Jean Sassi (11 June 1917 – 9 January 2009) was a

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

colonel and intelligence service officer, former " ''Jedburgh''" ( BCRA) of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

and

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The te ...

. Commando chief of the SDECE's 11th Shock Parachutist Regiment (''

11e régiment parachutiste de choc The ''11e régiment parachutiste de choc'' ("11th shock parachute regiment), often called ''11e choc'', was an elite parachute regiment of the French Army. It used to serve as the armed branch of the SDECE. Its insignia, designed by lieutenant ...

''). Maquis chief in

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...

through the GCMA (1953–1955). During the

Battle of Dien Bien Phu The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (french: Bataille de Diên Biên Phu ; vi, Chiến dịch Điện Biên Phủ, ) was a climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War that took place between 13 March and 7 May 1954. It was fought between the ...

in April 1954 Jean Sassi led Mèo partisans (GCMA) in

Operation Condor Operation Condor ( es, link=no, Operación Cóndor, also known as ''Plan Cóndor''; pt, Operação Condor) was a United States–backed campaign of political repression and state terrorism, state terror involving Intelligence (information gath ...

, also known as Operation D.Video with 1954 color footages and later comments by col. Jean Sassi (in French)
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Honours and awards

* Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

Croix de Guerre 1939-1945 Croix (French for "cross") may refer to: Belgium * Croix-lez-Rouveroy, a village in municipality of Estinnes in the province of Hainaut France * Croix, Nord, in the Nord department * Croix, Territoire de Belfort, in the Territoire de Belfort d ...

Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures The ''Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieurs'' (War Cross for foreign operational theatres), also called the ''Croix de Guerre TOE'' for short, is a French military award denoting citations earned in combat in foreign countri ...

Croix de la Valeur Militaire The Cross for Military Valour (french: Croix de la Valeur Militaire) is a military decoration of France. It recognises an individual bestowed a Mention in Dispatches earned for showing valour in presence of an enemy, in theatres of operations w ...

Croix du combattant volontaire 1939–1945 The Volunteer combatant's cross (french: "Croix du combattant volontaire") was a French decoration that originally recognized those who volunteered to serve in a combat unit during World War II. It is the equivalent of the "1914–1918 Volunteer c ...

* Medal of the

Order of the Million Elephants and the White Parasol The Order of the Million Elephants and the White Parasol, also called the Order of the Million Elephants and the White Umbrella ( lo, ອິສະຣິຍາພອນລ້ານຊ້າງຮົ່ມຂາວ ''Itsariyaphon Lan Sang Hom Khao ...

References

1917 births 2009 deaths People from Tunis French people of Corsican descent French Army officers French military personnel of World War II French military personnel of the First Indochina War French military personnel of the Algerian War Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Cross for Military Valour Recipients of the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures {{France-mil-bio-stub

Honours and awards

See also

References