View source for Operation Deliberate Force

{{Short description|1995 campaign by NATO and UN forces against Republika Srpska during the Bosnian War}}
{{About|the NATO air campaign in August and September 1995|NATO air campaigns in 1994 and the rest of 1995|Operation Deny Flight}}{{primary sources|date=August 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Operation Deliberate Force
| partof            = the [[NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina]] during the [[Bosnian War]]
| image             = F-16 deliberate force.JPG
| image_size        = 
| caption           = A [[United States Air Force|US Air Force]] [[F-16C]] aircraft returns to [[Aviano Air Base|Aviano AB, Italy]], from a mission in support of [[NATO]] airstrikes against the [[Army of the Republika Srpska]]
| date              = 30 August – 20 September 1995
| place             = [[Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
| territory         = 
| result            = End of [[Siege of Sarajevo]]
| combatant1        = {{collapsible list
|bullets = yes
|title = {{flag|NATO}}
|{{flag|France|1974}}
|{{flag|Germany}}
|{{flag|Italy}}
|{{flag|Netherlands}}
|{{flag|Spain}}
|{{flag|Turkey}}
|{{flag|United Kingdom}}
|{{flag|United States|1960}}
}}
----
{{flagicon|United Nations}} '''[[UNPROFOR]]'''
| combatant2        = '''{{flagcountry|Republika Srpska (1992–95)}}'''
| commander1        = {{flagicon|NATO}}/{{flagicon|United States|1960}} [[Leighton W. Smith Jr.|Leighton Smith]]<br />{{flagicon|NATO}}/{{flagicon|United States|1960}} [[Michael E. Ryan]]<br />{{flagicon|NATO}}/{{flagicon|United Kingdom}} [[Stuart Peach]]<hr />{{flagicon|United Nations}}/{{flagicon|France|1974}} [[Bernard Janvier]]<br />{{flagicon|United Nations}}/{{flagicon|France|1974}} [[André Soubirou]]<br />{{flagicon|United Nations}}/{{flagicon|United Kingdom}} [[Rupert Smith|Sir Rupert Smith]]<br />{{flagicon|United Nations}}/{{flagicon|United Kingdom}} [[Dick Applegate]]<hr />{{flagicon|United Kingdom}} [[Mark Mans|Sir Mark Mans]]<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.army.mod.uk/documents/general/TAQ_Volume__6.pdf |title=Foreword |journal=TAQ |issue=6 |date=September 2009 |access-date=24 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120918012053/http://www.army.mod.uk/documents/general/TAQ_Volume__6.pdf |archive-date=18 September 2012 }}</ref>
| commander2        = {{flagicon|Republika Srpska (1992–95)}} [[Ratko Mladić]]<br />{{flagicon|Republika Srpska (1992–95)}} [[Radislav Krstić]]
| strength1         = {{flagicon|NATO}} 400 aircraft<br /> {{flagicon|NATO}} 5,000 military personnel <br />{{flagicon|NATO}} 1 [[Ticonderoga-class cruiser|''Ticonderoga''-class cruiser]]<br /> {{flagicon|United Nations}} 500 French peacekeepers <br /> {{flagicon|United Nations}} 320 British peacekeepers <br /> {{flagicon|United Nations}} Dutch 1e Mortiercompagnie, Korps Mariniers <br /> {{flagicon|United Nations}} 12 105mm guns <br /> {{flagicon|United Nations}} 8 155mm howitzers <br />{{flagicon|United Nations}} 12 British Warrior AFVs
| strength2         = {{flagicon|Republika Srpska}} 80,000 soldiers
| casualties1       = {{flagicon|France|1974}} 1 [[Mirage 2000N]] shot down<br />{{flagicon|France|1974}} 2 pilots [[Prisoner of war|POW]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} 1 [[General Atomics MQ-1 Predator|MQ-1 Predator]] shot down<ref>{{cite web|website=Politika|title=Budućnost je počela 1995. kod Nevesinja kada su Srbi oborili prvi dron u istoriji|url=https://www.politika.rs/sr/clanak/532808/Buducnost-je-pocela-1995-kod-Nevesinja-kada-su-Srbi-oborili-prvi-dron-u-istoriji|date=16 January 2023}}</ref>
| casualties2       = {{flagicon|Republika Srpska}} 51 soldiers killed<ref name="auto">{{cite web |url=https://www.frontal.ba/blogovi/blog/61259/da-li-je-nato-tokom-bombardovanja-republike-srpske-pobio-na-hiljade-srba |title=Da li je NATO tokom bombardovanja Republike Srpske pobio na hiljade Srba? |website=Frontal |date= |access-date=31 August 2024}}</ref><br/>{{flagicon|Republika Srpska}} 98 soldiers wounded<ref name="auto"/><br/>{{flagicon|Republika Srpska}} 338 different targets hit, most of them destroyed
| campaignbox       = {{Campaignbox Bosnian War}}{{Campaignbox NATO intervention in Bosnia}}
| casualties3       = 152 Bosnian Serb civilians killed and about 273 civilians wounded<ref name="auto"/>
}}

