Operation Brochet was a French military operation which took place between August and October, 1953, in the region of the Red River Delta near Tonkin, in North Vietnam, during the French Indochina War. This military campaign was a combined arms operation which involved 18 battalions of French and South Vietnamese troops to fight against two regiments of the Viet Minh (42nd and 50th).
The 1st and 2nd Parachute Battalions of the French Foreign Legion (BEP), and the 1st and 3rd Colonial Parachute Battalions (BPC) took part in this French offensive. Forces of the Vietnamese National Army also participated in this military engagement.
The objective of Operation Brochet was to clear the Red River Delta of Viet Minh guerrilla units, which operated there, springing ambushes on French troops. Despite the number of troops committed to this campaign, Brochet was a limited success. By October 11, the French Foreign Legion had lost 96 men against 110 confirmed Viet Minh casualties, and despite French efforts between 5,000 and 7,000 of the Delta villages still remained under Viet Minh control.
