View source for Zambian Defence Force

{{Short description|Military of Zambia}}
{{Infobox national military
| name               =  Defence Force of Zambia
| native_name        =
| motto              =
| founded            = 24 October 1964
| current_form       =
| disbanded          =
| branches           = {{army|Zambia}}<br/>{{air force|Zambia}}<br/>[[Zambia National Service]]
| headquarters       =
| flying_hours       =
| website            = <!--{{URL|example.mil}}-->
<!-- Leadership -->
| commander-in-chief = [[Hakainde Hichilema]]
| commander-in-chief_title = [[President of Zambia|Commander-in-chief]]
| chief minister     =
| chief minister_title =
| minister           = [[Ambrose Lufuma]]
| minister_title     = [[Ministry of Defence (Zambia)|Minister of Defence]]
<!-- Manpower -->
| age                =
| conscription       =
| active             = 15,150 (2022)<ref name="autolink1">The Military Balance 2022</ref>
| ranked             =
| reserve            =
| deployed           =
<!-- Financial -->
| amount             = $283 million (2023)
| percent_GDP        = 1.3 (2023)
<!-- Industrial -->
| domestic_suppliers =
| foreign_suppliers  =
| imports            =
| exports            =
<!-- Related aricles -->
| history            = [[Rhodesian Bush War]]<br/>[[South African Border War]]<br/>[[Mozambican Civil War]]<br/>[[Capture of Lubumbashi]]
| ranks              = [[Military ranks of Zambia]]
|country=Zambia}}[[File:Zambia-Army-OR-8.svg|thumb|Rank insignia of Warrant Officer Class 2 for the army of Zambia]]
The '''Zambian Defence Force''' is the [[military]] of [[Zambia]]. It consists of the [[Zambian Army]], the [[Zambian Air Force]], and the [[Zambia National Service]].<ref name=Ourselves>{{cite book|last1=Abrahams|first1=Diane|last2=Cawthra|first2=Gavin|last3=Williams|first3=Rocklyn|title=Ourselves To Know: Civil-military Relations and Defence Transformation in Southern Africa|date=2003|pages=3–6|publisher=Institute for Security Studies South Africa|location=Pretoria|isbn=978-0812216202}}</ref> The defence forces were formed at Zambian independence on 24 October 1964, from constituent units of the dissolved [[Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland]] Armed Forces.<ref name=Wele>{{cite book|last=Wele|first=Patrick|title=Zambia's most famous dissidents: from Mushala to Luchembe|date=1995|pages=150–159|publisher=PMW|location=Solwezi, Zambia|oclc=37615501}}</ref> During the 1970s and 1980s, it played a key role in a number of regional conflicts, namely the [[South African Border War]] and [[Rhodesian Bush War]].<ref name=covert>{{cite book|last=Stiff|first=P.|year=2000|title=The Covert War: Koevoet Operations in Namibia 1979-1989|publisher=Galago Publishihg Pty Ltd|isbn=978-1-919854-03-8|pages=43–49}}</ref> Being a [[landlocked country]] Zambia has no navy, although the Zambian Army maintains a [[maritime patrol]] unit for maintaining security on inland bodies of water.<ref name="lusakavoice.com">'Zambia Army Commando Unit splits, forms Marine Unit', ''Lusaka Voice'', 18 February 2015, accessed 5 February 2017, <http://lusakavoice.com/2015/02/18/zambia-army-commando-unit-splits-forms-marine-unit/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170323234258/http://lusakavoice.com/2015/02/18/zambia-army-commando-unit-splits-forms-marine-unit/ |date=2017-03-23 }}></ref>

==History==
===Background and independence===
The Zambian Defence Force had its roots in the [[Northern Rhodesia Regiment]], a [[Multiracial people|multi-ethnic]] military unit which was raised by the British colonial government and had served with distinction during [[World War II]].<ref name="Ourselves" /> In 1960, the constituent colonies of [[Northern Rhodesia]], [[Southern Rhodesia]], and [[Nyasaland]] were amalgamated into a self-governing [[British Empire|British]] dependency known as the [[Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland]].<ref name="Command">{{cite thesis|degree=MsC|title=Implications for a Non-Unified Command System and the Need For a Unified Command System in Zambia|last=Shapwaya|first=Moses|url=http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA623984|publisher=[[United States Army Command and General Staff College]]|year=2013|access-date=27 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170626012319/http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA623984|archive-date=26 June 2017|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> When the federation was dissolved three years later, the assets and personnel of its armed forces were integrated with those of its successor states, including Northern Rhodesia, which subsequently gained independence as Zambia.<ref name="Command" /> For example, Zambia received half the federal [[armored car (military)|armoured car squadron]] as well as some light patrol aircraft.<ref name="trade">{{cite web |url=http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/trade_register.php |title=Trade Registers |publisher=Armstrade.sipri.org |access-date=2013-06-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100414022558/http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/trade_register.php |archive-date=2010-04-14 |url-status=live }}</ref> Zambia also inherited the command structures of the [[Northern Rhodesia]] Regiment as well as the Northern Rhodesian Air Wing, which formed the basis for the new Zambian Army and Zambian Air Force, respectively.<ref name="Command" />

Relations almost immediately soured between Zambia and Southern Rhodesia, now known simply as ''Rhodesia'', which had [[Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence|issued its own unilateral declaration of independence]] (UDI) in 1965.<ref name="Studies2004">{{cite book|last1=Ashton|first1=S R|last2=Roger-Louis|first2=Wm|title=East of Suez and the Commonwealth 1964–1971: Europe, Rhodesia, Commonwealth|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=owvXW06nujsC&pg=PA277|access-date=17 January 2013|series=British Documents on the End of Empire|volume=Series A Vol 5 Part II|year=2004|publisher=The Stationery Office|isbn=9780112905837|pages=221–222|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140628135441/http://books.google.com/books?id=owvXW06nujsC&pg=PA277|archive-date=28 June 2014|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Reports that Rhodesian security forces had occupied [[Kariba Dam]] prompted Zambian President [[Kenneth Kaunda]] to mobilise the ZDF for the first time and deploy troops to the border.<ref name="Studies2004"/> The ZDF was withdrawn when Kaunda received a guarantee that Zambia's supply of Kariba power would not be interrupted.<ref name=Wilkenfeld>{{cite book|author1-link=Michael Brecher|author2-link=Jonathan Wilkenfeld|last1=Brecher|first1=Michael|last2=Wilkenfeld|first2=Jonathan|title=A Study of Crisis|date=1997|pages=[https://archive.org/details/studyofcrisis0000brec/page/105 105–107]|publisher=University of Michigan Press|location=Ann Arbor|isbn=978-0472087075|url=https://archive.org/details/studyofcrisis0000brec/page/105}}</ref> Nevertheless, military tension between the two nations remained high, and border incidents resulting in civilian deaths occurred.<ref name=Tordoff>{{cite book|last=Tordoff|first=William|title=Politics in Zambia|date=1974|pages=[https://archive.org/details/politicsinzambia0000unse/page/358 358–362]|publisher=Manchester University Press|location=North Manchester|isbn=978-0719005510|url=https://archive.org/details/politicsinzambia0000unse/page/358}}</ref> In November 1966, Rhodesian troops fired across the border and killed a Zambian woman on the north bank of the [[Zambezi River]].<ref name=Tordoff/> In January 1973, Zambian troops fired on a South African police patrol boat on the Zambezi.<ref name=Tordoff/> Shortly afterwards, Defence Minister [[Alexander Grey Zulu|Grey Zulu]] ordered that the ZDF return to the border in force.<ref name=Tordoff/> Later in the month Kaunda brought the first of several complaints before the [[United Nations Security Council]] charging that Rhodesian security forces were violating Zambia's sovereignty and territorial integrity with South African support.<ref name=Tordoff/> Tensions flared again when Zambian troops fired across the border and killed two Canadian tourists on the Rhodesian side of [[Victoria Falls, Zambia|Victoria Falls]] in May 1973.<ref name=Scully>{{cite book|last=Scully|first=Pat|title=Exit Rhodesia|date=1984|page=162|publisher=Cottswold Press|location=Ladysmith|isbn=978-0620078023}}</ref>

