Opération Lamantin (French for

manatee Manatees (, family (biology), family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivory, herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing t ...

) was a December 1977 – July 1978 military intervention by France on the behalf of the Mauritanian government, in its war against Sahrawi

guerrilla Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...

fighters of the

Polisario Front The Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro (Spanish language, Spanish: ; ), better known by its acronym Polisario Front, is a Sahrawi nationalism, Sahrawi nationalist liberation movement seeking to end the occupatio ...

, seeking independence for

Western Sahara Western Sahara is a territorial dispute, disputed territory in Maghreb, North-western Africa. It has a surface area of . Approximately 30% of the territory () is controlled by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); the remaining 70% is ...

. Airstrikes were launched in the provinces with the aim of stopping separatist raids in the rail route from the iron mines in

Zouérat Zouérat () is the largest town in northern Mauritania and the capital of the Tiris Zemmour region, with an approximate population of 62,380 (2023). It lies at the eastern end of the Mauritania Railway to Nouadhibou. History The town devel ...

to the coast of

Nouadhibou Nouadhibou (; , ), formerly named Port-Étienne, is the second largest city in Mauritania and serves as a major commercial center. The city has about 173,000 inhabitants. It is situated on a 65-kilometre peninsula or headland called Ras Nouadhibou ...

(the

Mauritania Railway The Mauritania Railway is the national railway of Mauritania. Construction of the line began in 1960, with its opening in 1963. It consists of a single, railway line linking the iron mining center of Zouérat with the port of Nouadhibou, via ...

), and pushing them to release French hostages. France used

Jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

combat aircraft from Dakar Airbase. The bombings targeted areas around the railway, which was constantly raided by Polisario. The mission ended with the release of the hostages and the halt of Polisario's attacks on ore cargo. However, the disastrous performance in the war was a major reason for the Mauritanian armed forces to overthrow

Moktar Ould Daddah Moktar Ould Daddah (; December 25, 1924 – October 14, 2003) was a Mauritanian politician who served as the country's first President after it gained its independence from France. Moktar served as the country's first List of prime ministers of Ma ...

, the President of Mauritania in July 1978 and an immediate cease-fire with the Polisario. Mauritania subsequently pulled out of Western Sahara in 1979 and mended relations with their Sahrawi neighbours and went on to recognize them in 1984. The French air campaign halted the Polisario attacks on ore cargos and obtained the release of their citizens from captivity.

Background

The portions of

was a Spanish Colony till 1975 and remained the last colonial province in Africa. A war erupted between Morocco and the Sahrawi national

liberation movement A liberation movement is an organization or political movement leading a rebellion, or a non-violent social movement, against a colonial power or national government, often seeking independence based on a nationalist identity and an anti-imperiali ...

, the

, which proclaimed the

Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), also known as the Sahrawi Republic and Western Sahara, is a partially recognized state in the western Maghreb, which claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, but controls only ...

(SADR) with a government in exile in

Tindouf Tindouf () is the main town, and a Communes of Algeria, commune in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Algeria–Mauritania border, Mauritanian, Algeria–Western Sahara border, Western Saharan and Algeria–Morocco border, Moroccan borders. Th ...

, Algeria. France, who had, along with former colonial power Spain, supported the takeover of Western Sahara, backed the regime of

Mokhtar Ould Daddah Moktar Ould Daddah (; December 25, 1924 – October 14, 2003) was a Mauritanian politician who served as the country's first President after it gained its independence from France. Moktar served as the country's first Prime Minister from 1957 to 1 ...

, whom they had installed as President of Mauritania at the end of the colonial era in 1960. Both Mauritania and Morocco were supplied with new military hardware and generous economic aid, to enable them to maintain their grip on the territory. French personnel trained the Mauritanian army and took up important positions in the economy. All through Mauritania allied with Algeria to control the raising opposition of Morocco. But during 1974, they realigned their position and believed to have gone on a secret agreement with the king of Morocco. This eventually led to an agreement in 1975 that partitioned Spanish Sahara to both Mauritania and Morocco.

Lamantin operation

In December 1977,

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: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Giscard d'Estaing ordered the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (, , ) is the air force, air and space force of the French Armed Forces. Formed in 1909 as the ("Aeronautical Service"), a service arm of the French Army, it became an independent military branch in 1934 as the Fr ...

to deploy in Mauritania and start bombing Polisario columns with

napalm Napalm is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a volatile petrochemical (usually gasoline or diesel fuel). The name is a portmanteau of two of the constituents of the original thickening and gelling agents: coprecipitated aluminium ...

, after French civilian technicians were taken as hostages in a Polisario raid on the Zouerate iron ore mines, Mauritania's most precious economic asset (they were later released unharmed, although a French physician and his wife were killed during the attack). France used Jaguar combat aircraft from Dakar Airbase. The bombings were targeted in the rail route from the iron mines in Zouerat to the coast of Nouadibou, which were obstructed by Polisario. Ould Daddah's regime still proved unable to fend off the guerrillas, and his disastrous performance in the war was a major reason for the

Mauritanian armed forces The Armed Forces of Mauritania (, ) is the defense force of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, having an army, navy, air force, gendarmerie, and presidential guard. Other services include the national guard and national police, though they b ...

decision to overthrow him a year later and institute an immediate cease-fire with the Polisario. Mauritania subsequently pulled out of Western Sahara in 1979 and mended relations with their Sahrawi neighbours (Mauritania recognised the

in 1984), who carried on the fight against Morocco.

Background

Lamantin operation

See also

Notes

Further reading