The paramilitary Katangese Gendarmerie, which was a combined force of mercenaries, Belgian settlers and local tribesmen, attacked the Irish. The attackers had a strength of 3,000–5,000 men, mostly Katangese and settlers, but with many Belgian, French and Rhodesian mercenaries armed with a mix of weapons and could call on limited air support from a Fouga Magister trainer-light ground attack jet fitted with a pair of underwing bombs and twin 7.5 mm machine guns. The aircraft attacked several times. The Irish soldiers were armed with personal weapons, a number of water-cooled Vickers machine guns, 60mm mortars and two Irish-built Ford Mark VI armoured cars.