The increasing prospect of war with Rhodesia posed several unique security dilemmas for the ZDF.<ref name=Tordoff/> Firstly, Zambia lacked the manpower or conventional hardware necessary to provide a suitable deterrent to a Rhodesian incursion.<ref name=Tordoff/> It also remained dependent on a relatively small pool of white senior officers and technical personnel.<ref name=Tordoff/> After 1967 Kaunda's government began replacing them with foreign officers on contract, ostensibly to minimise the potential for conflicts of loyalty.<ref name=Tordoff/> Between 1967 and 1970 the majority of officers in the ZDF were seconded from the [[British Army]].<ref name=Tordoff/> In 1971, the ZDF was finally prepared to appoint its first black army and air force commanders.<ref name="Command"/> Due to the white community's close ties with Rhodesia and South Africa, white Zambians were subsequently barred from voluntary enlistment and granted a blanket exemption from conscription.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bVNBAQAAIAAJ&q=%22white+Zambians%22|title=Southern Africa Political & Economic Monthly|date=Feb 16, 1994|publisher=Southern African Political Economy Series (SAPES) Publications Project|access-date=Feb 16, 2019|via=Google Books}}</ref>

Around September 1967, Kaunda made two requests to the United States for equipment for the Zambian Army, including long-range [[missile]] systems, but was rebuffed.<ref name=Atomic>{{cite book|last=DeRoche|first=Andrew|editor1-last=Gewald|editor1-first=Jan-Bert|editor2-last=Hinfelaar|editor2-first=Marja|editor3-last=Macola|editor3-first=Giacomo|title=One Zambia, Many Histories: Towards a History of Post-colonial Zambia|date=2008|pages=86–115|publisher=Koninklihje Brill NV|location=Leiden, Netherlands|isbn=978-9004165946}}</ref> More successful were Zambia's attempts to acquire its first combat aircraft, a number of [[Aermacchi MB-326]] and [[SIAI-Marchetti SF.260]]s sourced from Italy;<ref name="trade"/> the first black Zambian Air Force pilots were trained by Italian instructors between 1966 and 1969.<ref name=Atomic/> Italy also sold the ZDF helicopters and towed artillery.<ref name="trade"/>

===Involvement in regional conflicts, 1968–80===
During the 1970s, Zambia began providing sanctuary for a number of revolutionary and militant political movements dedicated to overthrowing colonial and white minority rule elsewhere on the African continent.<ref name=Hughes>{{cite book|last=Hughes|first=Geraint|title=My Enemy's Enemy: Proxy Warfare in International Politics|date=2014|pages=45–53|publisher=Sussex Academic Press|location=Brighton|isbn=978-1845196271}}</ref> Guerrilla armies based in exile in Zambia included the [[People's Liberation Army of Namibia]] (PLAN)<ref name=covert/> and the [[Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army]] (ZIPRA).<ref name=Hughes/> These movements ultimately embroiled the ZDF in their own internal power struggles<ref name=Chesterman>{{cite book|last=Lamb|first=Guy|editor-last=Chesterman|editor-first=Simon|title=Civilians in War|date=2001|pages=[https://archive.org/details/civiliansinwar0000unse/page/322 322–342]|publisher=Lynne Rienner Publishers, Incorporated|location=Boulder, Colorado|isbn=978-1555879884|url=https://archive.org/details/civiliansinwar0000unse/page/322}}</ref> as well as direct clashes with foreign troops carrying out preemptive strikes.<ref name=Hughes/> In 1968, the ZDF skirmished with Portuguese troops which had pursued a number of Angolan or Mozambican insurgents into Zambia.<ref name=Tordoff/> In September 1975, Zambian troops became locked in a firefight with [[Insurgency|insurgents]] of the [[Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army]] (ZANLA).<ref name="ZANLA">{{cite book |title=Ending civil war: Rhodesia and Lebanon in perspective |last=Preston |first=Matthew |location=London |publisher=[[I.B. Tauris]] |date=September 2004 |isbn=1-85043-579-0 |page=124}}</ref> The ZDF killed eleven ZANLA insurgents and later expelled that movement from Zambian soil.<ref name="ZANLA"/> A year later, nearly two thousand<ref name="Frontiersmen">{{cite book|title=Frontiersmen: Warfare in Africa since 1950|url=https://archive.org/details/frontiersmenwarf00clay|url-access=limited|last=Clayton|first=Anthony|location=Philadelphia|publisher=UCL Press, Limited|date=1999|isbn=978-1857285253|pages=[https://archive.org/details/frontiersmenwarf00clay/page/n144 119]–124}}</ref> disaffected PLAN insurgents in Zambia launched a mutiny which became known as the "Shipanga Affair".<ref name="Sellström">{{cite book|last=Sellström|first=Tor|url=https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:nai:diva-204|title=Sweden and National Liberation in Southern Africa: Vol. 2 : Solidarity and assistance, 1970–1994|date=2002|publisher=Nordic Africa Institute|isbn=978-91-7106-448-6|location=Uppsala|pages=308–310}}</ref> The army was forced to marshal several battalions to subdue the dissidents.<ref name=Chesterman/>

In response to Zambia's increasingly open support for PLAN, South Africa sponsored a force of [[Kaonde language|Kaonde]]-speaking dissidents under [[Adamson Mushala]], known as the Zambian Democratic Supreme Council (DSC).<ref name="Zambian">{{cite book|title=Rethinking African Politics: A History of Opposition in Zambia|last=Larmer|first=Miles|year=2011|location=Surrey|publisher=Ashgate Publishing Ltd|isbn=978-1409482499|pages=148–153}}</ref> The DSC maintained a low level insurgency in Zambia's [[North-Western Province, Zambia|North-Western]] and [[Western Province, Zambia|Western]] Provinces.<ref name="Beggar">{{cite book|last=Hanlon|first=Joseph|title=Beggar Your Neighbors: Apartheid Power in Southern Africa|date=1986|page=[https://archive.org/details/beggaryourneighb00hanl/page/244 244]|publisher=Indiana University Press|location=Bloomington|isbn=978-0253331311|url=https://archive.org/details/beggaryourneighb00hanl/page/244}}</ref> Mushala's guerrillas sabotaged infrastructure, skirmished with the ZDF, and collected intelligence on PLAN movements inside Zambia.<ref name="Dreyer">{{cite book|title=Namibia and Southern Africa: Regional Dynamics of Decolonization, 1945-90|last=Dreyer|first=Ronald|location=London|publisher=Kegan Paul International|year=1994|isbn=978-0710304711|page=140}}</ref> They were trained by [[South African Special Forces]] and instructors recruited from the Portuguese [[PIDE|Directorate-General of Security]].<ref name=Caprivi>{{cite book|last=Kangumu|first=Bennett|title=Contesting Caprivi: A History of Colonial Isolation and Regional Nationalism in Namibia|date=2011|pages=155–156|publisher=Basler Afrika Bibliographien Namibia Resource Center and Southern Africa Library|location=Basel|isbn=978-3905758221}}</ref> In 1973, an army unit killed a hundred of the guerrillas by ambushing them as they attempted to cross the Zambezi near the Caprivi Strip.<ref name=Caprivi/> Mushala was largely inactive until early 1976, when his guerrillas skirmished twice with the ZDF and hijacked an army payroll.<ref name="Zambian"/>

