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Kolwezi is a city in Lualaba Province
Lualaba Province

Lualaba Province is one of the new Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to be established by 18 February 2009 by dividing Katanga Province into four parts, under the 2006 Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo....
 in the south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo , is a country in central Africa with a small length of Atlantic coastline. It is the third largest list of African countries in order of geographical area....
, west of Likasi
Likasi

Likasi, formerly known as Jadotville or Jadotstad, is a city in Haut-Katanga Province, in the south-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo....
. It is home to an airport
Airport

An airport is a location where aircraft such as Fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and Non-rigid airship take off and land. Aircraft may also be stored or maintained at an airport....
 and a railway to Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi

Lubumbashi is the second largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , second only to the nation's capital Kinshasa, and the hub of the southeastern part of the country....
. The population is approximately 418,000.

Kolwezi is an important mining
Mining

Mining is the extraction of value minerals or other geology materials from the earth, usually from an ore body, vein or seam. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, Sodium chloride and potash....
 centre for copper
Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29.It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity....
 and cobalt
Cobalt

Cobalt is a hard, lustrous, grey metal, a chemical element with symbol Co and atomic number 27. Although cobalt-based colors and pigments have been used since ancient times, and miners have long used the name kobold ore for some minerals, cobalt was only discovered in 1735 by Georg Brandt....
. There are also uranium
Uranium

Uranium is a silvery-gray metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table that has the chemical symbol U and atomic number 92....
, radium
Radium

Radium is a radioactive chemical element which has the symbol Ra and atomic number 88. Its appearance is almost pure white, but it readily oxidizes on exposure to air, turning black....
, oxide
Oxide

An oxide is a chemical compound contaning at least one oxygen atom as well as at least one other element. Most of the Earth's crust consists of oxides....
 ores, and lime
Lime (mineral)

Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide....
 deposits.

city was created in 1937 to be the headquarters for the western mining group of the High Katanga Mining Association (UMHK).

On May 13 1978, rebels supported by Angola
Angola

Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordering Namibia to the south, Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, and Zambia to the east, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean....
, occupied the city.






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Cd Kolwezi
Kolwezi is a city in Lualaba Province
Lualaba Province

Lualaba Province is one of the new Provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to be established by 18 February 2009 by dividing Katanga Province into four parts, under the 2006 Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo....
 in the south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo , is a country in central Africa with a small length of Atlantic coastline. It is the third largest list of African countries in order of geographical area....
, west of Likasi
Likasi

Likasi, formerly known as Jadotville or Jadotstad, is a city in Haut-Katanga Province, in the south-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo....
. It is home to an airport
Airport

An airport is a location where aircraft such as Fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and Non-rigid airship take off and land. Aircraft may also be stored or maintained at an airport....
 and a railway to Lubumbashi
Lubumbashi

Lubumbashi is the second largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , second only to the nation's capital Kinshasa, and the hub of the southeastern part of the country....
. The population is approximately 418,000.

Kolwezi is an important mining
Mining

Mining is the extraction of value minerals or other geology materials from the earth, usually from an ore body, vein or seam. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, Sodium chloride and potash....
 centre for copper
Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29.It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity....
 and cobalt
Cobalt

Cobalt is a hard, lustrous, grey metal, a chemical element with symbol Co and atomic number 27. Although cobalt-based colors and pigments have been used since ancient times, and miners have long used the name kobold ore for some minerals, cobalt was only discovered in 1735 by Georg Brandt....
. There are also uranium
Uranium

Uranium is a silvery-gray metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table that has the chemical symbol U and atomic number 92....
, radium
Radium

Radium is a radioactive chemical element which has the symbol Ra and atomic number 88. Its appearance is almost pure white, but it readily oxidizes on exposure to air, turning black....
, oxide
Oxide

An oxide is a chemical compound contaning at least one oxygen atom as well as at least one other element. Most of the Earth's crust consists of oxides....
 ores, and lime
Lime (mineral)

Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide....
 deposits.

History

The city was created in 1937 to be the headquarters for the western mining group of the High Katanga Mining Association (UMHK).

On May 13 1978, rebels supported by Angola
Angola

Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordering Namibia to the south, Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, and Zambia to the east, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean....
, occupied the city. The government of Zaire
Zaire

The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971, and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo language word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers", and is often still used to refer to that state, perhaps because "Zai...
 asked the U.S., France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
, Morocco
Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa with a population of nearly 34 million and an area just under 447,000 km2....
 and Belgium
Belgium

* A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....
 to restore order. The 2e REP
2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment

The 2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment is an Airborne forces regiment in the French Foreign Legion. It is a part of the 11th Parachute Brigade and the spearhead of the French Rapid reaction force....
, an elite paratrooper
Paratrooper

Paratroopers are soldiers trained in parachuting and generally operate as part of an Airborne forces.Paratroopers are used for tactical advantage as they can be inserted into the battlefield from the air, thereby allowing them to be positioned in areas not accessible by land....
s unit of the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion

The French Foreign Legion is a unique unit separate from the regular French Army, established in 1831. The legion was specifically created as a unit for foreign volunteers, to be commanded by French officers; it is however also open to France citizens, who amount to 24% of recruits....
, were sent in to drive out the rebels and rescue any hostages. The Belgian army
Belgian Army

The Land Component , formerly the Belgian Army, is the Army service of the Military of Belgium. The current chief of staff of the Land Component is Major-General Eddy Testelmans....
 also deployed a force of some 750 paratroopers and moved out just over 1,800 Europeans to other cities in the region. 700 Africans, among which 250 rebels, 170 European hostages and 6 paratroopers died.

Near Kolwezi there is the static inverter plant
Static inverter plant

A static inverter station is the terminal equipment for a HVDC transmission line, in which direct current is converted to three-phase alternating current, and, usually, the reverse....
 of the HVDC Inga-Shaba
Inga-Shaba

The Inga-Shaba EHVDC Transmission Line is an electric cable in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was mainly constructed by Morrison-Knudsen International, an American engineering firm, and cost 900 million United States dollars....
.

See also

  • Shaba I
    Shaba I

    Shaba I was a conflict between the neighboring states of Zaire and Angola in 1977, and was arguably a consequence of Zaire's support for the National Liberation Front of Angola and UNITA factions in the Angolan Civil War....
  • Shaba II
    Shaba II

    Shaba II was an invasion of the Shaba separatist movement FNLC into the Zairian province of Katanga Province on 17 May 1978. The FNLC had its bases in eastern Angola and probably had the support of the Angolan government....
  • Angolan Civil War
    Angolan Civil War

    The Angolan Civil War began in Angola after the end of the Angolan War of Independence from Portugal in 1975. The war ultimately evolved into a prominent Cold War conflict, featuring two warring Angolan factions, the Communist MPLA, which was supported by the Soviet Union, and the anti-Communist UNITA, which gained support from the United Sta...


External links

  • "The French Foreign Legion in Kolwezi"(Broken Promise) By Roger Rousseau aux Editions Rexy ISBN 2-9526927-1-8