South Africa’s Assault Stalls at Cuito Cuanavale

In August 1987, the armed forces of Angola's government launched Operation Saluting October from the southern town of Cuito Cuanavale. Directed by Soviet advisers and equipped with newly supplied Soviet armor, Angolan government brigades marched southeast toward Mavinga, a logistics center held by the insurgent movement UNITA. Angola aimed to crush UNITA strongholds and reassert control over the south. Alarmed by the prospect of an Angolan victory on the border of South West Africa, the South African Defence Force intervened covertly under Operation Moduler to protect its ally UNITA and prevent Namibian liberation fighters from gaining a staging ground.

The two armies collided at the Lomba River in September. Over several weeks of heavy combat, South African mechanised battalions and UNITA fighters checked the Angolan advance, destroyed vital bridging equipment, and mauled the attacking brigades. Suffering heavy losses, and left largely leaderless after the Soviets pulled back their officers and advisers, the Angolan units fell back toward Cuito Cuanavale. The initial government offensive was shattered, preserving UNITA's control of the southeastern hinterland, but the South African command decided to press its advantage across the river.