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Brigadier General Helmut Harff
Born	(1939-06-05)5 June 1939 Mönchengladbach, Free State of Prussia, German Reich
Died	8 September 2018(2018-09-08) (aged 79)
Allegiance	West Germany (to 1990)  Germany
Service / branch	German Army
Years of service	1959–1999
Rank	Brigadegeneral
Unit	Paratrooper Battalion 262 [de]
Commands	26th Airborne Brigade German military contingents in Somalia and Kosovo
Battles / wars	UN Operation in Somalia II Kosovo War
Alma mater	Bundeswehr Command and Staff College NATO Defense College

Helmut Harff (5 June 1939 – 8 September 2018) was a German Army brigadier general who served as commander of German military contingents taking part in peacekeeping operations in Somalia and Kosovo during the 1990s, and was chief of staff of the French-led Multi-National Division Southeast in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Harff was known for commanding the first Bundeswehr operation outside of NATO territory, which was in support of the United Nations in Somalia, and being the first German general to take prisoners of war since World War II. He received international attention after the media recorded a confrontation he had with a Serbian army colonel in Kosovo.

Early life and education

Harff was born on 5 June 1939 in Mönchengladbach, Germany.

His military education included the Bundeswehr Command and Staff College and the NATO Defense College in Rome. He also had a degree in business administration.

Military career

Harff joined the German Army as a paratrooper officer candidate on 6 April 1959. He was assigned to Paratrooper Battalion 262 [de], where after his training was complete he held positions on the battalion staff and as a platoon and company commander. Harff later studied for a business administration degree and served as a staff officer at the 25th Airborne Brigade [de] before attending the Bundeswehr Command and Staff College. After graduating from the general staff officer course, he worked at the German Army personnel department before becoming a staff officer at the 1st Airborne Division [de].

From 1980 to 1981 Harff commanded Battalion 262, then became an instructor at the Command and Staff College until 1986, when he was sent to study at the NATO Defense College in Rome. Following his return to Germany, Harff was the head of the staff that founded the Federal Academy for Security Policy, and was later the head of the department of policy for army personnel planning at the Federal Ministry of Defence.

Peacekeeping

In March 1990 Colonel Harff became commander of the 26th Airborne Brigade, relieving Brigadier General Fritz Eckert. In this capacity, in July 1993 he led the first German contingent deployed for the United Nations Operation in Somalia II (UNOSOM II). Harff oversaw the first Bundeswehr operation outside of NATO territory, commanding about 1,700 soldiers. Although the UN mission was a failure at bringing about peace in Somalia, it represented a new achievement for the Bundeswehr at the time, being able to assist in an operation abroad without existing regulations. Germany's involvement was seen as a success because of Harff's leadership, as he was able to coordinate different units in difficult conditions. For the Somalia operation he was awarded the United Nations Medal, the Badge of Honour of the Bundeswehr in Gold, and the 1st class cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Harff was transferred to the Army Office in April 1994 as the General for Central Army Affairs and the head of Department I. In 1997 he was deployed as the chief of staff of the French-led Multi-National Division Southeast in Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina, as part of the NATO-led Stabilization Force (SFOR).

In 1998 he was appointed as deputy commander of Airmobile Forces Command/4th Division in preparation for an expanded Bundeswehr mission in the Balkans, beginning in modern-day North Macedonia (then the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia). Brigadier General Harff was then the German national commander of the Bundeswehr contingent in North Macedonia, in preparation for Operation Allied Force, the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia and the entry of NATO peacekeeping forces into Kosovo. His force assisted with supporting Albanian refugees that crossed the border from Kosovo into North Macedonia during the Kosovo War, and some deserters also crossed the border and surrendered, asking for asylum in Germany. They were treated as prisoners of war in accordance with international law, which made Harff the first German general to take prisoners of war since World War II.

After the UN Security Council authorized an intervention, and it was also approved in Germany by a vote of the Bundestag, the German unit in North Macedonia then entered Kosovo on 11 June 1999, becoming the first German contingent of NATO's Kosovo Force. They entered while the Serbian Army was still in the process of withdrawing from the region. During that process Harff became involved in an incident that was recorded by television media teams. At a border crossing between Kosovo and Albania, near Morina on the Albanian side, a group of Serbian soldiers still remained. Harff met with the Serbian colonel in command and his officers. He asked how much time they needed to withdraw, and one of them answered that it was six hours. Harff told them they had thirty minutes. They tried to argue to stall for time, to which the general responded by saying that they now have twenty-eight minutes, and that it was the "end of discussion." The Serbian troops then left the area.

Later life

He retired from the military in 1999.

Harff died on 8 September 2018, at the age of 79.

Awards and decorations

• Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany 1st class Cross
• Badge of Honour of the Bundeswehr in Gold
• United Nations Medal

References

1. ^ "Traueranzeigen von Helmut Harff" [Obituaries of Helmut Harff]. Frankfurter Allgemeine (in German). 15 September 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
2. ^ "Brigadegeneral a.D. Helmut Harff ist tot" [Brigadier General (ret.) Helmut Harff is dead] (in German). German Bundeswehr Association. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
3. ^ "Erzwungener Friede: 25 Jahre Einsatz im Kosovo" [Forced Peace: 25 Years of Operation in Kosovo] (in German). Bundeswehr. 8 January 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
4. ^ "Gedenken an Brigadegeneral a.D. Helmut Harff" [In memory of Brigadier General (ret.) Helmut Harff] (in German). German Paratroopers' Association. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
5. "SFOR Organization". NATO. 1 June 2004. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
6. Follath, Erich; Koebl, Susanne; Szandar, Alexander (23 January 2000). "»Gerade noch davongekommen«" ["Just got away with it"]. Der Spiegel (in German). Retrieved 19 December 2024.
7. Hooper, John (13 June 1999). "Showdown in the streets". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
8. Davison, Phil (13 June 1999). "Liberation Of Kosovo: 50 years on, the Germans confront the Serbs again". The Independent. Retrieved 19 December 2024.

• 1939 births
• 2018 deaths
• Brigadier generals of the German Army
• Recipients of the Badge of Honour of the Bundeswehr
• Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
• United Nations Medal