We lost a Dear Friend Recently in DR Congo
COURAGE UNDER FIRE
We lost a dear friend from Nepal recently in Congo. He lost his life trying to save the life of civilians from UN and his men, from the militia. He was courage personified. May god bless his soul. We tried to protect him and we nearly did. He caught a bullet at the end of the day when he was safely inside the helicopter and was about to be evacuated out to safety along with his men. Below is a story of the brave man on the eventful day.
We lost a dear friend from Nepal recently in Congo. He lost his life trying to save the life of civilians from UN and his men, from the militia. He was courage personified. May god bless his soul. We tried to protect him and we nearly did. He caught a bullet at the end of the day when he was safely inside the helicopter and was about to be evacuated out to safety along with his men. Below is a story of the brave man on the eventful day.
The peacekeepers go where even angels fear to tread. The strife torn Ituri district of Congo, after having seen a list of anarchy and bloodshed, was seemingly returning to normalcy. But how wrong were all of us.The militia culture was too deep rooted and at this point we had just scraped the earth’s surface. The killing and warring had started off again – it seemed as if God had left his own country, so it was no surprise that the Angles should fear to tread………
As for the Peacekeepers – they were fighting ….. Fighting again all odds, fighting against the densest jungles and un-crossable rivers, fighting against the incessant rains and inhospitable terrain, fighting against a ruthless militia and the zombie-ed populace. But then they were not supposed to fight !!! They were peacekeepers – the harbingers of peace and prosperity (read decent food, clean water, some clothing) for the war torn common Congolese.
Major Kabindra (the king of poets) Jung Thapa was one such component of the Integrated’ Ituri Bde, trying to make peace with the extenuating circumstances. The Fighting Forces of Indian subcontinent, the Bangladeshis, the Pakistanis, the Nepalese, Moroccans and a small detachment of the South African – had made this area a smallish cosmos. If we Indians were from Mars, the Moroccans were from Venus – only sign language survived – just like the cave man times. Thankfully in a friendly atmosphere, if you showed two fingers to somebody it only meant that you wanted a Smoke(Cig).
But Maj Thapa – or KJ – as he was called by his pears – was briefing his troops in some other sign language in the wee hours of 02 Jun 05 – the signs used in the combat zone. It will work out fine he told to himself – ‘It was just another regular mission to keep the Human Rights (HR) Verification team out of harms way while they did – whatever they did!!! The place chosen on that fateful day was Lugo – a sleepy hamlet (all of them always appeared deceptively sleepy).
At 33 years, the Major was fit as a fiddle – and was into his second UN tenure (his first at Congo). The first one was during the Lebanon crisis in 2000/2001 wherein he served in the United Nations Interim Force as a Signals Officer. As they climbed the Bangladesh Air Force Helicopters, Maj Thapa saw his troops were relaxed but ready for another peaceful mission.
As the Mi-17 dropped them onto the Eastern Edge of the small village – an evil feeling crept into him and his thoughts ran back to his wife of 5 months. But he had work to do, so he forced them away and concentrated on the job at hand. The Indian Attack Helicopter Mi-25 was hovering above them and the troops were inserted in a peaceful manner – rather too peaceful for his comfort. As the HR Team moved under protection towards the village – they were not too surprised to find it uninhabited. Villagers around this place were known to hide in the bushes at the first sight of trouble.
Maj Thapa was filled with a foreboding and his fears were confirmed when sparodic firing started from the edge of the village. Maj Thapa quickly cordoned off the civilians and escorted them to the football field where they had been dropped initially. The Helipad was well protected by the UN troops and as the Mi-25 had gone back to Bunia after their insertion, he knew he would have to hold on for some time till help arrived in the form of reinforcements (fresh troops) and the ever-dependable Mi-25, nicknamed the "Firebirds". His SOS to Mahagi was answered in the form of a Russian Mi-8, who landed amidst the crossfire and took off with all the civilians of the HR team. Soon after take off, the pilot experienced problems in one of the engine and had to shut it down. He managed to ‘Hack’ a single Engine landing at Mahagi Airfield. Inspection revealed damage to compressor blades of the engine due to bullet hit.