'''Operation Deliberate Force''' was a sustained [[military campaign|air campaign]] conducted by [[NATO]], in concert with the [[United Nations Protection Force|UNPROFOR]] ground operations, to undermine the military capability of the [[Army of the Republika Srpska|Army of Republika Srpska]] (VRS), which had threatened and attacked UN-designated [[United Nations Safe Areas|"safe areas"]] in [[Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]] during the [[Bosnian War]] with the [[Srebrenica massacre|Srebrenica genocide]] and [[Markale massacres]], precipitating the intervention. The shelling of the Sarajevo marketplace on 28 August 1995 by the VRS is considered to be the immediate instigating factor behind NATO's decision to launch the operation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Raugh |first=Harold R. |title=Operation JOINT ENDEAVOR V Corps in Bosnia-Herzegovina 1995-1996 An Oral History |url=https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/combat-studies-institute/csi-books/OperationJointEndeavor.pdf |isbn=}}</ref><ref name="Atkinson">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1995/11/15/air-assault-set-stage-for-broader-role/6733b72a-0a4c-4960-832d-29163e718573/ |title=AIR ASSAULT SET STAGE FOR BROADER ROLE |first=Rick |last=Atkinson |date=15 November 1995 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>

The operation was carried out between 30 August and 20 September 1995, involving 400 aircraft and 5,000 personnel from 15 nations. Commanded by [[Admiral (United States)|Admiral]] [[Leighton W. Smith Jr.]],<ref>{{cite book | title = To End a War | last = Holbrooke | first = Richard | author-link = Richard Holbrooke | publisher = Modern Library | year = 1999 | page = 327 | isbn = 0-375-75360-5 | oclc = 40545454 | location = New York | url = https://archive.org/details/toendwar00holb_0/page/327 }}</ref><ref name="Atkinson"/> the campaign struck 338 [[Bosnian Serb]] targets, many of which were destroyed. Overall, 1,026 bombs were dropped during the operation, 708 of which were precision-guided.<ref name=":0" /> On 19 occasions, [[depleted uranium]] munitions were used against targets around [[Sarajevo]] and [[Han Pijesak]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Data concerning the locations of depleted uranium ordnance expended during Allied Operations Deny Flight-Deliberate Force, 1993-95 in Bosnia (grid co-ordinates) |url=https://www.nato.int/du/docu/d010124b.htm |website=www.nato.int |publisher=NATO |access-date=5 December 2021}}</ref>

The bombing campaign was also roughly conterminous with [[Operation Mistral 2]], two linked military offensives of the [[Croatian Army]], the [[Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina]], and the [[Croatian Defence Council]] launched in western Bosnia. The campaign also lifted the [[siege of Sarajevo]] which led to the way for a [[Dayton Agreement|negotiated settlement]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 July 2011 |title=Operation Deliberate Force |url=https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/deliberate_force.htm |website=Globalsecurity}}</ref>

==Background==
The [[Bosnian War]] was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1 April 1992 and 14 December 1995. After popular pressure, NATO was asked by the United Nations to intervene in the Bosnian War after allegations of war crimes against civilians were made. In response to the refugee and humanitarian crisis in Bosnia, the [[United Nations Security Council]] passed [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 743|Resolution 743]] on 21 February 1992, creating UNPROFOR. The UNPROFOR mandate was to keep the population alive and deliver humanitarian aid to refugees in Bosnia until the war ended.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=April 2017 |title=Bosnia, 1995—Operation Deliberate Force. The Value of Highly Capable Proxy Forces |url=https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/9780815732419_ch1.pdf |website=[[Brookings Institution]]}}</ref>