As a result of the new challenges posed by the Mushala insurgency and the presence of foreign militants, the ZDF underwent an extensive reorganisation and adopted a new unified command structure.<ref name="Command"/> It was renamed the ''Zambian National Defence Force'' (ZNDF) in 1976.<ref name="Command"/> A prevailing feature of the new ZNDF was its adoption of a third branch known as the Zambian National Service.<ref name="Command"/> The objective of the Zambian National Service was to provide basic military instruction to all Zambian citizens in the event they needed to be mobilised as reservists during wartime.<ref name=Ourselves/> The ZNDF became increasingly politicised, with the ruling [[United National Independence Party]] (UNIP) forming party branches in the barracks and introducing a number of political education programs for military personnel.<ref name=Phiri>{{cite book|last=Phiri|first=Bizeck Jube|editor1-last=Cawthra|editor1-first=Gavin|editor2-last=Du Pisani|editor2-first=Andre|editor3-last=Omari|editor3-first=Abillah|title=Security and Democracy in Southern Africa|date=2007|pages=206–220|publisher=University of Witwatersrand Press|location=Johannesburg|isbn=978-1-86814-453-2}}</ref> Under the UNIP, the ZNDF was not subject to public audit or parliamentary oversight.<ref name=Phiri/> This was justified under the pretext that the ZNDF's development was tied to the exigencies of wartime.<ref name=Phiri/>

Between 1977 and 1980 military tension with South Africa and Rhodesia continued to escalate, resulting in a renewed spate of border incidents.<ref name="Africa">{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s_DiAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Zambian+troops%22+%22Rhodesia%22|title=Africa|date=Feb 16, 1977|publisher=Africa Journal, Limited|access-date=Feb 16, 2019|via=Google Books}}</ref> In 1977, the ZNDF bombarded Rhodesian positions near [[Victoria Falls]] with rocket and mortar fire.<ref name="Africa"/> The reasons for the attack were disputed but the Zambian government maintained that the troops involved had been deliberately provoked by Rhodesian forces into firing.<ref name="Africa"/> Around March 1978, the ZNDF claimed to have been involved in repelling a Rhodesian raid on a ZIPRA training camp.<ref name="Raid">{{cite news|title=Rhodesia Mounts Biggest Raid Yet Against Zambia|last=Ottaway|first=David|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1978/03/08/rhodesia-mounts-biggest-raid-yet-against-zambia/f2499a48-89ce-4c10-a18f-688bf5e31a3e/|newspaper=The Washington Post|location=Washington, D.C.|date=8 March 1978|access-date=30 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180314190702/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1978/03/08/rhodesia-mounts-biggest-raid-yet-against-zambia/f2499a48-89ce-4c10-a18f-688bf5e31a3e/ |archive-date=14 March 2018}}</ref> It also assisted PLAN insurgents during a raid on a [[Katima Mulilo|South African military base]] in the [[Caprivi Strip]].<ref name=covert/> South Africa retaliated by shelling several ZNDF positions near the border,<ref name="Borderstrike">{{cite book | first = Willem | last = Steenkamp| title = Borderstrike! South Africa Into Angola 1975-1980 | year = 2006|edition= 2006 |pages= 132–226 | publisher = Just Done Productions| isbn= 1-920169-00-8}}</ref> and Rhodesia began targeting ZNDF outposts.<ref name="TDJ">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/154837592/|title=Rhodesia Destroys Zambian Base|work=The Daily Journal|location=Franklin, Indiana|date=31 October 1978|access-date=7 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180304055150/https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/154837592/|archive-date=4 March 2018|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Growing Zambian war weariness was a significant factor in Kaunda's influencing the guerrilla movements in Rhodesia to seek peace, resulting in a negotiated end to that conflict.<ref name=Hughes/> Kaunda also bowed to South African pressure and ordered PLAN to close its rear base facilities in Zambia by 1979.<ref name="LM">{{Cite book| title = Still Killing: Landmines in Southern Africa | last = Vines | first = Alex | publisher = Human Rights Watch | location = New York 
 | date = 1997 | isbn = 978-1564322067 | pages = 104–115, 143–144 }}</ref> At the same time, the ZNDF embarked on a 70 million kwacha modernisation program with assistance from the Soviet Union.<ref name=DeRoche>{{cite book|last=DeRoche|first=Andrew|title=Kenneth Kaunda, the United States and Southern Africa|date=2016|pages=322–342|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|location=London|isbn=978-1350054424}}</ref> The Soviets provided the Zambian Army with tanks, wheeled armored vehicles, and technical instruction on especially generous terms; the Zambian Air Force received its first fighter aircraft in the form of a [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21]] squadron at the same time.<ref name=DeRoche/>

===End of the Cold War and reforms===
In October 1980, two ZNDF officers, Brigadier Godfrey Miyanda and Colonel Patrick Mkandawire were arrested for planning a [[coup d'état]] with the support of an exiled Congolese insurgent movement, the [[Front for Congolese National Liberation]] (FLNC).<ref name=Atomic/> The plot involved arming the FLNC with ZNDF weaponry and later providing that movement with rear operating bases in Zambia as a reward for their efforts if the coup succeeded.<ref name=Atomic/> The ZNDF and the police apprehended the conspirators before they had opportunity to set the coup in motion and later raided the FLNC's base camp, detaining most of the insurgents.<ref name=Atomic/>

Due in part to the extreme secrecy surrounding the ZNDF's budget and the refusal of the [[United National Independence Party|UNIP]] to allow parliamentary debate on the topic, a number of problems concerning military funding were covered up rather than addressed.<ref name=Phiri/> For example, the facilities at ZNS training camps were so inadequate that typhoid outbreaks became common among recruits.<ref name=Phiri/> This was due to lack of funds to filter the camps' drinking water.<ref name=Phiri/> After a particularly serious typhoid outbreak between 1980 and 1981, the government was forced to suspend and later stop the compulsory national service programme.<ref name=Phiri/>

In November 1982, the ZNDF killed [[Adamson Mushala]] in an ambush outside Solwezi, although his followers continued to carry out operations under the leadership of Alexander Saimbwende.<ref name="Zambian"/> The DSC continued to pose a sufficient threat that an Italian mineral survey team had to be evacuated from Northwestern Province in 1984 after being targeted by the guerrillas.<ref name="Beggar"/> Nevertheless, the erosion of South African support ensured that its forces remained small and poorly armed.<ref name="Zambian"/> Mushala and later Saimbwende turned to ivory poaching to sustain their war effort against the ZNDF.<ref name="Zambian"/>

