Spanish military personnel in the heart of Africa

Patrol in action. DECET photo

Spanish troops boarding. DECET photo.

 

“Palma” nº 47 was divided in two main groups – one safety and protection squad plus a chauffeur for the Spanish Colonel, mission second-in-command and a support group–. The latter, led by Brigade Llobera, was divided into a team to support the Command and a maintenance team. The safety and protection squad led by Sergeant León was organized by 3 equal teams. 

The main mission developed in the area was to give safety and protection to political and military advisers. For that, they completed reconnaissance missions on the main routes and travelled places by the advisers, convoys and authorities´ escorts, and occasionally vehicles retrieval.

The Spaniards were not involved in any serious incident during those 6 months. However, some of the daily worries of the Spanish military personnel were: the still armed and in latent conflict ethnic groups, the frequent traffic accidents of the locals, roads blockages and barricades due to protests, hard weather, and malaria. According to brigade Llobera, “even the mission´s HQ is located in a very unstable area, the Pope´s visit was a relaxing and quiet moment in a very volatile place.”

The mission was a success thanks to the good expertise of the contingent which in this occasion “not only it required a specific training of any outside mission, but also additional requirements”, explains Sergeant Léon. Some of the requirements were to speak fluently in English and French, the latter official language in the Central African Republic along with Sango.

Furthermore, drivers had to obtain the LMV driving license (six were needed) to drive easily in very chaotic roads. Besides having expert shooters, it was also necessary to include a weaponry expert for pertinent repairs.
 
It should be recalled that the Unit was congratulated by Federica Mogherini - EU High Representative of Foreign Affairs, due to the successful evacuation of 20 people of a EU delegation besieged by rival militia.