ABSTRACT
In early 1967, Tshombe was tried in absentia and sentenced to death. Mobutu then turned his attention to the mercenaries, as their loyalty, if they understood the meaning of the word, rested with Tshombe, the man whom they had served for many years. Mad Mike Hoare was considered to be the mercenary chief closest to Tshombe, and thus Hoare was the first to receive his termination letter from Mobutu. Once Hoare and his trusted South African mercenaries left Congo, they were replaced by a much smaller group of Italian and Spanish soldiers of fortune. The mercenaries had been a significant element of Congo's defense for the previous five years, and each Commando had been its own country, accountable to no one. The mercenaries' battle plan was to use Schramme's Yumbi base to launch three simultaneous attacks on Kisangani, Kindu, and Bukavu.
