OPERATION ASKARI (A SUB-COMMANDER'S RETROSPECTIVE VIEW OF THE OPERATION)

Abstract

By 1983 the war in SWA/Angola had developed a predictable cyclical pattern. The seasonal variations allowed SWAPO to take up the offensive during the summer passage of the Inter-tropical Convergence zone (ITCZ) across Northern South West Africa. The ITCZ is that low pressure belt of unstable moist air, that traverses southwards to the latitude of Rehoboth during late October and November and returns northwards across Owamboland in late January through to April. The passage of this belt gives rise to the phenomenon of the "small rains" before Christmas and the "big rains" from February to April.