As the [[Mozambican Civil War]] intensified, the ZNDF had to contend with a number of armed incursions by [[Mozambican National Resistance]] (RENAMO) insurgents, who raided Zambian border towns in search of food and other supplies.<ref name="RENAMO">{{Cite web |url=http://insidethecoldwar.org/sites/default/files/documents/Department%20of%20State%2C%20Patterns%20of%20Global%20Terrorism%2C%201989_0.pdf |title=Patterns of Global Terrorism |access-date=2018-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170129050336/http://insidethecoldwar.org/sites/default/files/documents/Department%20of%20State%2C%20Patterns%20of%20Global%20Terrorism%2C%201989_0.pdf |archive-date=2017-01-29 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The ZNDF made it a policy to pursue RENAMO into neighbouring Mozambique in hot pursuit if necessary.<ref name="RENAMO"/>

In 1988, a second coup d'état attempt was planned, this time by Lieutenant General Christian Tembo and at least three other senior army officers.<ref name=Chan>{{cite book|last=Chan|first=Stephen|title=Kaunda and Southern Africa|date=1992|pages=8–15|publisher=[[I.B. Tauris]]|location=London|isbn=978-1850434900}}</ref> The conspirators were detained before they could carry it out, but this temporarily jeopardised relations between the Zambian government and the army.<ref name="Command"/>

The end of the [[Cold War]] brought a number of changes to the Zambian political situation and the ZNDF.<ref name=MacDonald>{{cite book|last=MacDonald|first=Brian|title=Military Spending in Developing Countries|url=https://archive.org/details/militaryspending0000macd|url-access=registration|date=1997|pages=[https://archive.org/details/militaryspending0000macd/page/79 79–92]|publisher=Carleton University Press|location=Ottawa|isbn=978-0886293147}}</ref> The ZNDF remained heavily in debt with the former Soviet bloc for military equipment it had purchased in the 1980s, as well as interest accrued.<ref name=MacDonald/> The army in particular was badly affected by the collapse of its Soviet technical training program, which left much of its heavy weapons unserviceable.<ref name=Howe>{{cite book|last=Howe|first=Herbert|title=Ambiguous Order: Military Forces in African States|date=2004|pages=[https://archive.org/details/ambiguousordermi0000howe/page/59 59–60]|publisher=Lynne Reinner Publishers|location=Boulder, Colorado|isbn=978-1588263155|url=https://archive.org/details/ambiguousordermi0000howe/page/59}}</ref>

Following mass protests over President Kaunda's decision to cut subsidies for maize meal and double maize prices in 1990,<ref name=Brancati>{{cite book|last=Brancati|first=Dawn|title=Democracy Protests: Origins, Features, and Significance|date=2016|page=52|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-1107137738}}</ref> Captain Mwamba Luchembe single-handedly seized the national radio station and [[1990 Zambian coup attempt|announced a coup d'état]].<ref name=Chan/> Luchembe held the radio station for only two hours before being arrested.<ref name=Coups>{{cite book|last=Onwumechili|first=Chuka|title=African Democratization and Military Coups|url=https://archive.org/details/africandemocrati00onwu|url-access=limited|date=1998|pages=[https://archive.org/details/africandemocrati00onwu/page/n43 31]–32|publisher=Praeger Books|location=Westport, Connecticut|isbn=978-0275963255}}</ref> Kaunda's unpopularity led to demonstrations in support of Luchembe, however, and the same day the president announced he would seek a referendum on democratic multi-party elections.<ref name=Brancati/> Kaunda granted a blanket amnesty to his political opponents as he prepared to accept the return of multi-party elections, which would shortly thereafter end his term of almost three decades.<ref name="Zambian"/> Among those who received [[amnesty]] was Alexander Saimbwende, who surrendered to the government and ended the DSC insurgency.<ref name="Zambian"/>

The [[1991 Zambian general election|1991 general election]] brought [[Frederick Chiluba]] and his opposition [[Movement for Multi-Party Democracy]] to power and ushered in a period of reforms for the ZNDF.<ref name="Command"/> The Chiluba government dismantled the ZNDF's unified command structure and allowed the army, ZNS, and air force to revert to independent commands.<ref name="Command"/> The system of political patronage introduced to the ZNDF by Kaunda was also abandoned.<ref name=Phiri/> A general demobilisation programme was instituted in the army, and parliament gained the ability to debate defence expenditure.<ref name=Phiri/> The Chiluba government immediately formed a [[Public Accounts Committee]] to reduce financial irregularities in the ZNDF, most of which were linked to corruption and abuse of the ministerial tender system.<ref name=Phiri/> Zambia's 1991 constitution formally reinstated the title ''Zambian Defence Force'' for the armed forces.<ref name="Constitution1">{{cite web|title=Zambia 1991 (rev 2009)|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|url=https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Zambia_2009?lang=en|location=Austin, Texas
|publisher=Comparative Constitutions Project|date=2009|access-date=15 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104000803/https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Zambia_2009?lang=en|archive-date=4 November 2016}}</ref>

In October 1997, Captain [[Steven Lungu]] seized control of the national radio station and [[1997 Zambian coup attempt|announced a coup d'état]].<ref name=Coups/> Lungu dismissed the chiefs of the army and police and announced that he was forming a new Government of National Redemption.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news|title=Zambia Says a Coup Is Over In 3 Hours, Without Injury|last=McNeil|first=Donald|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/29/world/zambia-says-a-coup-is-over-in-3-hours-without-injury.html|work=The New York Times|location=New York City|date=29 October 1997|access-date=19 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902152851/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/29/world/zambia-says-a-coup-is-over-in-3-hours-without-injury.html|archive-date=2 September 2017}}</ref> He gave President Chiluba an ultimatum of three hours to surrender or face death.<ref name="NYT"/> Loyal ZDF troops responded by storming the radio station, capturing Lungu and five other coup plotters.<ref name="NYT"/>

In early August 2022, the government announced that it would recruit up to 5,000 military personnel by October of the same year.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Times |date=4 August 2022 |title=Govt to recruit 5,000 military personnel by October 2022 |url=https://www.times.co.zm/?p=118518 |access-date=4 August 2022 |website=times.co.zm}}</ref>

==Command==
In 1976 Zambia adopted a unified command system, in which the three Service Chiefs reported to a [[Commander of the Defence Force (Zambia)|Commander of the Zambian National Defence Force]] (ZNDF).  The Commander of Zambia Air Force at the time, Air Commodore Peter Zuze, was promoted to Lieutenant-General and appointed as Deputy Commander of the ZNDF.<ref>Lungu, H. & Ngoma, N. (2005) The Zambian military—trials, tribulations and hope.  In: Rupiya, M. (ed.) ''Evolutions and Revolutions: A Contemporary History of Militaries in Southern Africa''. Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria: 331-329.  {{ISBN|1-919913-82-3}}</ref> However, the Zambia Air Force and Zambia National Service resented this system because Army officers filled most senior appointments in the ZNDF and the system was ended in 1980.  The country then reverted to the command system inherited at independence where Service Chiefs report to the Head of State through a Minister of Defence.<ref name="dtic.mil">Chewe, Innocent (2014) An Examination of Professionalism in the Zambia Army, thesis presented to the Faculty of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master Of Military Art and Science, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA613529</ref>