On 9 October 1992, the UNSC passed [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 781|Resolution 781]], prohibiting unauthorized military flights in Bosnian airspace. This resolution led to [[Operation Sky Monitor]], where NATO monitored violations of the no-fly zone, but it did not take action against violators of the resolution. On 31 March 1993, in response to 500 documented violations, the UNSC passed [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 816|Resolution 816]], which authorized states to use measures "to ensure compliance" with the [[no-fly zone]] over Bosnia. In response, on 12 April, NATO initiated [[Operation Deny Flight]], which was tasked with enforcing the no-fly zone and allowed to engage the violators of the no-fly zone. However, Serb forces on the ground continued to attack UN "safe areas" in Bosnia, and the UN peacekeepers were unable to fight back as the mandate did not give them authority to do so. On 4 June, the UNSC passed [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 836|Resolution 836]] authorizing the use of force by UNPROFOR in the protection of specially designated safe zones.<ref name="nh-ev">{{cite book |title=NATO Handbook |chapter=5: The Alliance's Operational Role in Peacekeeping: The Process of Bringing Peace to the Former Yugoslavia: Evolution of the Conflict |publisher=NATO |date=2002 |url=http://www.nato.int/docu/handbook/2001/hb050102.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100206234650/http://www.nato.int/docu/handbook/2001/hb050102.htm |archive-date=6 February 2010 }}{{primary source inline|date=August 2021}}</ref> [[Operation Sharp Guard]], a naval blockade in the [[Adriatic Sea]] by NATO and the [[Western European Union]], was approved at a joint session of NATO and the WEU on 8 June and began on 15 June.<ref name="nh-ev"/>

On 6 February 1994, a day after the first Markale marketplace massacre, UN [[Secretary-General of the United Nations|Secretary-General]] [[Boutros Boutros-Ghali]] formally requested NATO to confirm that air strikes would be carried out immediately.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliii">{{cite book|title=The 'Yugoslav' Crisis in International Law|last1=Bethlehem|first1=Daniel L.|last2=Weller|first2=Marc|year=1997|page=liii|series=Cambridge International Documents Series|volume=5|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-46304-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7SczBzxA6-IC&pg=PR53}}</ref> On 9 February, agreeing to the request of the UN, NATO authorized the Commander of [[Allied Joint Force Command Naples]] (CINCSOUTH), US Admiral Jeremy Boorda, to launch air strikes against artillery and mortar positions in and around Sarajevo that were determined by UNPROFOR to be responsible for attacks against civilian targets.<ref name="nh-ev"/><ref>{{cite book|title=American National Biography|first=Mark Christopher |last=Carnes|page=29|volume=29|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2005 |isbn=9780195222029 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wZczV8ZxgL4C&pg=PA29}}</ref> Only [[Greece]] did not support the use of air strikes, but it did not veto the proposal.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliii"/> The council also issued an ultimatum at the 9 February meeting to the Bosnian Serbs, in which they demanded that the Serbs remove their heavy weapons around Sarajevo by midnight of 20–21 February or face air strikes.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliii"/> There was some confusion surrounding compliance with the ultimatum, and [[Prime Minister of Hungary|Hungarian Prime Minister]] [[Péter Boross]] announced that [[Hungary]]'s air space would be closed to NATO aircraft in the event of air strikes.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliii"/> On 12 February 1994, Sarajevo enjoyed its first casualty-free day in 22 months since April 1992.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliii"/>

On 28 February, NATO fighters operating under Deny Flight shot down four Bosnian Serb fighters for violating a no-fly zone in what would become known as the [[Banja Luka incident]]. This was the first combat operation in the history of NATO.

