Lionel Dyck SCZ, also referred to as Colonel Dyck, is a Zimbabwean mercenary and former soldier. He was born in 1944 in

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kno ...

and served with the

Rhodesian Army The Rhodesian Security Forces were the military forces of the Rhodesian government. The Rhodesian Security Forces consisted of a ground force (the Rhodesian Army), the Rhodesian Air Force, the British South Africa Police, and various personnel ...

and

Zimbabwe Defence Forces The Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) are composed of the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) and the Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ). As a landlocked country, Zimbabwe has no navy. The most senior commander of the ZDF is General Philip Valerio Sibanda. At t ...

before founding

Dyck Advisory Group Dyck Advisory Group (or DAG) is a private military company based in Velddrif, South Africa. History The firm was founded in 2012 by Lionel Dyck, an ex-military colonel who had served in the Rhodesian Security Forces and then the Zimbabwe Defence ...

(DAG) to offer protective military services in Africa.

Military career

Dyck was born in 1944 in Southern Rhodesia. When he was 17, he joined the

and was placed in the

Rhodesian Light Infantry The 1st Battalion, Rhodesian Light Infantry (1RLI), commonly The Rhodesian Light Infantry (RLI), was a regiment formed in 1961 at Brady Barracks (Bulawayo, Southern Rhodesia) as a light infantry unit within the army of the Federation of Rhodesi ...

(RLI). However, he was court-martialed and expelled from the army after driving a

Unimog The Unimog (, ) is a range of multi-purpose tractors, trucks and lorries that has been produced by Boehringer from 1948 until 1951, and by Daimler Truck (formerly Daimler-Benz, DaimlerChrysler and Daimler AG) since 1951. In the United States and ...

whilst drunk, resulting in him killing an RLI soldier. He underwent education in South Africa and gave up drinking. He re-enlisted in the Rhodesian Army during the

Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also called the Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Liberation, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the unrecognised country of Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe-Rhodesia). The conflict pitted three for ...

. He would later rise to become a major in the

Rhodesian African Rifles The Rhodesian African Rifles (RAR) was a regiment of the Rhodesian Army. The ranks of the RAR were recruited from the black African population, although officers were generally from the white population. The regiment was formed in May 1940 in the ...

(RAR). Following the country's transition into

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

, Dyck played a frontline role commanding the RAR in the 1981 Entumbane uprising. The RAR were disbanded in 1981 and the majority of white officers had left the new

Zimbabwe National Army The Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) is the primary branch of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces responsible for land-oriented military operations. It is the largest service branch under the Zimbabwean Joint Operations Command (JOC). The modern army has ...

. Dyck remained and helped with the foundation of Zimbabwe's parachute battalion from former RAR and

Selous Scouts The Selous Scouts was a special forces unit of the Rhodesian Army that operated during the Rhodesian Bush War from 1973 until the reconstitution of the country as Zimbabwe in 1980. It was mainly responsible for infiltrating the black majority ...

soldiers as well as former

ZIPRA Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African People's Union (ZAPU), a Marxist–Leninist political party in Rhodesia. It participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhode ...

and

ZANLA Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) was the military wing of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), a militant African nationalist organisation that participated in the Rhodesian Bush War against white minority rule of Rhode ...

guerrillas. During this time he forged a close working relationship with the Zimbabwean Minister of Defence (later

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

)

Emmerson Mnangagwa Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa (, US: (); born 15 September 1942) is a Zimbabwean politician who has served as President of Zimbabwe since 24 November 2017. A member of ZANU–PF and a longtime ally of former President Robert Mugabe, he held a se ...

and was awarded the Silver Cross of Zimbabwe. In 1986, he was appointed as a Commissioner of Oaths. He retired from the army in 1990 as a

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

and moved to South Africa. Whilst in South Africa, he would become the

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...

of the False Bay Yacht Club.

Mercenary career

Whilst in South Africa, Dyck founded a

demining Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area. In military operations, the object is to rapidly clear a path through a minefield, and this is often done with devices such as mine plows and blast waves. By cont ...

and anti-poaching company. This business made him wealthy and he branched out into private military contracting, private security and animal conservation. Utilising his contacts with Mnangagwa, in 2008 he set up a company called MineTech where a

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is an international non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activist, is generally described as its founder and director and ...

cable described them as "business partners". In 2012, he set up Dyck Advisory Group as a mercenary, demining and anti-poaching group. In 2019 and 2020, he was hired by the Government of

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

to provide air cover for Mozambique soldiers during the RENAMO insurgency. Dyck and his forces were credited with driving RENAMO out of Northern Mozambique. In 2021, he was hired by the Mozambique police to provide military assistance against Islamic terrorists in the Battle of Palma aged 77. Dyck's DAG had been accused by Amnesty International of firing into random crowds; however, Dyck responded by stating that armed insurgents running into crowds was a common tactic used by terrorists. Dyck also helped to co-ordinate the evacuation of civilians from the area.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dyck, Lionel Living people 1944 births Rhodesian mercenaries Rhodesian Light Infantry personnel Zimbabwean military leaders Rhodesian businesspeople Zimbabwean business executives Conservationists Rhodesian African Rifles personnel White Zimbabwean businesspeople White Rhodesian people Zimbabwean male sailors (sport)