The current (2021) Command is:

- President and Commander-in-Chief: [[Hakainde Hichilema]] (from 24 August 2021)

- Defence Minister: Ambrose Lwiji Lufuma (from 27 August 2021)

- [[Permanent secretary|Permanent Secretary]] for Defence: Norman Chipakupaku

- Commander Zambia Army: Lieut.-General [[Dennis Sitali Alibuzwi]] (from 29 August 2021)

- Deputy Commander Zambia Army: Major-General Geoffrey Zyeele (from 29 August 2021)

- Commander Zambia Air Force: Lieut.-General Collins Barry (from 29 August 2021)

- Deputy Commander Zambia Air Force: Major General Oscar Nyoni

- Commandant Zambia National Service: Lieut.-General Patrick Kayombo Solochi

- Deputy Commandant Zambia National Service: Major-General Reuben Mwewa

- Commandant Defence Services and Staff Training College: Brigadier General Benson Musonda.<ref>Zande, S. (2017) 'SADC Joint Military Training Vital - Chama', ''Times of Zambia'' (Ndola), 29 August 2017.</ref>

==Zambia Army==

===Organisation===
The current Army organisation is:<ref name="dtic.mil"/><ref>Griffiths, J.L. (2014) ‘Zambia Defence Force’, Defenceweb.com, 8 October 2014, accessed 10 January 2017, <http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36502:zambia-defence-force&catid=119:african-militaries {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170227062153/http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36502:zambia-defence-force&catid=119:african-militaries |date=2017-02-27 }}></ref><ref>Lungu H. & Ngoma, N. (2005) The Zambian military—trials, tribulations and hope.  In: Rupiya, M. (ed.) Evolutions and Revolutions: A Contemporary History of Militaries in Southern Africa. Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria: 331-329.  {{ISBN|1-919913-82-3}}</ref>

Three [[Brigade combat team|infantry brigades]] -

* '''1 Brigade''', Lusaka<ref>Sakala, Y. (2014) ‘64 Armoured Regiment Win 2014 Army Athletics’, Times of Zambia, 28 March 2014</ref>
* '''2 Brigade''', [[Kabwe]] (during July 2016 the Brigade Commander was Brigadier Martin Banda)
* '''3 Brigade''', [[Ndola]] (during March 2017 the Brigade Commander was Brigadier Laston Chabinga)

With the following units:
* 64 Armoured Regiment (tank). U.S. State Department [[International Military Education and Training]] records from FY-2006 indicate a Zambian officer attended from 64 Armoured Regiment at Mikango Barracks, east [[Lusaka]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/t/pm/rls/rpt/fmtrpt/2007/92084.htm|title=IV. Country Training Activities--Africa|website=U.S. Department of State|access-date=Feb 16, 2019|df=mdy-all}}</ref>
* 17 Cavalry Regiment (armoured reconnaissance) 
* 10 Medium Regiment, Kalewa Barracks, Ndola (also given as an artillery regiment/brigade of two Fire Direction Artillery Battalions and one Multiple Rocket Launchers battalion)
* 1 Engineer Regiment, Mufulira
* 6 Construction Regiment, raised March 2017?<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-03-11 |title=Zambia : Zambia Army establishes a Construction brigade |url=https://www.lusakatimes.com/2017/03/11/zambia-army-establishes-construction-brigade/ |access-date=2024-03-01 |language=en-GB}}</ref>
* 1 mechanised battalion
* 6 light infantry battalions, titled 1 to 6 Battalions Zambia Regiment
* 1 Commando Battalion (special forces), Ndola
* 48 Marine Unit, Kawambwa, raised July 2015.<ref name="lusakavoice.com"/><ref>Siame, N. (2015) [https://www.lusakatimes.com/2015/07/27/president-lungu-launches-marine-unit-nchelenge-district/ 'Marine Unit Launched'], ''Times of Zambia'' (Lusaka), 27 July 2015.</ref>
* 3 reserve infantry battalions (7 to 9 Battalions Zambia Regiment<ref>For example, see Banda, G. (2009) 'Ninth Battalion, Zambia', ''Zambia Post'', Friday 25 December 2009, (http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=3598 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100102175142/http://postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=3598 |date=2010-01-02 }})</ref>)
* Support units (logistics, transport, medical, ordnance, electrical and mechanical engineering)
* Specialist schools (armour, artillery, engineers and signals)

===Equipment===

====Small arms====
* [[RPG-7]]<ref name="jones2009">Jones, Richard D. ''Jane's Infantry Weapons 2009/2010''. Jane's Information Group; 35 edition (January 27, 2009). {{ISBN|978-0-7106-2869-5}}.</ref>
* [[FN FAL]]<ref name="jones2009"/>
* [[Heckler & Koch G3]]<ref name="jones2009"/>
* [[AKM]]<ref name="jones2009"/>
* [[AK-47]]<ref name="jones2009"/>
* [[Sterling submachine gun]]<ref name="jones2009"/>
* [[DShK]]<ref name="jones2009"/>
* [[PK machine gun]]<ref name="jones2009"/>

====Vehicles and towed artillery====
{| class="wikitable"6
! style="text-align: left;"|
! style="text-align: left;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left;"|Type
! style="text-align: left;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left;"|In service
! style="text-align: left;"|Notes
|-
| [[T-54/55]]
| {{USSR}}
| Main Battle Tank
|
| 25<ref name="Arms Trade Register">{{cite web|url=http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/trade_register.php|title=Arms Trade Register|publisher=SIPRI|access-date=22 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100414022558/http://armstrade.sipri.org/armstrade/page/trade_register.php|archive-date=14 April 2010|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| Deliveries in 1976 and 1981.
|-
| [[PT-76]]
| {{USSR}}
| Light tank
| 
| 50<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|
|-
| [[BTR-80]]
| {{RUS}}
| Armoured Personnel Carrier
|
| 20<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.armyrecognition.com/weapons_defence_industry_military_technology_uk/analysis_zambia_defence_forces_unveil_new_armored_vehicles_and_military_equipment.html | title=Analysis: Zambia Defence Forces unveil new armored vehicles and military equipment &#124; weapons defence industry military technology UK &#124; analysis focus army defence military industry army | access-date=2021-09-13 | archive-date=2021-09-13 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210913120421/https://www.armyrecognition.com/weapons_defence_industry_military_technology_uk/analysis_zambia_defence_forces_unveil_new_armored_vehicles_and_military_equipment.html | url-status=dead }}</ref>
|
|-
| [[BTR-70]]
| {{USSR}}
| Armoured Personnel Carrier
|
| 20<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|
|-
| [[BTR-60]]
| {{USSR}}
| Armoured Personnel Carrier
| 
| 13<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
| 
|-
| [[WZ551]]
| {{CHN}}
| Armoured Personnel Carrier
| 6X6 ''WZ551B'' variant.<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
| 20
|
|-
| [[Buffel]]
| {{ZAF}}
| Armoured Personnel Carrier
| ''Rhino'' variant.
| 1<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|
|-
| [[Ratel IFV|Ratel]]
| {{ZAF}}
| Infantry Fighting Vehicle
| 
| 14<ref name=DA>{{Cite web|url=https://www.businesslive.co.za/book/3372.html/|title=BusinessLIVE|website=www.businesslive.co.za|access-date=Feb 16, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190217030400/https://www.businesslive.co.za/book/3372.html/|archive-date=February 17, 2019|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>
|
|-
| [[Tigr (Russian military vehicle)|GAZ Tigr]]
| {{RUS}}
| Infantry Mobility Vehicle
| 
| 22<ref>{{cite web | url=https://vpk.name/en/494201_tiger-armored-vehicles-armed-with-german-machine-guns-in-zambia.html | title=Tiger armored vehicles armed with German machine guns in Zambia }}</ref>
|
|-
| [[Ferret armoured car|Ferret]]
| {{flag|United Kingdom}}
| Armoured car
|
| 28
| Inherited from [[Northern Rhodesia]]n security forces.<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|-
| [[BRDM-2]]
| {{USSR}}
| Scout car
|
| 44
| Acquired in 1981.<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|-
| [[BRDM-1]]
| {{USSR}}
| Scout car
|
| 44
| Acquired in 1980.<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|-
| [[122 mm howitzer 2A18 (D-30)|D-30]]
| {{USSR}}
| Howitzer
|
| 24<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|
|-
| [[130 mm towed field gun M1954 (M-46)|M-46]]
| {{CHN}}
| Howitzer
| ''Type 59''
| 18<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|
|-
| [[Cardom|Elbit Spear MK2]]
| {{ISR}}
| self-propelled Mortar
| ''Elbit Spear MK2''
| 6<ref name="janes.com">{{cite web | url=https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/zambian-military-parades-new-equipment | title=Zambian military parades new equipment }}</ref>
| self-propelled variant of the Cardom mortar
|-
| [[ATMOS 2000|ATMOS M46]]
| {{ISR}}
| self-propelled Howitzer
| ''Elbit Spear MK2''
| 6<ref name="janes.com"/>
| mounted on Tatra trucks
|-
| [[BM-21]]
| {{USSR}}
| [[multiple rocket launcher|MLRS]]
| 
| 50<ref name="Arms Trade Register"/>
|
|-
|}

