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On July 20, Turkish armed forces responded by mounting a major operation in Cyprus. In Nicosia, chalks of Turkish troops jumped from low-flying aircraft. Canadians in observation posts across the Green Line were suddenly caught in crossfires between Turkish and Greek forces and were forced to evacuate. Mortar fire rained down on the UN headquarters building, wounding four Canadians.

Rather than hunker down, the Canadian contingent occupied strategic assets such as Nicosia International Airport and the four-star Ledra Palace Hotel, in the name of the UN force. Taking the airport denied both Greek and Turkish forces a means to easily land reinforcements. Troops prepared to defend the airport, facing down Turkish tanks that threatened to overrun their positions. Some soldiers kept their maroon beret in their back pockets, ready to ditch the UN helmets and fight as airborne if the need arose.

In one incident on July 23 at Camp Kronberg, north of Nicosia, Greek forces attacked a Canadian patrol escorting lost Turkish soldiers back to their lines. Pvt. Michel Plouffe went to the aid of Capt. Normand Blaquière, who was wounded in both legs while crossing a shallow ravine. A .303 round struck Plouffe’s helmet, ricocheting into his jaw. He spat out the bullet along with a few of his teeth. Lying in the shallow water, he joked with Blacquière that “they should have shot the other side, I have a cavity there.”

Though Canadians are often charmed by the notion of peacekeeping, at home we are often content to remain unaware of the reality of what effective peacekeeping may demand.

Both men survived, owing to the quick thinking of Capt. Alain Forand, who ordered his men to open fire at the Greeks. Lasting only a few minutes, the firefight was the Canadian Army’s first combat since the Korean War. Plouffe and Forand were both later awarded the Star of Courage. Blaquière and three other soldiers who formed the rescue party for the men pinned down received the Medal of Bravery.