Meanwhile the first Mi-25 (we the Indian Air Force component) reached overhead. They spotted some of the troops huddled into a corner of the football field and the rest were deployed around the field for protection. But no Radio contact – what the hell…these pongos (a slang for the army guys) would never learn – so thought both the pilots. Later it came to light that in their scramble to safety the I.Com (Radio) set had been misplaced !!! Now Mi-25 was overhead but without any communication and direction – it was as blind as a bat.
Things came to a boil as the Mi-25 observed about twenty odd militia moving towards the football field – with no communications it was not possible to ascertain their motive and therefore opening of fire was out of question. - Blame it on the rules of engagement (ROE) – “THOU SHALL NOT FIRE” was cardinal principle – the only exception being if the troops or MONUC (an acronym for the UN Force in Congo) installations were being fired at.
With bullets whizzing past him Maj Thappa’s frustrations knew no bounds as he was not able to call upon the Mi-25 fire. He finally called his bravest soldiers to retrace their steps in order to recover the radio set.
The militias were smart – they saw the Mi-25 generally meandering around without posing any threat to them hence decided to move in for a kill. The Mi-25 had to intervene, hence the pilot ascertained that there were no troops close to the western edge of football filed – Fratricide had to be avoided at all costs – ‘Second rule of engagement’.
As the Mi-25 was about to roll in for a warning shot (ROE dictat) – the radio crackled to life –"Buddha for Firebird". It was Maj Thapa – his Bahadurs had managed to recover the radio set. He thereafter gave the position of his own troops to the Mi-25 and directed fire against the militia. Dive after dive – rocket after rocket – the militia started retreating – the Mi-25s had yet again saved the day, or so we thought, and saved the two platoons from a certain annihilation.
As the rockets pounded the militia locations Maj Thapa heaved a sigh of relief – little knowing that his troubles were only temporarily offset. Bullets were still coming towards his troops intermittently, in what seemed like unaimed Firing. But he held on and chided his troops towards being alert to all danger. While taking stock of the situation he came to know that two of his soldiers were had been hit and were suffering from bullet wounds. He immediately saw to it that they were escorted to a relatively safe place and given first aid.
Meanwhile the Mi-25 was at the Fringes of its endurance and had expended all its armament. Thankfully the firing had stopped for a while. They were relieved to see the other Mi-25 taking over. The moment the other MI-25 took over, the firing started again. This time it was from a thicket close to the football field. The MI-25 let go a volley of rockets and saw the militia scampering to safety. But the militia were resilient, they kept coming in hordes dodging to safety when the Mi-25 fired, andcoming out again and firing at the troops the moment they got an opportunity.
Maj Thapa was finding the going tough and he knew he was running out of time. He was slowly running out of ammo, his troops were tired and some were injured. The MI-35 transmitted the welcome news of the Mi-17s airborne from Mahagi to pick Major’s troops to safety. He had done well to hold off the militia, who had outnumbered his men in the ratio 1: 4. But something was nagging him – his Gorkha blood would not reconcile to the militias being let off so easily. And so he arranged for a spectacular finale ..............
As for the Peacekeepers – they were fighting ….. Fighting again all odds, fighting against the densest jungles and un-crossable rivers, fighting against the incessant rains and inhospitable terrain, fighting against a ruthless militia and the zombie-ed populace. But then they were not supposed to fight !!! They were peacekeepers – the harbingers of peace and prosperity (read decent food, clean water, some clothing) for the war torn common Congolese.
Major Kabindra (the king of poets) Jung Thapa was one such component of the Integrated’ Ituri Bde, trying to make peace with the extenuating circumstances. The Fighting Forces of Indian subcontinent, the Bangladeshis, the Pakistanis, the Nepalese, Moroccans and a small detachment of the South African – had made this area a smallish cosmos. If we Indians were from Mars, the Moroccans were from Venus – only sign language survived – just like the cave man times. Thankfully in a friendly atmosphere, if you showed two fingers to somebody it only meant that you wanted a Smoke(Cig).