==Zambia Air Force==
{{main| Zambian Air Force}}
The Zambia Air Force is a small air force that developed from the Northern Rhodesian Air Wing as well as the former Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland Air Force.  In recent years the aircraft inventory has largely been updated with Chinese aircraft reflecting the increasing closeness between the Zambian Defence Force and China.  During 1999 eight [[Hongdu JL-8|Karakorum-8]] jet trainers were delivered and in 2006 the Zambia Air Force received two [[Xian MA60]] and five [[Yakovlev Yak-12]] transport aircraft from China.  During March 2012 a further eight K-8 were received.<ref>'Zambian Air Force receives more K-8 trainers', DefenceWeb, 16 April 2012.</ref> Four [[Harbin Z-9]] helicopters were delivered in June 2012, with a further four delivered by March 2013 (when one of the new aircraft was lost in an accident, see below).<ref name="DefenceWeb 2013">'Zambian Air Force Z-9 crashes', DefenceWeb, 14 March 2013.</ref>

In April 2014 six [[Hongdu L-15]] Falcon supersonic lead-in fighter/trainer jets were ordered from China, the first arriving in December 2015. Around the same time orders were placed for six [[SIAI-Marchetti SF.260|SIAI-Marchetti SF.260TW]] trainer aircraft, one [[Alenia C-27J Spartan]] transport aircraft, and a number of Russian-made [[Mil Mi-17]] helicopters.<ref>Nkala, O. (2015) 'Hongdu Prepares to Deliver First Light Attack/Trainer Jet to Zambia', Defensenews.com, 31 December 2015.</ref>  These orders were expected to be delivered during 2016.<ref>'As Zambia Air Force Grows, it Plays a Regional Role', ''Africa Defence Forum'', 19 July 2016, accessed 25 April 2017, <http://adf-magazine.com/?p=6306 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161113112202/http://adf-magazine.com/?p=6306 |date=2016-11-13 }}></ref>

===Recent aircraft losses===
* On 13 March 2013 a [[Harbin Z-9]] helicopter crashed while attempting to land at Lusaka City Airport.  The pilot, Major Misapa Mukupa, was killed, and the co-pilot, Lieutenant Kenneth Chilala, was injured. The helicopter was taking part in Youth Day celebrations and it was suggested the accident was caused by a national flag attached to the aircraft coming loose and then entangled in the tail rotor.<ref name="DefenceWeb 2013"/>
* On 15 January 2014 a [[Saab Safari|Saab MFI.17 Supporter]] trainer crashed some 40&nbsp;km from Livingstone.  Both crew were killed.<ref>'Zambian Air Force MFI-17 crashes', DefenceWeb, 20 January 2014.</ref><ref name="DefenceWeb 2014">'Deputy Zambian Air Force Chief killed in MFI-15 crash', DefenceWeb, 20 May 2014.</ref>
* On 19 May 2014 a [[Saab Safari|Saab MFI.15]] crashed in Lusaka West. Both crew were killed.  The crew were the Deputy Commander ZAF, Major-General Muliokela Muliokela, and Colonel Brian Mweene.<ref>'Zambia's Deputy Air Force Chief Killed in Plane Crash', Agence France Presse via Defensenews.com, 19 May 2014.</ref><ref name="DefenceWeb 2014"/>
* On 14 September 2015 an [[Agusta-Bell AB.205]] helicopter crashed near Sinazongwe, apparently while returning from taking Defence Minister Richwell Siamunene on a private trip.<ref>'Crashed ZAF Chopper Was Returning From Taking Minister to His Village', ''Zambian Watchdog'' (Lusaka), 15 September 2015.</ref> Five people were injured.<ref>'No Fatalities as ZAF Chopper Plunges', ''Zambia Reports'' (Lusaka), 15 September 2015.</ref>
* On 28 March 2022 two Zambian Air Force pilots, Colonel Lyson Siame, and Second Lieutenant Kalasa Bwalya, were killed when their SF-260TW aircraft (registration AF-545) crashed 38 kilometres north of Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport near Livingstone.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-03-29 |title=Two dead in Zambian SF-260 crash {{!}} defenceWeb |url=https://www.defenceweb.co.za/aerospace/aerospace-aerospace/two-dead-in-zambian-sf-260-crash/ |access-date=2024-03-01 |language=en-ZA}}</ref>

==Zambia National Service==
{{Main|Zambia National Service}}
The Zambia National Service is a defence wing that is mandated to train citizens to serve the republic, develop infrastructure and enhance national food security and contribute to the social economic development. Zambia National Service (ZNS) personnel have been included in peacekeeping contingents deployed by Zambia to the United Nation's MINUSCA mission in the Central African Republic.<ref>Mwenya, G.(2014) 'Zambian Peacekeeping Troops Lack Funds to Deploy to CAR', ''Zambia Reports'', 25 November 2014.</ref>

Six months of training for 400 youths was planned for 2016.  This was to include 200 males to be trained at Chiwoko ZNS Training Centre, Katete, Eastern Province, and 200 females to be trained at the Kitwe ZNS training camp.<ref>'400 Youths to Undergo ZNS Training', ''Times of Zambia'', 27 July 2015.</ref><ref>Musonda, A. (2015) 'Zambian UN Troops to Central African Republic', ''Zambia Reports'', 29 April 2015.</ref>

