Operation Green Sea

Overview

Operation Green Sea, also known as the Battle of Conakry, was an amphibious attack on Conakry, the capital of Guinea, by between 350 and 420 Portuguese soldiers and Portuguese-led Guinean fighters in November 1970. The goals of the operation included the overthrow of Ahmed Sékou Touré's government, capture of the leader of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC), Amílcar Cabral, destruction of the naval and air assets of the PAIGC and its Guinean supporters, and the rescue of Portuguese POWs held in Conakry.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

Operation Green Sea was an amphibious assault on Conakry, the capital of the Republic of Guinea, launched by Portuguese forces and Portuguese-led Guinean fighters during the Guinea-Bissau War of Independence. The operation pursued several simultaneous objectives: the overthrow of Ahmed Sékou Touré's government, the capture of PAIGC leader Amílcar Cabral, the destruction of PAIGC naval and air assets based in Conakry, and the rescue of Portuguese prisoners of war held there. The attack represented a significant escalation by Portugal, extending the conflict beyond Guinea-Bissau's borders into a neighboring sovereign state that was providing support and sanctuary to the PAIGC. The operation's targeting of Cabral reflected how central his leadership was to the independence movement; the PAIGC operated extensively from Guinean territory, making Conakry a strategic rear base for the insurgency. Casualties among Guinean forces were recorded at approximately 500, though the result of the operation is not definitively recorded in terms of its stated objectives.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (4)