On 12 March, the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) made its first request for NATO air support, but close air support was not deployed, owing to a number of delays associated with the approval process.<ref name="a54549">{{Cite web |url=https://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=A/54/549 |title=A/54/549, Report of the Secretary-General pursuant to General Assembly resolution 53/35: The fall of Srebrenica |date=15 November 1999 |website=United Nations}}</ref> On 10 and 11 April 1994, UNPROFOR called in air strikes to protect the [[Goražde]] safe area, resulting in the bombing of a Bosnian Serb military command outpost near Goražde by two US [[General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon|F-16]] jets.<ref name="nh-ev"/><ref name="a54549"/><ref name="Bethlehem1997pliiv">{{cite book |title=The 'Yugoslav' Crisis in International Law |last1=Bethlehem|first1=Daniel L. |last2=Weller|first2=Marc |year=1997|page=liiv|series=Cambridge International Documents Series|volume=5 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-46304-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7SczBzxA6-IC&pg=PR54}}</ref> This was the first time in NATO's history it had ever attacked ground targets with aircraft.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliiv"/> Subsequently, the Bosnian Serbs took 150 UN personnel hostage on 14 April.<ref name="nh-ev"/><ref name="a54549"/> On 16 April, a British [[British Aerospace Sea Harrier|Sea Harrier]] was shot down over Goražde by Bosnian Serb forces.<ref name="Bethlehem1997pliiv"/> That would become known as the [[Goražde incident]]. Around 29 April, a Danish contingent on peacekeeping duty in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia]], as part of UNPROFOR's Nordic battalion located in [[Tuzla]], was ambushed when trying to relieve a Swedish observation post that was under heavy artillery fire by the [[Army of Republika Srpska|Bosnian Serb]] [[Šekovići]] brigade at the village of [[Kalesija]], but the ambush was dispersed when the UN forces retaliated with heavy fire in what would be known as [[Operation Bøllebank]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.milhist.dk/post45/boellebank/boellebank_uk.htm |title=Operation "Hooligan-bashing" – Danish Tanks at War |first=Ole Kjeld |last=Hansen |year=1997 |access-date=29 January 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221230137/http://www.milhist.dk/post45/boellebank/boellebank_uk.htm |archive-date=21 February 2014 }}</ref>

On 5 August, at the request of the UNPROFOR, two US [[Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II|A-10 Thunderbolts]] located and strafed a Bosnian Serb anti-tank vehicle near [[Sarajevo]] after the Serbs seized weapons that had been impounded by UN troops and attacking a UN helicopter. Afterwards, the Serbs agreed to return the remaining heavy weapons.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/08/06/world/us-hits-bosnian-serb-target-in-air-raid.html |title=U.S. Hits Bosnian Serb Target in Air Raid |first=Chuck|last=Sudetic |date=6 August 1994 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> On 22 September 1994, NATO aircraft carried out an air strike against a Bosnian Serb tank at the request of UNPROFOR.<ref name="nh-ev"/><ref>{{cite press release|title=NATO Aircraft Attack Bosnian-Serb Tank |date=22 September 1994 |publisher=[[NATO]]|url=http://www.nato.int/docu/pr/1994/p94-090.htm}}</ref>

On 25–26 May 1995, after violations of the exclusion zones and the shelling of safe areas, NATO aircraft carried out air strikes against Bosnian Serb ammunition depots in [[Pale, Bosnia and Herzegovina|Pale]].<ref name="nh-ev"/> In retaliation, the Bosnian Serbs took 370 UN peacekeepers in Bosnia hostage and subsequently used them as [[human shield]]s at potential targets in a successful bid to prevent further air strikes.<ref name="nh-ev"/> On 2 June, two [[US Air Force]] F-16 jets were sent on patrol over Bosnia in support of Operation Deny Flight. While on patrol, an F-16 piloted by Captain [[Scott O'Grady]] was shot down by a Bosnian Serb [[2K12 Kub]] surface-to-air missile. O'Grady was forced to eject from the aircraft. Six days later, he was rescued by [[United States Marine Corps|US Marines]] from the [[24th Marine Expeditionary Unit]] from {{USS|Kearsarge|LHD-3|6}}.<ref name="timeres">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,983055,00.html |title=Rescuing Scott O'Grady: All For One |first1=Kevin |last1=Fedarko |first2=Mark |last2=Thompson |first3=Edward |last3=Barnes |first4=Ann |last4=Blackman |first5=Greg |last5=Burke |first6=Dan |last6=Cray |first7=Douglas |last7=Waller |name-list-style=amp |date=19 June 1995 |magazine=[[TIME]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160109102833/http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,983055,00.html |archive-date=9 January 2016}}</ref>