But Maj Thapa – or KJ – as he was called by his pears – was briefing his troops in some other sign language in the wee hours of 02 Jun 05 – the signs used in the combat zone. It will work out fine he told to himself – ‘It was just another regular mission to keep the Human Rights (HR) Verification team out of harms way while they did – whatever they did!!! The place chosen on that fateful day was Lugo – a sleepy hamlet (all of them always appeared deceptively sleepy).
At 33 years, the Major was fit as a fiddle – and was into his second UN tenure (his first at Congo). The first one was during the Lebanon crisis in 2000/2001 wherein he served in the United Nations Interim Force as a Signals Officer. As they climbed the Bangladesh Air Force Helicopters, Maj Thapa saw his troops were relaxed but ready for another peaceful mission.
As the Mi-17 dropped them onto the Eastern Edge of the small village – an evil feeling crept into him and his thoughts ran back to his wife of 5 months. But he had work to do, so he forced them away and concentrated on the job at hand. The Indian Attack Helicopter Mi-25 was hovering above them and the troops were inserted in a peaceful manner – rather too peaceful for his comfort. As the HR Team moved under protection towards the village – they were not too surprised to find it uninhabited. Villagers around this place were known to hide in the bushes at the first sight of trouble.
Maj Thapa was filled with a foreboding and his fears were confirmed when sparodic firing started from the edge of the village. Maj Thapa quickly cordoned off the civilians and escorted them to the football field where they had been dropped initially. The Helipad was well protected by the UN troops and as the Mi-25 had gone back to Bunia after their insertion, he knew he would have to hold on for some time till help arrived in the form of reinforcements (fresh troops) and the ever-dependable Mi-25, nicknamed the "Firebirds". His SOS to Mahagi was answered in the form of a Russian Mi-8, who landed amidst the crossfire and took off with all the civilians of the HR team. Soon after take off, the pilot experienced problems in one of the engine and had to shut it down. He managed to ‘Hack’ a single Engine landing at Mahagi Airfield. Inspection revealed damage to compressor blades of the engine due to bullet hit.
Meanwhile the first Mi-25 (we the Indian Air Force component) reached overhead. They spotted some of the troops huddled into a corner of the football field and the rest were deployed around the field for protection. But no Radio contact – what the hell…these pongos (a slang for the army guys) would never learn – so thought both the pilots. Later it came to light that in their scramble to safety the I.Com (Radio) set had been misplaced !!! Now Mi-25 was overhead but without any communication and direction – it was as blind as a bat.
Things came to a boil as the Mi-25 observed about twenty odd militia moving towards the football field – with no communications it was not possible to ascertain their motive and therefore opening of fire was out of question. - Blame it on the rules of engagement (ROE) – “THOU SHALL NOT FIRE” was cardinal principle – the only exception being if the troops or MONUC (an acronym for the UN Force in Congo) installations were being fired at.
With bullets whizzing past him Maj Thappa’s frustrations knew no bounds as he was not able to call upon the Mi-25 fire. He finally called his bravest soldiers to retrace their steps in order to recover the radio set.
The militias were smart – they saw the Mi-25 generally meandering around without posing any threat to them hence decided to move in for a kill. The Mi-25 had to intervene, hence the pilot ascertained that there were no troops close to the western edge of football filed – Fratricide had to be avoided at all costs – ‘Second rule of engagement’.
As the Mi-25 was about to roll in for a warning shot (ROE dictat) – the radio crackled to life –"Buddha for Firebird". It was Maj Thapa – his Bahadurs had managed to recover the radio set. He thereafter gave the position of his own troops to the Mi-25 and directed fire against the militia. Dive after dive – rocket after rocket – the militia started retreating – the Mi-25s had yet again saved the day, or so we thought, and saved the two platoons from a certain annihilation.
As the rockets pounded the militia locations Maj Thapa heaved a sigh of relief – little knowing that his troubles were only temporarily offset. Bullets were still coming towards his troops intermittently, in what seemed like unaimed Firing. But he held on and chided his troops towards being alert to all danger. While taking stock of the situation he came to know that two of his soldiers were had been hit and were suffering from bullet wounds. He immediately saw to it that they were escorted to a relatively safe place and given first aid.
