This article needs additional citations for verification .(March 2013) |
Operation Dragonfly | |||||||
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Part of the 1997 Albanian civil unrest | |||||||
Map showing the route of the German helicopters | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Germany | Albanian Insurgents | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Oberst Henning Glawatz | Unknown | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
89 Soldiers 5 CH-53G heavy transport helicopters | Unknown | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
No casualties 1 helicopter damaged | 1 Insurgent Wounded |
Part of the |
1997 Albanian civil unrest |
---|
Fighting groups |
Gangs of 1997 |
Massacres in 1997 |
Tragedies of 1997 |
Treasury thefts |
Rescue missions |
UN Resolutions |
Important events |
See also |
Operation Libelle ("Dragonfly" in German) was an evacuation operation of the German Armed Forces that took place on March 14, 1997 in the Albanian capital of Tirana during the Albanian unrest of 1997. In the same week, American, [1] British, [2] and Italian military forces evacuated their citizens from Albania. Operation Libelle was the first time since World War II that German infantry fired shots in combat. [3]
In March 1997 several Western states evacuated their citizens. Operation Libelle was launched after a fraudulent pyramid scheme collapsed and a significant number of Albanian citizens lost their life savings. As a consequence, an armed rebellion took hold in large parts of Albania, and the Albanian government lost control. [4]
The crisis eventually culminated in the 1997 Albanian civil unrest. After the Military of Albania and police armories were looted by insurgents, criminals, and civilians, large parts of the country descended into chaos and violence. [5]
The Federal Republic of Germany relied on the recognized doctrine "right to rescue nationals". There have been allegations, that this doctrine of international law suffers from insufficient State practice. Because of the urgency that arose when in March 1997 German citizens barricaded themselves in the German Embassy in Tirana, Albania, the executive of the German government did not seek parliamentary approval, which was required according to the German Federal Constitutional Court. In a judgement from 1994, the German Federal Constitutional Court held that any foreign deployment of German military personnel for combat or peacekeeping requires the consent of the Bundestag, that is the German federal parliament. [6]
March 13
March 14
Country | Number | |
---|---|---|
Germany | 22 | |
Hungary | 14 | |
Japan | 13 | |
Austria | 11 | |
Czech Republic | 5 | |
Denmark | 3 | |
Peru | 3 | |
Switzerland | 3 | |
Egypt | 2 | |
Albania | 2 | |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2 | |
Netherlands | 2 | |
Poland | 2 | |
Others | 8 |
The Army of the Republic of North Macedonia is the military of North Macedonia. The army is organized, prepared and trained to conduct armed struggle and combat and other actions to achieve its constitutional function of defending the independence and territorial integrity of North Macedonia. The army consists of the ground forces and the air force, which are further divided into branches and services. The army has a permanent composition and reserve forces. Since 2005, it is a fully professional defense force compatible with NATO standards. On 27 March 2020, North Macedonia joined NATO as the 30th member.
The Albanian Armed Forces are the military of Albania and were formed after the declaration of independence in 1912. Today, it consists of the General Staff, the Albanian Land Force, Albanian Air Force and the Albanian Naval Force.
This is a list of aviation-related events from 1997.
The Albanian Air Force is the air force of Albania and one of the branches of the Albanian Armed Forces.
The Kosovo Campaign Medal (KCM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces established by Executive Order 13154 of President Bill Clinton on May 3, 2000. The medal recognizes military service performed in Kosovo from March 24, 1999 through December 31, 2013.
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Operation Silver Wake was a non-combatant evacuation operation (NEO) led by the United States to evacuate American citizens, noncombatants and designated third country nationals from Tirana, the capital of Albania during the civil unrest in 1997. The operation took place over 13 operational days in March 1997 and was performed by U.S. Marines from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit conducting operations from the USS Nassau Amphibious Readiness Group. U.S. Marines from 1st Battalion, 8th Marines and MSSG-26 secured the U.S. housing compound and held the U.S. Embassy. Approximately 900 people were evacuated by the Marines as part of the operation. Additionally, 105 Albanians were rescued March 16-17 from unsafe and overcrowded vessels.
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A Non-combatant Evacuation Operation (NEO) is an operation conducted to evacuate civilians from another country, generally due to a deteriorating security situation.
In 1997, widespread civil unrest struck Albania due to economic problems in the country, that were caused by the collapse of pyramid schemes. Due to the large quantities of money robbed from the government to fund the schemes, the Democratic Party's government collapsed in January 1997. More than 2,000 people were killed in the conflict until its end in August 1997. The creation of a new government came as the revolutionaries surrounded Tirana. Various other sources also describe the violence that ensued as a rebellion or even a civil war.
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