Operation Merlyn

Operation Merlyn
Part of the South African Border War
Location	Namibia Tsumeb Grootfontein Windhoek Rundu Oshakati Eenhana Operation Merlyn (Namibia)
Objective	Prevent the incursion of PLAN (SWAPO) insurgents into South West Africa/Namibia in contravention to a ceasefire which came into effect on 1 April 1989.
Date	1–9 April 1989

Operation Merlyn (aka The Nine Day War) was a military operation by the South African Defence Force (SADF), South West African Territorial Force (SWATF) and South West African Police (SWAPOL) during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War in April 1989. The aim of the operation was to prevent the incursion of PLAN (SWAPO) insurgents into South West Africa/Namibia from bases in Angola. These incursions were in violation of a ceasefire which came into effect on 1 April 1989 via the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 435 and the Tripartite Accord. Initially, these PLAN incursions were tackled by South West African police units and eventually by SADF and SWATF units, released to assist the police having been confined to their bases by the peace agreements. These incursions and the conflict that occurred ended after hastily arranged talks resulted in the Mount Etjo Declaration and an eventual ceasefire.