Opération Chammal

Opération Chammal
Part of the Global War on Terrorism and
the American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–present)

French Rafales of Squadron 11F prepares to land on the USS Carl Vinson, the Carl Vinson is deployed as part of maritime security operations and strike operations in Iraq and Syria.
Location Northern Iraq
Planned by France François Hollande
(President)
France Denis Mercier
(Chief of Staff of the Air Force)
Objective Quarantine the expansion of the Islamic State
Date 19 September 2014 – present
(7 months, 2 weeks and 2 days)
Executed by French Air Force
Outcome Ongoing
Casualties ISIL Casualties
  • 100+ ISIL militants killed
  • 1 depot destroyed

France French Causalties

  • 1 French civilian executed in Algeria

Opération Chammal is the name of the French military operation, which is currently ongoing in Iraq to contain the expansion of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and to support the Iraqi Army. Its name comes from the Shamal (Chammal in French), a northwesterly wind blowing over Iraq and the Persian Gulf states.[1] The operation is limited to airstrikes, French president François Hollande reiterated that no ground troops would be used in the conflict.[2] The French frigate FS Jean Bart has joined the US CTF 50 as an escort.[3]

Background

Main articles: Timeline of the Iraqi insurgency (2014) and 2014 military intervention against ISIS

On 10 June, the terrorist group of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and several other Sunni insurgents took control of the second most populous city of Iraq, Mosul.[4] ISIS carried lots of battles against the Iraqi Army, seizing cities and committing mass murder crimes and massacres. The most prominent massacres are the Persecution of Assyrians, the Persecution of Yazidis and the Camp Speicher massacre, killing about 2,000 innocent people.[5][6][7][8] Until August, ISIS had controlled almost one-third of Iraq.

On 7 August, US President, Barack Obama, authorized airstrikes in Iraq.[9] A day after the authorizing, the US Air Force launched airstrikes targeting the ISIS fighters, with the humanitarian aid support from the United Kingdom and France.[10] On 10 September, Barack Obama outlines plans to expand the US operations to include Syria.[11]

French authorities' statements leading up to France attacking ISIL

French ministers and president have alluded to possible French military action against ISIL:

In Iraq and especially in Syria, the Daech terrorist organisation, which claims to be an Islamic state, succeeds in a degree never witnessed before to master a trans-border territory, to organize itself, to finance, and to equip itself. It has already made the world witness barbaric acts. Daily, it terrorises whole populations. It destabilizes a region which is already very fragile and its ambition is to build a terrorist state in the neigbourhood of Europe. (French) En Irak et en Syrie en particulier, l'organisation terroriste Daesh, qui se prétend État islamique, atteint des degrés de maîtrise territoriale transfrontalière, d'organisation, de capacité financière et d'équipement encore jamais vus. Elle a déjà pris le monde à témoin d'actes barbares. Au quotidien, elle terrorise des populations entières. Elle déstabilise une région déjà très fragilisée et ambitionne de constituer un État terroriste dans le voisinage de l'Europe.
—French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian's closing speech at de Université d'été de la défense, 9 September 2014, in Bordeaux[12]
The determination of the cutthroats from Daech (ISIL) is strong, ours must be even stronger. (French) La détermination des égorgeurs de Daesh (acronyme de l'État islamique en arabe) est forte, la nôtre doit l'être plus encore.
—Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, speech in the French National Assembly on 10 September 2014[12][13]
There is no time to lose against the threat of Daech (ISIL) jihadists who now control large parts of Iraqi and Syrian territories, committing more and more extortions. (French) Il n'y a pas de temps à perdre face à la menace des djihadistes de Daech qui a pris le contrôle de larges secteurs des territoires irakien et syrien, multipliant les exactions
—French President François Hollande, opening speech at the International Conference on Peace and Security in Iraq meeting at the Quai d’Orsay, 15 September 2014[14]
It is also France’s security that is threatened by this… pseudo-Islamic State.
—Defence Minister Le Drian, around 15 September[15]
France has taken its responsibilities (…) I’ve been to Iraq to meet with the Iraqi authorities. They’ve asked me just one thing: French support for aerial operations. (…) I’ve decided to respond to that Iraqi demand (…) I affirm the need for that aerial support. There will be no other support, no troops on the ground, and we shall intervene nowhere except in Iraq.
—President Hollande, on 18 September[16]

Paris considered that international legitimacy is provided by the 15 August 2014 resolution 2170 from the United Nations Security Council.[12]

Air strikes

On 18 September, the United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, announced in front of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs in the United States House of Representatives that President François Hollande had announced that he authorized airstrikes in Iraq, in response to a request by the Iraqi government.[17]

On 19 September, the French Air Force carried out their first airstrike using two Rafale jets armed with GBU-12 Paveway II,[18] beginning the French intervention. It conducted the airstrikes on an ISIS depot in Mosul, dropping 4 GBU-12 bombs.[19] Hollande's office said that the ISIS depot that was targeted was hit and completely destroyed.[20] The airstrikes resulted in killing 75 fighters from the Islamic State.[21] A spokesman of the Iraqi military, Qassim al-Moussawi, stated that four French airstrikes had hit the town of Zumar, killing dozens of militants.[22]

On 21 September, two Rafale jets provided air support for the Iraqi Army near Baghdad in a reconnaissance mission.[23] A day after, France conducted another reconnaissance mission over Mosul with two Rafale jets.[24] Another reconnaissance mission conducted on 23 September.[25] On 24 September, two reconnaissance and dynamic targeting missions were conducted in Mosul and Baghdad, supporting the Iraqi forces.[25]