Meanwhile the Mi-25 was at the Fringes of its endurance and had expended all its armament. Thankfully the firing had stopped for a while. They were relieved to see the other Mi-25 taking over. The moment the other MI-25 took over, the firing started again. This time it was from a thicket close to the football field. The MI-25 let go a volley of rockets and saw the militia scampering to safety. But the militia were resilient, they kept coming in hordes dodging to safety when the Mi-25 fired, andcoming out again and firing at the troops the moment they got an opportunity.
Maj Thapa was finding the going tough and he knew he was running out of time. He was slowly running out of ammo, his troops were tired and some were injured. The MI-35 transmitted the welcome news of the Mi-17s airborne from Mahagi to pick Major’s troops to safety. He had done well to hold off the militia, who had outnumbered his men in the ratio 1: 4. But something was nagging him – his Gorkha blood would not reconcile to the militias being let off so easily. And so he arranged for a spectacular finale ..............
Maj Thapa – ‘Firebird – could you come for a dive attack in the westerly direction? – But do not fire’. The MI-25 pilots were zapped with this strange request therefore the captain asked "confirm you don't want us to fire?"
Maj Thapa – "That’s Right sir, only a dummy run, when I give you a call 'NOW' but please do not fire".
He lined up his troops from one end of the football field to the other – the the AH pilots watched in awe and wondered as to what the Major was upto. On his call of “now” the Mi-25 put the aircraft in a dive and what unfolded in front of their eyes was what legends are made of. They saw Maj Thapa and his troops carrying out a Dhawa (a frontal assault – the copybook style charge). Fearless of the bullets, these men charged into the thicket and let go off a volley of fire from their depleting ammunition. The militia had never seen anything like this before and they just dissolved into thin air. Maj Thapa and his men had hit the last nail on the coffin of the determination of the militia with their ‘Dhawa’ act.
In the meanwhile, the Mi-17s landed at the football field under the watchful eye of the Attack Helicopters. Maj Thapa quickly shephered his men to the safety of the innards of the Mi-17 staying outside till the end to personally ensure that the last man was in. The injured were carried on shoulders and placed on the stretchers inside the M-17. He was really happy, he had done his job well despite of all odds. He had put up a tough fight against the militiamen for almost seven hours – and he had no casualties – his troops were safe thanks to pashupatinath (A Hindu God).
He lined up his troops from one end of the football field to the other – the the AH pilots watched in awe and wondered as to what the Major was upto. On his call of “now” the Mi-25 put the aircraft in a dive and what unfolded in front of their eyes was what legends are made of. They saw Maj Thapa and his troops carrying out a Dhawa (a frontal assault – the copybook style charge). Fearless of the bullets, these men charged into the thicket and let go off a volley of fire from their depleting ammunition. The militia had never seen anything like this before and they just dissolved into thin air. Maj Thapa and his men had hit the last nail on the coffin of the determination of the militia with their ‘Dhawa’ act.
In the meanwhile, the Mi-17s landed at the football field under the watchful eye of the Attack Helicopters. Maj Thapa quickly shephered his men to the safety of the innards of the Mi-17 staying outside till the end to personally ensure that the last man was in. The injured were carried on shoulders and placed on the stretchers inside the M-17. He was really happy, he had done his job well despite of all odds. He had put up a tough fight against the militiamen for almost seven hours – and he had no casualties – his troops were safe thanks to pashupatinath (A Hindu God).
And then it happened. A sharp pain on the left abdomen – hands filled with blood – a numbing sensation and then a total blackout. Nobody saw the single bullet coming – nobody ever does! But it had hit him at a crucial spot. His fight for life began, but time was not on his side. His soul departed from his body at midnight, at Level-II hospital in Bunia.
We were all aghast with the loss of such a hero, such a dedicated soldier – a man of few words but great deeds. He is no longer with us, but he gave his life for the noblest cause possible – ‘Life itself!!!
I hope you are reading this KJ, We will all miss you!
posted by Beyond Doctorate at 7:16 pm
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