Operation Burgundy

[Oceania]

French Army: Operation Burgundy

Section 1. Background
​

The Chief of the Defence Staff (CEMA) has authorised Operation Burgundy, a military operation conducted by 750 Army soldiers to take back control of Paris, under the state of emergency directive issued by the President.

Section 2. Orders
​

Regular infantry soldiers will be deployed into Paris, seizing control of key communications, energy and strategic locations, moving from the suburbs into the centre. They will then reach the centre of Paris, where an estimated 2,500 protestors are, and proceed to clear the area using National Police assistance, using force if needed.

The Operation will also have 250 soldiers assist in the evacuation of chanceries and embassies, the protection of diplomatic files, and protection of routes to airports to leave Paris.

The operation will last no longer than 1 week.

Section 3. Personnel
​

No more than 500 soldiers will be required for the operation.

 

[Oceania]

Flying on an Air France flight to Corsica, Thierry Burkhard, Chief of the Defence Staff, would order the Operation to commence. He would also have it to include the evacuation of embassies from Paris, and a further 250 soldiers was added to evacuate embassies.

Jamie Odinson JamieA

 

[Oceania]

French soldiers would begin the clearing of Paris. With the focus shifting to evacuating embassies, and with most of the protestors concentrating in the centre, they rapidly reached the 7th arrondissement, where they faced a crowd of hundreds of protestors quickly. With only basic training, they could only retreat, with no intention of firing on French citizens and with no other way of subduing the threat.

 

[Oceania]

In the Air France flight high above Lyon, General Burkhard paced around the communications room.

"Where are we with Burgundy?" he asked General Gomart, Chief of Staff of the Army and commander of Operation Burgundy.

"Soldiers have fallen back to the centre, only with control of the Elysee, the Palais Bourbon- the seat of the National Assembly- the Luxembourg Palace (the seat of the Senate), Notre-Dame and the Louvre. We also are fighting for control of the streets around these areas. The National Police has some 1,200 officers supporting our 750."

Burkhard sighed, and sat down. He stared out of the window, looking down at Lyon. Then he turned to Gomart.

"General, send an order to our soldiers. Shoot to kill."

Gomart looked up. "Shoot to kill?"

Burkhard didn't answer. He stood up, nodded to his general, and marched out.

---

In Paris, Corporal Samuel Matthieu stood behind the gates of the Elysee, rifle pointed at the protestors outside, screaming and shouting insults at the soldiers

"Traitors! Bastards! Enemies of the people!"

Then the radio crackled to life. "Erm, Corporal, we have an order from CEMA. Shoot to kill. I repeat, order from CEMA- shoot to kill."

Samuel hesitated for a moment, then replied. "What was that?"

"CEMA order. Shoot to kill, over."

"Copy that. Shoot to kill."

He turned to his colleagues, rifles also pointed. "Shoot to kill."

They aimed their guns at the blur of the crowd, tightened their grip, and fired.

 

[Oceania]

"Erm, Bravo 6? What can you see from up there?"

Bravo 6 was a Eurocopter Fennec of the National Police, sent to monitor the situation from the air.

"India 3, casualties are in the 20s I should think. The protestors have fled and are advancing to the Palais Bourbon now, over."

"Copy, protestors moving to Bourbon. Alpha 5, Alpha 5, we have protestors coming your way."

Captain Botrel, commanding the defence of the Palais Bourbon, grimaced. He hoped that they wouldn't come- there were already about a thousand rioters outside, and even a few shots hadn't helped.

He turned to his deputy, Lieutenant Balzac. "Get the soldiers inside and get some helicopters. I want the deputies out of here as soon as possible!"

As the deputies were being filed out into waiting helicopters, there was a bang outside. Everybody turned to see what was going on.

Captain Botrel rushed out, followed by the remaining soldiers who had stayed to defend the palace. "They've breached the building!"

 

[Oceania]

An approximate map of the situation:

Orange is contested territories
Blue is government-held territories
Yellow is rioter-held territories

If a region is not marked in any of the above colours, it has little to no protestors. This is an approximation.

 

[Oceania]

All hell had broken loose at the Palais Bourbon. Most of the deputies had been evacuated, but a small minority, some 50, were still trapped on the grounds of the Palace when the protestors broke through the barricade.

"India 3, India 3! Breach of Bourbon. I repeat, the Palais Bourbon has been breached!"

Three Puma helicopters were waiting on the grounds, guarded by twenty soldiers. The deputies rushed in, as the soldiers formed a barrier, guns raised, at the protestors.

"Shoot to kill, shoot to kill. Out."

The soldiers nodded. They knew what to do.

As soon as they had fired, the tables turned. Now the rioters were trying to get the other way, stampeding back into the Palace and safety. But more officers had appeared, and they also had their guns out. One had a megaphone.

"Rioters, rioters! Do not move. I repeat, do not move from where you are. We have guns pointed at you."

But this only heightened the fear, as the rioters rushed out to wherever they could. There were still some deputies and soldiers on the ground, but nobody was thinking about them anymore. They were thinking about their lives.

 

[Oceania]

General Burkhard, in Corsica, watched reports come in from officers across Paris. He turned to the Army Chief, General Gomart.

"How many more soldiers can we deploy?"

Gomart shrugged. "Anything from 500 to 750 soldiers. Though it'll take some time-"

"Get as many as we can!" Burkhard snapped. Gomart nodded, and turned to his radio.

"Bring in all the reinforcements we have, Colonel. All of them."

 

[Oceania]

Situation Report
FOR FRENCH EYES ONLY
TOP SECRET
​

1. Some 300 arrests have been made since the start of Operation Burgundy, and 784 overall. The estimated number of protestors has not increased, so we can be sure of victory soon at this rate.

2. Most of the important, symbolic and strategic locations have been taken. A route has been cleared from Orly to the city centre, allowing further reinforcements and international missions to enter.

3. The estimated time to clear all of Paris is two weeks; all of France, four weeks.

4. Further information will come as they come into the Hexagone.

 

[Oceania]

With most of the protestors now dispersed and unorganised, they were sitting ducks for the reinforcements that came in, driving many of them back. The National Police came in from the suburbs, and there was nowhere for the rioters to hide.

With the situation stabilising, CEMA and the French High Command found it safe to return to Paris, and withdrew the Army from Paris to concentrate on other regions. The National Police's CRS, an elite riot control unit, would stay in Paris.