Safe House

Safe House is a 2012 American action thriller film directed by Daniel Espinosa. The film follows Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds), a CIA officer on a low-level posting in Cape Town who is in charge of a safe house where the CIA is interrogating Tobin Frost (Washington), a veteran operative who has allegedly betrayed the agency.

When the safe house is attacked by mercenaries who kill almost all the operatives, Weston flees with Frost in his charge, and they end up on the run. As the team of killers, who seem to be one step ahead of the pair, track them throughout Cape Town, Weston begins to wonder who to trust.

The film was released on February 10, 2012, in North America by Universal Pictures.^[4] Filming took place in Cape Town, South Africa. The film premiered in New York City on February 7, 2012, and was released in US theaters on February 10, 2012.

The film received mixed reviews, with praise for Washington and Reynolds' performances, but criticisms for the screenplay and editing on the action scenes. The film earned $208 million worldwide against its $85 million budget.

Last Flight to Abuja

Last Flight to Abuja is a 2012 Nigerian disaster thriller film written by Tunde Babalola, directed and produced by Obi Emelonye, and starring Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, Hakeem Kae-Kazim and Jim Iyke. Shot in Lagos, the film received 5 nominations at the 2013 Africa Movie Academy Awards, winning the category "Best film by an African based abroad". On June 15, 2020, 'Last Flight To Abuja' began streaming on Netflix eight years after it first premiered in London.

The siege of Jadotville

The siege of Jadotville was an engagement which occurred in September 1961 in which a small contingent of Irish troops serving as part of the United Nations Operation in the Congo (Opération des Nations Unies au Congo, ONUC) were besieged in the mining town of Jadotville (modern-day Likasi) by Katangese forces loyal to the secessionist State of Katanga.

The siege took place during the seven-day escalation of a stand-off between ONUC and Katangese forces during Operation Morthor. Although the Irish soldiers resisted Katangese attacks for five days while a relief force of Irish, Indian and Swedish troops attempted to reach them, they were eventually forced to surrender. They were subsequently held as prisoners of war for approximately one month.

On Wednesday 13 September 1961, United Nations forces in Katanga launched a military offensive, that was code-named Operation Morthor, against mercenary military units serving the State of Katanga, which had seceded from Congo-Léopoldville in July 1960. According to its mandate, the United Nations Operation in the Congo (ONUC) forces were to remain impartial in the conflict.

But the Katangese political leadership believed the UN had broken its mandate and its forces were siding with their opponent, the Congolese central government. Soon after the start of Morthor, the Katangese led a counterattack on an isolated UN military unit based at the mining town of Jadotville, approximately 100 kilometres up-country from the main UN base in Elisabethville. A contingent of 155 Irish UN troops, designated "A" Company, commanded by Commandant Pat Quinlan, had been sent to the mining town to assist in the protection of its citizens after the Belgian foreign minister had called the UN secretary-general, reporting that Belgian settlers and the local population feared for their safety.When the Irish troops arrived at Jadotville, they were not welcomed by the local people, due to a strong proKatangese and anti-UN feeling.

Two previous companies of ONUC peacekeepers — one Swedish and oneIrish — had been withdrawn from Jadotville in the days prior to the arrival of Quinlan's force. It is not clear why the Katangese wanted to isolate the Irish UN troops, although some commentators have suggested that the goal may have been to take the Irish as prisoners for leverage in negotiations with the UN.

A series of battles took place at a pinch point called the Lufira Bridge. It carried the Jadotville-to-Elisabethville Highway across the Lufira River. The Katangese forces dug in here and brought heavy and sustained ground and air fire onto the relief column, killing several Indian UN troops, injuring a number of Irish UN troops and ultimately forcing the column off the bridge.

A number of days later, the besieged Irish radioed to their headquarters: "We will hold out until our last bullet is spent. Could do with some whiskey". The Katangese asked Quinlan for a cease-fire, as their forces had been seriously diminished. By this time their effective strength may have been reduced to 2,000 men. Quinlan agreed. "A" Company, 35th Battalion, suffered five wounded in action during the siege. The Katangese, suffered up to 300 killed, including 30 mercenaries and an indeterminate number of wounded, with figures ranging from 300 to 1,000. Quinlan, however, had no access to resupply and reinforcements and, with his transport destroyed by the Fouga Magister jet, a breakout was virtually impossible.

At one stage in the conflict, a mission to bring in water by air was successful, but due to the use of contaminated containers (previously used to store petrol), the water was largely undrinkable. Quinlan lacked any clear direction or communication from his superiors, and the Katangese gradually infringed on the cease-fire agreement to undermine "A" Company's position.

In the end, with his position untenable, without any clear orders or promise of assistance, having run out of ammunition and food and low on water, Quinlan accepted the second offer to surrender to the Katangese on the afternoon of Sunday 17 September. The Irish soldiers were held as hostages for approximately one month, in an effort to extort terms of ceasefire that were embarrassing to the United Nations. 

The Katangese and their mercenary allies bartered the Irish soldiers for prisoners in the custody of the Congolese government of Joseph Kasa-Vubu. After being released, the troops were returned to their base in Elisabethville. Some weeks later, however, "A" Company found itself involved in active combat again, this time with the support of Swedish UN troops. Eventually, they were reinforced with fresh troops from Ireland (their replacement was the 36th Battalion). After weeks of fighting and their six-month tour of duty now complete, "A" Company was rotated out of the battle zone and were home in Ireland that December.

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