On 11 July, NATO aircraft attacked targets in the [[Srebrenica]] area of Bosnia and Herzegovina as identified by and under the control of the [[United Nations]].<ref>{{cite press release|title=NATO Aircraft Provide Close Air Support In The Srebrenica Area |publisher=[[NATO]] |date=11 July 1995|language=en, fr|url=http://www.nato.int/docu/pr/1995/p95-068.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/10/29/world/massacre-in-bosnia-srebrenica-the-days-of-slaughter.html |title=MASSACRE IN BOSNIA;Srebrenica: The Days of Slaughter |first1=Stephen |last1=Engelberg |first2=Tim |last2=Weiner |date=29 October 1995 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> This was in response to Bosnian Serb forces advancing on the UN-declared Safe Area of Srebrenica.<ref name="nh-ev"/> Bosnian Serb warlord [[Ratko Mladić]] threatened to kill 50 UN peacekeepers who were seized as hostages and also threatened to shell the Muslim population in Srebrenica if NATO air strikes continued. The UN peacekeepers called off the air strikes and agreed to withdraw from Srebrenica as the Bosnian Serbs promised they would take care of the Muslim population for the peacekeepers to spare their own lives. For two weeks, VRS forces under Mladić killed over 8,000 Bosniaks, mainly men and boys, in the [[Srebrenica massacre]], which remains the worst act of genocide in Europe since [[World War II]].<ref name="10thAnniversary">{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/statement/2005-07-11/secretary-generals-message-ceremony-marking-10th-anniversary|title=Secretary-General's message to ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre (delivered by Mark Malloch Brown, Chef de Cabinet) |date=11 July 2005 |website=United Nations|access-date=26 April 2017}}</ref>

On 25 July, the North Atlantic Council authorized military planning aimed at deterring an attack on the safe area of Goražde, and threatened the use of NATO air power if this safe area was threatened or attacked. On 1 August, the Council took similar decisions aimed at deterring attacks on the safe areas of Sarajevo, Bihać, and Tuzla. On 4 August, NATO aircraft conducted air strikes against Croat Serb air defense radars near Udbina airfield and Knin in Croatia.<ref name="nh-ev"/> On 10 August, the Commanders of CINCSOUTH and UNPROFOR concluded a memorandum of understanding on the execution of air strikes.<ref name="changing69">{{cite book |title=The changing rules on the use of force in international law |first=Tarcisio |last=Gazzini |year=2005 |page=69 |publisher=[[Manchester University]] Press |isbn=978-0-7190-7325-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fDimGeTLOLkC&pg=PA69}}</ref>

On 11 August a USAF [[General Atomics MQ-1 Predator|RQ-1 Predator]] [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|drone]] was shot down by Serb forces over [[Krepšić]], near [[Brčko]]. Another one was lost to a mechanical failure some days later.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Campbell |first=W. Joseph |date=2015-08-12 |title=Predator drone down — over Bosnia, 20 years ago |url=https://1995blog.com/2015/08/12/predator-drone-down-over-bosnia-20-years-ago/ |access-date=2025-02-08 |website=The 1995 Blog |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=ЈЕДИНИЦА |date=2018-09-27 |title=Смрт Предатора изнад Републике Српске |url=https://www.crveneberetke.com/smrt-predatora-iznad-republike-srpske/ |access-date=2025-02-08 |website=Црвене беретке |language=sr-RS}}</ref>

==Campaign==
On 30 August, the [[Secretary General of NATO]] announced the start of air strikes, supported by UNPROFOR rapid reaction force artillery attacks.<ref name="changing69"/> Although planned and approved by the [[North Atlantic Council]] in July 1995, the operation was triggered in direct response to the second [[Markale massacres|Markale massacre]] on 28 August 1995.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Operation Deliberate Force |url=https://skytrailer.nl/combat/operation-deliberate-force/?adlt=strict&toWww=1&redig=378C238A6B4545CE87F113B723018E21 |website=Eagle Country}}</ref>

[[File:Bombing republika srpska.jpg|thumb|Image taken by a US aircraft upon hitting a Bosnian Serb target]]

