Operation Dragon Rouge (Stanleyville)

The operation aimed to free several hundred Western hostages held by Simba rebels in Stanleyville. Through a joint Belgian-French airborne action, the city was seized within hours, the rebels were scattered, and most of the hostages were freed. France played a key role in the planning, logistics, and command, despite the visible presence of Belgian forces.

The Congo crisis triggered multiple foreign interventions to protect nationals. France, which had special forces and advisors on the ground, actively engaged alongside Belgium and the United States in a spectacular operation.

Airborne assault, encirclement of rebel positions, hostage evacuation under fire, intense urban combat, airstrikes against Simba concentrations. On 24 November 1964, around 7 a.m., five American C-130s dropped 320 Belgian paratroopers of the Paracommando Regiment onto Stanleyville airfield; they secured the runway then converged on the Victoria Hotel where the Simba had gathered the hostages.

Tactical victory and liberation of most European and Congolese hostages, but a human tragedy with many killings. The Franco-Belgian intervention bolstered the reputation of special forces and marked the birth of emergency intervention doctrine in Africa. Of the 250 hostages assembled in the street, 18 were killed and 40 seriously wounded during the execution triggered at news of the Belgian arrival; by mid-December, about 185 foreign hostages remaining in Simba areas would be executed.