The German intervention against the Islamic State (codenamed Operation Counter Daesh)
[Bundeswehr unterstützt-erstmals Luftangriffe gegen den IS](_blank)
Bundeswehr Journal, in German was authorized on 4 December 2015. The involvement of the country in the
Syrian Civil War and the
War in Iraq (2013–2017)
The War in Iraq (2013–2017) was an armed conflict between Iraq and its allies and the Islamic State. Following December 2013, the Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013), insurgency escalated into a full-scale war following Anbar campaign (2013–2014 ...
began with the
Bundeswehr
The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...
mission in
Syria
Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
and
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
to combat the terrorist organization
Islamic State
The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...
. The mission was primarily created as a reaction to the
November 2015 Paris attacks
A series of coordinated Islamist terrorist attacks took place on Friday, 13 November 2015 in Paris, France, and the city's northern suburb, Saint-Denis. Beginning at 21:16, three suicide bombers struck outside the Stade de France in Saint-De ...
.
History
The deployment of the Bundeswehr had been discussed from the end of November 2015 within the
German government
The Federal Government (, ; abbr. BReg) is the chief executive body of the Federal Republic of Germany and exercises executive power at the federal level. It consists of the Federal Chancellor and the Federal Ministers. The fundamentals o ...
, debated in
parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
and decided on 4 December 2015 with a majority of the votes of the coalition parties
CDU and
SPD. As a justification it was stated that the terrorist attacks in
Tunisia
Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
,
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
,
Beirut
Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
, against
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and especially in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
had shown that the terrorist organization acted far beyond their then controlled territories in
Syria
Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
and
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
, threatening European congeniality and security. Furthermore, with the attacks in Paris ISIL had attacked
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and the liberal value system of Europe directly. Legally, the right to collective self-defence according to article 51 of the
United Nations Charter
The Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the United Nations (UN). It establishes the purposes, governing structure, and overall framework of the United Nations System, UN system, including its United Nations System#Six ...
was cited as a justification. In addition, the mission was designed to protect the people in the region from further systematic war crimes.
The Bundeswehr assists French forces with six
Panavia Tornado
The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multi-role combat aircraft, jointly developed and manufactured by Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany. There are three primary #Variants, Tornado variants: the Tornado IDS ...
reconnaissance aircraft (reduced to 4 in October 2017) and an
A310 MRTT deployed to
Incirlik Air Base
Incirlik Air Base () is a Republic of Turkey, Turkish air base of slightly more than 3320 ac (1335 ha), located in the İncirlik quarter of the city of Adana, Turkey. The base is within an urban area of 1.7 million people, east of the city ...
in
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, and with a frigate (until November 2017). Armed attacks (such as launching air strikes alongside the international anti-ISIL coalition) were not conducted by Germany. The contingent of 1,200 soldiers is the currently largest foreign deployment of the Bundeswehr. Because of the risks associated with the complex situation in the ongoing
Syrian Civil War, the policy of the Federal Government with the Bundeswehr mission is controversial. Critics such as
Jakob Augstein
Jakob Augstein (born 28 July 1967) is a German journalist, publisher and heir. He is the publisher and editor-in-chief of '' Der Freitag'' and also one of the main owners of ''Der Spiegel'' and the Spiegel publishing company, that were founded b ...
, leftist columnist of German news magazine ''
Der Spiegel
(, , stylized in all caps) is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of about 724,000 copies in 2022, it is one of the largest such publications in Europe. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...
'', dubbed the mission "Merkel's War", which made Germany a "war party". In addition, the critics feared that the risk of terrorist attacks in Germany was likely to rise.
The parliamentary mandate for the mission was valid until 31 December 2016. It was extended on 10 November 2016 by another year until 31 December 2017. The military operation was reported to cost 134 million
Euro
The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...
.
After disputes with the
Turkish government
The Government of Turkey () is the national government of Turkey. It is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative democracy and a constitutional republic within a pluriform multi-party system. The term government can me ...
on planned visits by members of the
German parliament to
Incirlik Air Base
Incirlik Air Base () is a Republic of Turkey, Turkish air base of slightly more than 3320 ac (1335 ha), located in the İncirlik quarter of the city of Adana, Turkey. The base is within an urban area of 1.7 million people, east of the city ...