As many as 400 NATO aircraft participated in the air campaign.<ref>{{cite book| title=Technology and the American Way of War Since 1945 |url=https://archive.org/details/technologyameric1945mahn/page/n194 |url-access=limited |last=Mahnken |first=Thomas G. |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=2010 |page=182 |isbn=978-0-231-12337-2 |location=New York}}</ref> Overall, 3,515 sorties were flown and a total of 1,026 bombs were dropped on 338 Bosnian Serb targets located within 48 complexes. NATO aircraft struck 97% of their targets, and seriously damaged more than 80% of them.<ref name="Air Force Magazine">{{cite magazine |magazine=Air Force Magazine |url=http://www.airforcemag.com/MagazineArchive/Pages/1997/October%201997/1097deliberate.aspx |title=Deliberate Force |first=John A. |last=Tirpak |date=October 1997 |access-date=13 July 2013}}</ref> 708 of the bombs dropped were [[precision-guided munitions]].<ref>{{cite book| title=Globalization, Security, And The Nation-State: Paradigms In Transition| last=Brawley| first=Mark R.| publisher=State University of New York Press| year=2005| page=74| isbn=978-0-7914-8348-0}}</ref> In the air operation, the United States conducted 2,318 sorties, Great Britain 326, France 284, the Netherlands 198, Turkey 78, Germany 59, Italy 35 and Spain 13.<ref name="AFSOUTH Fact sheets">{{cite web|website=AFSOUTH |url=http://www.afsouth.nato.int/factsheets/DeliberateForceFactSheet.htm |title=Operation Deliberate Force|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216031354/http://www.afsouth.nato.int/factsheets/DeliberateForceFactSheet.htm|archivedate=16 February 2011 |date= 16 December 2002|access-date=30 December 2024}}</ref> The aircraft involved in the campaign operated from Italian air bases, such as [[Aviano Air Base]], and from the US aircraft carriers {{USS|Theodore Roosevelt|CVN-71|6}} and {{USS|America|CV-66|6}}, and French aircraft carriers ''[[French aircraft carrier Foch|Foch]]'' and ''[[French aircraft carrier Clemenceau|Clemenceau]]'' in the [[Adriatic Sea]]. The VRS integrated air defence network, comprising aircraft and [[surface-to-air missile]]s, presented a high-threat environment to NATO air operations.<ref name="Air Force Magazine" />

On 30 August, a French [[Dassault Mirage 2000N/2000D|Mirage 2000N]] was shot down by a Bosnian Serb shoulder-fired [[9K38 Igla]] near [[Pale, Bosnia and Herzegovina|Pale]].<ref>{{cite report |title=Balkan battlegrounds: a military history of the Yugoslav conflict, 1990–1995 |author=Central Intelligence Agency |date=2002 |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Russian and European Analysis |volume=1 |page=378}}</ref><ref name="avellaneda">{{cite news |last=Doyle |first=Alistair |date=19 September 1995 |title=Shot-down French pilots 'held captive' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/shotdown-french-pilots-held-captive-1601799.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/shotdown-french-pilots-held-captive-1601799.html |archive-date=24 May 2022 |newspaper=[[The Independent]]}}</ref> On 1 September, NATO and UN demanded the lifting of the Serbs' [[Siege of Sarajevo]], removal of heavy weapons from the heavy weapons exclusion zone around Sarajevo, and complete security of other UN safe areas. NATO stopped the air raids and gave an ultimatum to Bosnian Serb leaders. The deadline was set as 4 September. On 5 September 1995, NATO resumed air attacks on Bosnian Serb positions around Sarajevo and near the Bosnian Serb headquarters at Pale after the Bosnian Serbs failed to comply with the ultimatum.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> The same day, Bosnian Serb forces in [[Herzegovina]] shot down a USAF [[General Atomics MQ-1 Predator|MQ-1 Predator]] drone over [[Nevesinje]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lakić |first=Marko |date=16 January 2023 |title=Budućnost je počela 1995. kod Nevesinja kada su Srbi oborili prvi dron u istoriji |url=https://www.politika.rs/sr/clanak/532808/Buducnost-je-pocela-1995-kod-Nevesinja-kada-su-Srbi-oborili-prvi-dron-u-istoriji |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=Politika Online |language=Sr}}</ref> On the night of 10 September, the {{sclass|Ticonderoga|cruiser|1}} {{USS|Normandy|CG-60|6}} launched a [[BGM-109 Tomahawk|Tomahawk missile]] strike from the central [[Adriatic Sea]] against a key air defense [[Microwave transmission|radio relay]] tower at Lisina, near [[Banja Luka]], while [[US Air Force]] [[F-15 Strike Eagle|F-15E]] and [[US Navy]] [[McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet|F/A-18]] [[fighter-bomber]]s hit the same targets with about a dozen [[precision-guided bombs]], and [[General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon|F-16]] jets attacked with [[Maverick missile]]s.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Schmitt |first=Eric |date=11 September 1995 |title=NATO Shifts Focus of its Air Attacks on Bosnian Serbs |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/09/11/world/nato-shifts-focus-of-its-air-attacks-on-bosnian-serbs.html |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite book |last1=Rip |first1=Michael Russell |title=The Precision Revolution: GPS and the Future of Aerial Warfare |last2=Hasik |first2=James M. |date=2002 |publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]] |isbn=1-55750-973-5 |page=226}}</ref>

