-4
is available--has prevented the
use of tither support artillery
or transport in adequate quantity.
He criticized the organization's
intelligence staff, which he
said frequently depended on re-
ports from diplomatic posts in
the Congo, and he stated that
the Swedish and Irish troops had
been trained mainly in police func-
tions and thus were ineffective
in combat.
-7-C-1C-714 WTDENT-IAL
21 Sept 61
w01100,1
WEEKLY REVIEW
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1111091119r
CURRENT INTELLIGENCE WEEKLY SUMMARY
Pointe
Noire
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CONGO
Brazzaville
Republic of he Congo
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1940
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ishikapa
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=I United Nations Forces*JdotviiIe
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lSelected airfield units in the process of redeployment. g.
4040
'Premier Adoula '
has been under increasing pres-
sure to order the Congolese
Army to intervene in Katanga.
Bukavu
Kongo In
Nyunzu
UN
620
UN
1500
Hisatethville
Kitwe
dot
U umbura
Lake
Torlganyoka
bertyille
(b)(3)
sentiment among Con- (13)(3)
golese legislators is vir- (19)(1)
tually unanimous in favor of (b)(3)
army intervention. The Congole(b)(1)
-tONFIDENT-141.
21 Sept 61 WEEKLY REVIEW
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CURRENT INTELLIGENCE WEEKLY SUMMARY
senate has already passed a
resolution favoring military
action, and General Lundula,
Gizenga's former military
commander, has offered to
place his troops at the dis-
posal of the government for
an operation against Katanga.
Adoula, in a conversation
on 18 September, indicated to
Ambassador Gullion that he
realized such intervention
probably would lead to civil
war and stated that he hoped
to head off pressure for mil-
itary action through a series
of delaying tactics. Bunche
told on
the same day, however, that
the Adoula government had
asked the UN to put its troops
in a position to fight on
equal terms with the Katangans
within 24 hours. Leopoldville
added that if the UN could not
continue the fight, the Congo-
lese Government would under-
take operations of its own
and would ask friendly coun-
tries for assistance.
On 19 September, Adoula
informed the UN that his
government would not give
its approval to negotiations
for a cease-fire and would not
consiOef itself in any way
bound by one. Aware that his
army is not equipped at this
time for an operation against
Katanga, Adoula probably took
this step to appease the ele-
ments seeking strong action
against 'Katanga.
Anti-American sentiment
is increasing in Belgium as
a result of Congo developments,
and even responsible Belgians
feel that the United States
has been lax in assuring it-
self that the UN would prop-
erly use the material and
political support placed at (W(1)
its disposal. The Belgians
bitterly resent UN accusations(bX3)
that the Belgian military
are responsible for the fight-
ing in Katanga, with the im- �
plication that Tshombe's
mercenaries are under the
control of the government of
Belgium. /
Belgian resentment can
easily lead to a rapid in-
crease in neutralism in a
country where fatalism and
apathy are already strong.
i(b)(1)
(b)(3)
(b)(3)
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