, in June the German government decided to halt their operations from there and relocate the 250 German troops, six Tornados and the A310 MRTT tanker aircraft to
Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in
Jordan
Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
. The tanker arrived in Jordan on 9 July 2017, while all six Tornados were temporarily flown back to Germany. Four of them flew to Jordan and arrived on 4 October 2017. Germany reduced the Tornado fleet from six aircraft to four, citing ISIL's strength being reduced by that point in time.
[Deutsche Tornados in Jordanien eingetroffen](_blank)
Augen Geradeaus!, in German
While speaking at the inauguration of the
Berlin headquarters of Germany's foreign intelligence agency BND on 8 February 2019, Chancellor
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is the only woman to have held the office. She was Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and Leade ...
stated that despite ISIL losing most of its territory in recent years, the terror organization still remained "a threat" in Syria. ISIL "is transforming into an
asymmetrical warfare
Asymmetric warfare (or asymmetric engagement) is a type of war between belligerents whose relative military power, strategy or tactics differ significantly. This type of warfare often, but not necessarily, involves Insurgency, insurgents, terro ...
force. And this, of course, is a threat," she said. Merkel listed monitoring the situation in Syria as main priority for the
BND. "We remain a long way from peace in Syria," she added.
The German government ended its participation in military operations in Syria in January 2022 and extended its mission in Iraq for another nine months.
Scale of operations
There are around 1,200 personnel involved in the mission:
* air refueling (about 150)
* education (400 to 500)
* naval (about 300)
* support staff (about 50)
On 10 December 2015, 40 personnel (in an
Airbus A400M Atlas) and two
Panavia Tornado
The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multi-role combat aircraft, jointly developed and manufactured by Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany. There are three primary #Variants, Tornado variants: the Tornado IDS ...
s flew to
Incirlik Air Base
Incirlik Air Base () is a Republic of Turkey, Turkish air base of slightly more than 3320 ac (1335 ha), located in the İncirlik quarter of the city of Adana, Turkey. The base is within an urban area of 1.7 million people, east of the city ...
as the initial contingent.
The Tornados are used in a reconnaissance role.
The
''Bremen''-class frigate F213
''Augsburg'' joined the naval task force of French aircraft carrier from December 2015 to March 2016 and August to November 2016.
[Justyna Gotkowska, Kamil Frymark (25 January 2016)]
Germany’s engagement in the resolution of the Syrian conflict
Assets
German Air Force
*
Muwaffaq Salti Air Base
**
Airbus A310-304 MRTT (until September 2019)
*** Special Air Mission Wing of the Federal Ministry of Defence (
German Air Force
The German Air Force (, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ) was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War as the aerial warfare branch of the armed forces of West Ger ...
).
**
Airbus A400M Atlas (from September 2019)
***
Air Transport Wing 62
**
Panavia Tornado IDS/ECR (until March 2020)
***
Tactical Air Force Wing 51 "Immelmann"
***
Tactical Air Force Wing 33
German Navy
The
''Bremen''-class frigate ''Augsburg'' joined the naval task force of French aircraft carrier from December 2015 to March 2016 and August to November 2016.
See also
*
International military intervention against ISIL
Many states began to intervene against the Islamic State, in both the Syrian civil war and the War in Iraq (2013–2017), in response to its rapid territorial gains from its 2014 Northern Iraq offensives, universally condemned executions, hu ...
*
Operation Inherent Resolve
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Operation Inherent Resolve
, partof = the international military intervention against the Islamic State and the War on terror
, image =
, caption = U.S. Navy B ...
– American operation against ISIL
*
Operation Okra
Operation Okra was the Australian Defence Force (ADF) contribution to the military intervention against the Islamic State. The deployed forces formed part of Joint Task Force 633 in the Middle East. The operation commenced on 31 August 2014, ...
– Australian operation against ISIL
*
Operation Shader
Operation Shader is the operational code name given to the contribution of the United Kingdom in the ongoing military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The operation involves the British Army providing ground su ...
– British operation against ISIL
*
Operation Impact
On 3 October 2014, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced that he would put forth a motion to send forces to participate in the coalition for military intervention against ISIL by deploying combat aircraft. On 7 October 2014, the Hous ...
– Canadian operation against ISIL
*
Opération Chammal – French operation against ISIL
*
Notes
References
{{Military intervention against ISIL
Military operations of the Syrian civil war
Military operations of the War in Iraq (2013–2017)
Foreign relations of Germany
2015 in Germany
2016 in Germany
2017 in Germany
2018 in Germany
2019 in Germany
2020 in Germany
2021 in Germany
2022 in Germany