On 14 September, NATO air strikes were suspended to allow the implementation of an agreement with Bosnian Serbs to include the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the Sarajevo exclusion zone. The initial 72-hour suspension was eventually extended to 114 hours. Finally on 20 September, General Bernard Janvier and Admiral Leighton W. Smith, Jr. agreed that the resumption of air strikes was not necessary, as Bosnian Serbs had complied with the conditions set out by the UN, and so the operation was terminated.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Balkans Chronology |url=http://planken.org/balkans/chronology/unprofor/1995 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314010216/http://planken.org/balkans/chronology/unprofor/1995 |archive-date=14 March 2016 |access-date=5 December 2011 |website=Planken.org}}</ref>

=== Rapid Reaction Force ===
Frustrated by the previous absence of results and the resistance of the Serbian parties to any peace progress, the Western powers, led by French President [[Jacques Chirac]], decided to put a deterrent force in-country to support western diplomatic efforts. [[France]], the [[United Kingdom]] and the [[United States]] decided to send a multinational brigade to the Mount Igman area, supported by an airmobile brigade and an armored battalion in reserve. The Brigade consisted of 2000 French, 1500 British and 500 Dutch troops for a total of 4000 military personnel.<ref name=":1" /> The creation of the force was authorized by UNSC [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 998|Resolution 998]] on 16 June 1995.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://undocs.org/en/S/RES/998(1995) |title=Security Council Resolution 998 |date=16 June 1995 |website=UNDocs.org}}</ref>

Commanded by French General Andre Soubirou,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1995/0804/04061.html|title=British, French Forces Eager To Back Up UN in Bosnia|date=4 August 1995|work=Christian Science Monitor}}</ref> the MN brigade was operational in August 1995 on Mount Igman. The main force consisted of a mixed artillery regiment, that being a French artillery group with eight 155&nbsp;mm [[AMX-30 AuF1|AUF1 howitzer]]s, British artillery group with twelve [[L118 light gun|105 mm light guns]], French and Dutch 120&nbsp;mm Heavy Mortar company. Although the artillery fired before and after the Markale Market Massacre, the main action was on 28 and 29 August 1995, firing 1070 shells on Serbian positions, which were 305 155&nbsp;mm shell, 408 120&nbsp;mm shell, 357 105&nbsp;mm shells.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.defense.gouv.fr/terre/actu-terre/1995-l-engagement-du-groupement-d-artillerie-leclerc-le-40e-ra-porte-le-feu-depuis-igman |title=1995 : L'engagement du groupement d'artillerie Leclerc, le 40e RA porte le feu depuis Igman |date=30 May 2017 |website=[[Ministry of Armed Forces (France)|Ministère des Armées]] |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://artillerie.asso.fr/basart/article.php3?id_article=1598 |title=Le Groupe d'artillerie Leclerc en Bosnie (Juillet 1995 - Décembre 1995): H. L'heure des premiers bilans |website=Base documentaire des Artilleurs |language=fr}}</ref> This artillery group was deployed at the UN base on [[Igman|Mount Igman]] to support the task of NATO{{'}}s aircraft by pounding Serb artillery positions.<ref>{{cite book |last=Franke |first=Volke |date=2005 |title=Terrorism and Peacekeeping: New Security Challenges |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |page=47 |isbn=0-275-97646-7}}</ref>

The [[German Air Force|German Luftwaffe]] saw action for the first time since 1945 during Operation Deliberate Force.<ref>{{Cite news |date=September 2, 1995 |title=German planes see first action since 1945 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MBwKAAAAIBAJ&pg=4322,202184&dq=tornado+german+sarajevo&hl=en |newspaper=[[The Victoria Advocate]] |via=Google News}}</ref> Six interdictor-strike version [[Panavia Tornado|Tornados]], escorted by eight ECR Tornados, pinpointed Serb targets around Sarajevo for the Rapid Reaction Force artillery to attack.<ref>{{cite book |last=Owen |first=Robert |title=Deliberate Force: A Case Study in Effective Air Campaigning |date=2000 |publisher=DIANE Publishing |isbn=1-58566-076-0 |location=Darby, Pennsylvania |page=246}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Challenges for the New Peacekeepers |date=1996 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-829199-X |editor-last=Findlay |editor-first=Trevor |location=Oxford, UK |page=41}}</ref> Netherlands and Turkiye participated in the operation with eighteen F-16As and eighteen F-16Cs, respectively.<ref name="AFSOUTH Fact sheets" />