On 25 September, while in a reconnaissance mission, two Rafale jets conducted France's second airstrike after the jets received information about targets near them by the Coordination air operation center,[26] a day after the beheading of the French hostage, Hervé Gourdel, by the Jund al-Khilafah terrorist group in Algeria.[27] Stéphane Le Foll said "This morning [France] carried out airstrikes on the territory of Iraq."[27] The jets destroyed 4 warehouses of ISIS near Fallujah.[26] French/American jets conducted airstrikes at night in Kirkuk, killing 15 ISIS fighters and injuring 30.[28]

Two reconnaissance missions were conducted by two Rafale jets and an Atlantique 2 over Ninawa Province on 26 September.[29]

In November 2014, the strike force was augmented with 6 Dassault Mirage 2000Ds based in Jordan.[30][31]

Between 18 December 2014 and 7 January 2015, French aircraft performed 45 missions in total. Rafales and Mirages performed 30 of those missions neutralising ten targets.[32]

On 14 January 2015, François Hollande declared that the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle would deploy to the Persian Gulf with its strike group and that it was capable of supporting airstrikes against ISIL.[33][34]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Iraq: The French Operation is called Chammal". Le Figaro (in French). 2014-09-20. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  2. ↑ "France plans further air strikes against IS: President". Mathrubhumi. 2014-09-19. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  3. ↑ "Chammal : La Frégate Jean Bart Intègre la Task Force 50". colsbleus.fr (in French). 30 October 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  4. ↑ "Militants seize Iraq's second city of Mosul". BBC. 2014-06-10. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  5. ↑ "4000 unarmed soldiers fell into the hands of ISIS". Buratha News Agency (in Arabic). 2014-07-09. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  6. ↑ "US forces arrive in Baghdad to advise Iraqi troops". BBC. 2014-06-24. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  7. ↑ "The killing fields of Iraq: ISIS massacred up to 190 prisoners in just four days, according to analysis of satellite images and horrific pictures posted by jihadists". Mail Online. 2014-06-27. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  8. ↑ "Iraq army 'routs Isis rebels' in offensive on Tikrit". BBC. 2014-06-28. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  9. ↑ "Obama authorizes targeted airstrikes in Iraq against Islamic militants, along with airdrops". The Big Story. 2014-07-08. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  10. ↑ "Obama Says Iraq Airstrikes Effort Could Be Long-Term". The New York Times. 9 August 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  11. ↑ "Obama: 'Relentless' campaign to destroy ISIS". Washington Examiner. 2014-09-10. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Guisnel, Jean (11 September 2014). "Frappes contre l'État islamique : pourquoi la France peut peu". Le Point.fr (in French). Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  13. ↑ "Déclarations officielles de politique étrangère du 10 septembre 2014" (in French). France diplomatie. 10 September 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  14. ↑ Mimaut, Cécile (15 September 2014). "Daech ou Etat islamique? Questions sur un vocable". franceinfo.fr (in French). Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  15. ↑ 'Isis Action: French Rafale Fighter Jets Fly over Iraq as Anti-Islamic State Paris Summit Begins'. International Business Times, 15 September 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  16. ↑ 'Irak : la France n’enverra pas de troupes au sol, annonce François Hollande' (there will be no French troops on the Iraqi ground, says Hollande). RTL.fr, 18 September 2014. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
  17. ↑ "Washington welcomes the declaration of France of joining the airstrikes campaign in Iraq". Al Wasat (in Arabic). 2014-09-18. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  18. ↑ "Iraq: First French strikes". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-19. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  19. ↑ "Iraq: First French strikes (Updated)". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-19. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  20. ↑ "First French airstrikes in Iraq hit ISIL depot". USA Today. 2014-09-19. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  21. ↑ "The French airstrikes resulted in killing 75 ISIS fighter in Mosul". ONA (in Arabic). 2014-09-20. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  22. ↑ "France launches first air strike on IS in Iraq". BBC. 2014-09-19. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  23. ↑ "Iraq: Mission Air Support (Updated)". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-23. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  24. ↑ "Operation Chammal: New reconnaissance mission in Iraq". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-23. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Operation Chammal: New air support missions in Iraq". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-24. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 "Chammal operation: Second French strikes in Iraq". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-26. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 "French Air Forces Strike Islamic State Targets in Iraq: Paris". Ria Novosti. Retrieved 25 September 2014. 25/9/2014
  28. ↑ "American-French airstrikes killed and injured 45 ISIS fighter in South-Western Kirkuk". Al Sumaria (in Arabic). 2014-09-25. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  29. ↑ "Operation Chammal: continued flying missions". Ministry of Defense (in French). 2014-09-26. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  30. ↑ "Le dispositif de l’opération Chammal va être renforcé" (in French). Opex360.com. 19 November 2014. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  31. ↑ "Opération Chammal" (in French). Ministère de la Défense (France). 23 January 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  32. ↑ Chacaty, Helen (8 January 2015). "Opération Chammal : Les frappes continuent" (in French). Le Journal d'Aviation. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  33. ↑ Gerschel, Frédéric (7 January 2015). "Le « Charles-de-Gaulle » prêt à combattre Daech". Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  34. ↑ "Report: France To Deploy Aircraft Carrier To Gulf in IS Fight". Defense News. Agence France-Presse. 6 January 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.