==United Nations Peacekeeping Missions==
Zambia has been an active participant in several UN peacekeeping operations, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.  Zambian personnel have been fated to be caught up in some of the more dramatic incidents of recent UN Peacekeeping in Africa: witnessing the [[Kibeho Massacre]] in Rwanda during April 1995; having large numbers of Zambian peacekeepers taken hostage by rebels in Sierra Leone during 2000;<ref>Ashby, Phil (2003) ''Unscathed: Escape from Sierra Leone'', Pan Macmillan Ltd, London.</ref> and with troops caught up in fighting between Sudanese and South Sudanese forces in the contested Abyei area during May 2011.<ref name="africareview.com">Mbao, E. (2011) 'Zambia defends Abyei peacekeepers', ''Africa Review'' (Kenya), 6 June 2011, accessed 20 December 2016, <http://www.africareview.com/news/Zambia-defends-Abyei-peacekeepers/979180-1176182-format-xhtml-abqrq0/index.html{{Dead link|date=July 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} {{cite web |url=http://www.africareview.com/news/Zambia-defends-Abyei-peacekeepers/979180-1176182-format-xhtml-abqrq0/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170206185225/http://www.africareview.com/news/Zambia-defends-Abyei-peacekeepers/979180-1176182-format-xhtml-abqrq0/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 6, 2017 |title=Unknown |access-date=July 19, 2020 }}></ref>  Despite these crises Zambian forces have generally performed well and earned a reputation as effective peacekeepers.<ref>Lungu H. & Ngoma, N. (2005) The Zambian military—trials, tribulations and hope.  In: Rupiya, M. (ed.) ''Evolutions and Revolutions: A Contemporary History of Militaries in Southern Africa''. Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria: 331-329.  {{ISBN|1-919913-82-3}}</ref><ref name="dtic.mil"/>

UN missions which have seen the deployment of battalions of Zambian troops, or other significant contingents, include the following.

'''UNAVEM III''' (United Nations Angola Verification Mission III, February 1995 to June 1997)

A Zambian battalion was deployed to southern Angola, based in the town of Menongue.<ref>{{UN doc |do |body=S |type=D |document_number=304 |title=Progress Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Angola Verification Mission (UNAVEM III) |date=14 April 1997 |accessdate=2 January 2019}}</ref> Seven Zambian peacekeepers died during the UNAVEM III deployment.<ref name="un.org">UN Peacekeeping, Fatalities by Nationality and Mission - up to 30 November 2018, accessed 2 January 2019, <https://peacekeeping.un.org/sites/default/files/statsbynationalitymission_2_19.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190102143130/https://peacekeeping.un.org/sites/default/files/statsbynationalitymission_2_19.pdf |date=2019-01-02 }}></ref>

'''UNAMIR''' (United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda)

Three Zambian fatalities.<ref name="un.org 2">
UN Peacekeeping, Fatalities by Nationality and Mission - up to 31 October 2016, accessed 18 November 2016, 
<http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/fatalities/documents/stats_2.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170113115246/http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/fatalities/documents/stats_2.pdf |date=2017-01-13 }}>
</ref>

'''UNAMSIL''' (United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone)

Thirty-four Zambian fatalities.<ref name="un.org 2"/>

* Zambatt 1, deployed April 2000.  Shortly after deployment some 200 Zambian peacekeepers were taken hostage by rebels and some were later murdered.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Perlez |first=Jane |last2=Wren |first2=Christopher S. |date=2000-05-06 |title=U.N. Reports Rebels Now Hold 300 of Its Troops in Sierra Leone |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/05/06/world/un-reports-rebels-now-hold-300-of-its-troops-in-sierra-leone.html |access-date=2024-03-01 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
* Zambatt 2.
* Zambatt 3 (Lt. Col. MS Sitwala).  On 5 January 2002 six personnel were killed and another 12 injured in an accidental explosion while transferring surrendered mortar bombs to storage.<ref>UNAMSIL Press Briefing, 08 Jan 2002, Report from UN Mission in Sierra Leone, published on 08 Jan 2002, accessed 19 December 2016, <http://reliefweb.int/report/sierra-leone/unamsil-press-briefing-08-jan-2002 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224053225/http://reliefweb.int/report/sierra-leone/unamsil-press-briefing-08-jan-2002 |date=2017-02-24 }}</ref>
* Zambatt 4, deployed mid-2002, 830 strong.<ref>'Zambian peacekeepers decorated in Sierra Leone', Panapress, 16 November 2002, accessed 6 February 2017, <http://www.panapress.com/Zambian-peacekeepers-decorated-in-Sierra-Leone--13-468570-17-lang2-index.html {{cite web |url=http://www.panapress.com/Zambian-peacekeepers-decorated-in-Sierra-Leone--13-468570-17-lang2-index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170206191653/http://www.panapress.com/Zambian-peacekeepers-decorated-in-Sierra-Leone--13-468570-17-lang2-index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 6, 2017 |title=Unknown |access-date=July 19, 2020}}></ref>
* Zambatt 5.
* Zambatt 6.
* Zambatt 7 (Col. John Siame) – 821 personnel; deployed February 2004 to ...<ref name="UNAMSIL 2004">UNAMSIL, 2004, ‘SRSG Decorates Zambian Peace Keepers with UN Peace Medal’, press release, 28 May.</ref> (Note: Sgt [Ms] Megani Forry died of natural causes during deployment, early 2004).<ref name="UNAMSIL 2004"/>

'''UNMIS''' (United Nations Mission in the Sudan)

Three Zambian fatalities.<ref>
UN Peacekeeping, Fatalities by Nationality and Mission - up to 31 October 2016, accessed 18 November 2016, 
http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/fatalities/documents/stats_2.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170113115246/http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/fatalities/documents/stats_2.pdf |date=2017-01-13 }}
</ref> Four Zambian peacekeepers were wounded on 10 May 2011,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-05-11 |title=Zambia : Four Zambian U.N peacekeepers shot in Sudan |url=https://www.lusakatimes.com/2011/05/11/zambian-peacekeepers-shot-sudan/ |access-date=2024-03-01 |language=en-GB}}</ref> shortly before the independence of South Sudan and before an outbreak of fighting when the Zambians were criticised for not better protecting civilians.<ref name="africareview.com"/>
* Zambatt 1 - Deployed for six months, to June 2010.
* Zambatt 2 - 523 personnel strong; deployed June 2010.<ref>'Army Deploys Peace-Keepers', ''Times of Zambia'', 30 June 2010.</ref>

'''MINUSCA''' (United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic)