==Aftermath==
The two French airmen who were captured after their [[Dassault Mirage 2000N/2000D|Mirage 2000N]] was downed by Bosnian Serb forces on 30 August 1995, Lt. Jose Souvignet and Capt. Frederic Chiffot, were released only upon the end of the Bosnian War, on 12 December 1995. Upon being released, they told reporters that they had been treated well while in captivity.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |location=California |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-12-13-mn-13525-story.html |first1=Scott |last1=Kraft |first2=Dean E. |last2=Murphy |title=Bosnian Serbs Free Downed French Airmen |date=13 December 1995 |access-date=7 December 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]] |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1995/12/13/2-downed-french-airmen/ |first=Tom |last=Hundley |title=2 Downed French Airmen Act Removes Possible Hitch In Signing Of Peace Agreement  |date=13 December 1995 |access-date=7 December 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/au/owen.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031203163808/http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/au/owen.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 December 2003 |title=Deliberate Force: A Case Study in Effective Air Campaigning. Final Report of the Air University Balkans Air Campaign Study |first=Robert C. |last=Owen |date=January 2000 |page=522 |publisher=Air University Press}}</ref><ref name="Owen_humanitarian">{{cite web |url= http://www.hks.harvard.edu/cchrp/Web%20Working%20Papers/Owen2001.pdf |title=Operation Deliberate Force: A case study in humanitarian constraints in aerospace warfare |first=Robert C. |last=Owen |date=30 September 2011 |page=63 |publisher= [[John F. Kennedy School of Government|Harvard Kennedy School]]}}</ref>

In December 1995, NATO dispatched a 60,000-strong peacekeeping force into Bosnia as part of the [[Implementation Force|IFOR]] to enforce the Dayton Peace Agreement to secure peace and prevent renewed hostilities between three warring factions. In December 1996, the NATO-led [[Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina|SFOR]] was established to replace the IFOR to enforce the Dayton Peace Agreement. This lasted up until December 2004, when [[Operation Althea]] replaced the NATO-led SFOR.<ref>{{Cite news |date=30 November 2020 |title=EUFOR BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA Military Operation ALTHEA |pages=1 |work=[[Europa (web portal)|Europa]] |url=https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eufor-althea/eufor-bosnia-herzegovina-military-operation-althea_en?s=324&adlt=strict&toWww=1&redig=E5554388DD434259A03FC473B96391FA#top}}</ref>

==See also==

*[[NATO bombing of Yugoslavia]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Operation Deliberate Force}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081110153404/http://www.afsouth.nato.int/factsheets/DeliberateForceFactSheet.htm Operation Deliberate Force fact sheet] (NATO website, updated 16 December 2002)
* globalsecurity.org: [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/deliberate_force.htm "Operation Deliberate Force," Globalsecurity.org.]
* Col Robert C. Owen (ed., USAF): [https://media.defense.gov/2017/Apr/05/2001727308/-1/-1/0/B_0074_OWEN_DELIBERATE_FORCE.PDF ''Deliberate Force. A Case Study in Effective Air Campaigning'']. Air University Press, January 2000 (PDF, 566 p) 
* cnn.com 12 September 1995: [http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/Bosnia/updates/sep95/9-12/carrier/index.html ''Aircraft Carrier USS America Replaces USS Roosevelt in Adriatic'']
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070930213114/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,983401-1,00.html "Louder Than Words," ''TIME magazine'', September 11, 1995.]
*[http://www.csmonitor.com/1994/0225/25231.html "If U.S. Force Is Needed In Bosnia," by Michael Johns, ''The Christian Science Monitor'', 25 February 1994.]

{{Yugoslav wars}}
{{American conflicts}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deliberate Force, Operation}}
[[Category:Conflicts in 1995]]
[[Category:1995 in Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
[[Category:NATO intervention in the former Yugoslavia|Bosnian War]]
[[Category:Bosnian War]]
[[Category:Aerial bombing operations and battles]]
[[Category:Military operations of the Bosnian War]]
[[Category:Military operations of the Yugoslav Wars involving Germany]]
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[[Category:20th-century Royal Air Force deployments]]
[[Category:Strategic bombing operations and battles]]
[[Category:Military campaigns involving Germany]]
[[Category:August 1995 in Europe]]
[[Category:September 1995 in Europe]]
[[Category:Aerial operations and battles involving Italy]]
[[Category:Aerial operations and battles involving the United States]]
[[Category:Aerial operations and battles involving the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Air campaigns]]
[[Category:Battles of the Bosnian War]]
[[Category:Airstrikes in Europe]]