Key Facts
- Duration
- December 1977 – July 1978
- Aircraft used
- Jaguar combat aircraft
- Base of operations
- Dakar Airbase, Senegal
- Primary target
- Zouérat–Nouadhibou railway corridor
- Mauritanian president ousted
- Moktar Ould Daddah, July 1978
Strategic Narrative Overview
French Jaguar aircraft flew strike missions from Dakar Airbase, targeting Polisario units operating along the railway corridor. The air campaign aimed to suppress guerrilla mobility, secure the ore route, and pressure Polisario into releasing French hostages. Bombing runs focused on areas around the railway and disrupted Polisario's capacity to mount large-scale raids, though Mauritania's own ground forces continued to struggle against the insurgency throughout the operation.
01 / The Origins
Mauritania, after agreeing to partition Western Sahara with Morocco in 1976, faced sustained guerrilla attacks from the Polisario Front, which sought independence for the territory. Polisario fighters repeatedly raided the Mauritania Railway linking iron mines at Zouérat to the port of Nouadhibou, crippling the country's main export income. France intervened in December 1977 to protect both its economic interests in the iron ore trade and French citizens taken hostage by Polisario.
03 / The Outcome
The French air campaign ended in July 1978 after the hostages were released and Polisario attacks on ore shipments halted. However, Mauritania's broader military failures prompted its armed forces to overthrow President Moktar Ould Daddah that same month. The new government negotiated an immediate ceasefire with Polisario, withdrew from Western Sahara in 1979, and formally recognized the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic in 1984.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
2 belligerents
Moktar Ould Daddah.
Side B
1 belligerent