* Zambatt 1 (Lt. Col. Kelvin Chiyangi<ref>{{Citation |title=Zambian Battalion in Central African Republic _ Part 1 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EV60HbhY5RA |access-date=2024-03-01 |language=en}}</ref>), 750 personnel, including 50 Special Forces, deployed 30 April 2015 to April 2016.<ref>Nkala, O. (2015) ‘Zambia Begins Delayed UN Mission to CAR’, Defence News (web site), 20 May 2015</ref>
* Zambatt 2, deployed 22 April 2016.<ref>Cancio, F. (2016) ‘Zambia: 500 Soldiers off for Peace Keeping in CAR’, Centrafrican News Agency, 23 April 2016, accessed 17 December 2016, <http://www.lanouvellecentrafrique.org/2016/01/21/rwanda-rdf-officers-in-car-decorated/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170207031525/http://www.lanouvellecentrafrique.org/2016/01/21/rwanda-rdf-officers-in-car-decorated/ |date=2017-02-07 }}></ref>
* Zambatt 3 (Lt. Col. John Banda), 750 personnel.  Undertook pre-deployment training under Zambian, United States and British instructors,<ref>'UK Government Supports Training of Zambia Peacekeeping Defence Forces', UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office press release via PR Newswire (New York), 24 March 2017, accessed 25 March 2017, <http://allafrica.com/stories/201703250093.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170421194543/http://allafrica.com/stories/201703250093.html |date=2017-04-21 }}></ref> before deploying in April 2017.<ref>March, M. (2017) 'U.S. Army Africa chaplains conduct training for deploying Zambian counterparts', United States Africa Command, 17 April 2017, <http://www.africom.mil/media-room/Article/28815/u-s-army-africa-chaplains-conduct-training-for-deploying-zambian-counterparts {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718115233/http://www.africom.mil/media-room/Article/28815/u-s-army-africa-chaplains-conduct-training-for-deploying-zambian-counterparts |date=2018-07-18 }}></ref>
* Zambatt 4 (Lt. Col. Ngosa), deployed during April 2018.<ref>'U.S. Supports Zambian Peacekeeping Training', U.S. Embassy Zambia, 4 April 2018, <https://zm.usembassy.gov/zambian-peacekeeping-training/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718144526/https://zm.usembassy.gov/zambian-peacekeeping-training/ |date=2018-07-18 }}></ref>
* Zambatt 5 (Lt. Col. Tembo <ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-13 |title=COVID-19: Zambatt contingent female engagement team organizes sensitization for local women |url=https://minusca.unmissions.org/en/covid-19-zambatt-contingent-female-engagement-team-organizes-sensitization-local-women |access-date=2024-03-01 |website=MINUSCA |language=en}}</ref>) was to deploy in mid-2019.<ref>Kaluwa, B. (2019) 'Zambian Troops Counseled', Zambian National Broadcasting Corporation, 
27 April 2019, <https://www.znbc.co.zm/news/zambian-troops-counseled/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230621025300/https://www.znbc.co.zm/news/zambian-troops-counseled/ |date=2023-06-21 }}>, accessed 7 January 2020.</ref>
* Zambatt 6 (Lt. Col. Paul Sapezo<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-10 |title=Birao: MINUSCA Zambian contingent provides shelter for a vulnerable family |url=https://minusca.unmissions.org/en/birao-minusca%C2%A0zambian%C2%A0contingent-provides-shelter-vulnerable-family |access-date=2024-03-01 |website=MINUSCA |language=en}}</ref>) was scheduled to deploy to the Central African Republic in 2020.<ref>'Zambia Defense Force Completes U.S. Global Peace Operations Initiative Training', One Love Zambia, posted on 5 December 2019, <https://onelovezambia.com/zambia-defense-force-completes-u-s-global-peace-operations-initiative-training/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191208111204/https://onelovezambia.com/zambia-defense-force-completes-u-s-global-peace-operations-initiative-training/ |date=2019-12-08 }}>, accessed 7 January 2020.</ref>
* Zambatt 7 (Lt. Col Jeff Mwanahing’ombe) deployed in 2021 and returned home during September 2022.<ref>Kaumba, Kenneth (2022) 'Zambian Peacekeepers Return Home', ZNBC website, 3 September 2022, https://www.znbc.co.zm/news/zambian-peacekeepers-return-home/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031074648/https://www.znbc.co.zm/news/zambian-peacekeepers-return-home/ |date=2022-10-31 }}</ref>
* Zambatt 8 deployed to the CAR during September 2022.<ref>Kaumba 2022</ref>

During 2017 Warrant Officer 2 Boyd Chibuye died whilst deployed in the Central African Republic.<ref>Phiri, C. (2018) 'Three Zambian Peacekeepers Honoured Posthumously', ''Zambia Reports'', 5 June 2018, <https://zambiareports.com/2018/06/05/three-zambian-peacekeepers-honoured-posthumously/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718114520/https://zambiareports.com/2018/06/05/three-zambian-peacekeepers-honoured-posthumously/ |date=2018-07-18 }}></ref>

On 4 December 2017 a Zambian police member of the UN mission was reported injured in an attack by anti-Balaka fighters in Bria, northern CAR.  One Mauritanian policeman was killed and two others injured in this attack.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-12-04 |title=Targeted attack results in death of MINUSCA peacekeeper in Bria |url=https://minusca.unmissions.org/en/targeted-attack-results-death-minusca-peacekeeper-bria |access-date=2024-03-01 |website=MINUSCA |language=en}}</ref>

Staff Sergeant Derrick Sichilyango of the Zambian Contingent was killed in a road traffic accident in November 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-11-23 |title=Zambia : Fallen Zambian Peacekeeper honored at ceremony in the Central African Republic |url=https://www.lusakatimes.com/2018/11/23/fallen-zambian-peacekeeper-honored-at-ceremony-in-the-central-african-republic/ |access-date=2024-03-01 |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Staff Sergeant Patrick Simasiku Wamunyima and Staff Sergeant Alex Mudenda Musanda, both serving with MINUSCA, died during 2019 and were honoured on the 2020 International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers with the posthumous award of the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal.<ref>'UN Observes International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers on 29 May 2020', press release, United Nations Information Centre Lusaka, 27 May 2020, <https://lusaka.sites.unicnetwork.org/tag/peacekeeping/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201020203436/https://lusaka.sites.unicnetwork.org/tag/peacekeeping/ |date=2020-10-20 }}>, accessed 20 September 2020.</ref>

==SADC Missions==

'''SAPMIL''' (SADC Preventive Mission in the Kingdom of Lesotho)

During November 2017 a small [[Southern Africa Development Community]] (SADC) standby force was deployed to Lesotho to assist that country through an internal security crisis following the assassination of the Lesotho Defence Force Commander, Lieut.-General Khoantle Motšomotšo, on 5 September 2017. This SADC force included a 207-strong military element which had a Zambian Deputy Commander and which included 36 infantry and nine logistics personnel from Zambia.<ref>Kabi, P. (2017) 'SADC Standby Force Deployment Delayed', ''Lesotho Times'', 25 November 2017.</ref><ref>'SADC Contingent Force from Zambia Arrives in Lesotho', Government statement, Kingdom of Lesotho (Maseru), 25 November 2017.</ref>  The mission wrapped up in November 2018 after successfully stabilising the Kingdom.<ref>Kabi, Pascalinah (2018) 'SADC Standby Force Has Stabilised Lesotho', ''Lesotho Times'' (Maseru), 3 March 2018.</ref><ref>[https://lestimes.com/sadc-troops-to-go/ 'SADC Troops to Go'], ''Lesotho Times'' (Maseru), 24 August 2018.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-02-11 |title=AU conducts an Assessment on the SADC Preventive Mission in Lesotho (SAPMIL) - Lesotho {{!}} ReliefWeb |url=https://reliefweb.int/report/lesotho/au-conducts-assessment-sadc-preventive-mission-lesotho-sapmil |access-date=2024-03-01 |website=reliefweb.int |language=en}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Zambia]]
* [[Zambia Air Force]]
* [[Zambia Army]]
* [[Bibliography of the history of Zambia]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Zambia topics}}
{{Military of Africa}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Military of Zambia]]
[[Category:Armies by country]]