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Senekal , Gert Antonie (G A)

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Photo of Senekal Photo of Senekal
Identity
Person No.
32880
Old ROH no.
1286
Service No.
72219652N
Last Name
Senekal 12
First Name
Gert Antonie
Initials
G A
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1956 (±1 yr) 385
Age at Death
19
Death Record
Date of Death
27 August 1975 112
Cause code
KIA 14,778
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action 14,654
Killed in action, in contact with the enemy, at Pereira d'Eca. Shot by undetected enemy soldier while clearing houses after battle
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Rifleman
Regiment
2 South African Infantry Battalion 50
Corps
South African Infantry Corps 10,347
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,839
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
South Africa 23,872
Locality
KwaZulu-Natal 1,589
Cemetery
PIETERMARITZBURG (MOUNTAIN RISE) CEMETERY 128
Grave Reference
Alternative Commemoration until grave found 7
Coordinates
-29.57947, 30.39986 OSM
Operation
Operation
Savannah
Dates
1975-10-14 to 1976-03-27
About
SADF intervention in the Angolan Civil War following Portugal's withdrawal, in support of UNITA and the FNLA against the Soviet/Cuban-backed MPLA. South African armoured columns (Task Force Zulu and others) advanced deep into Angola, reaching within striking distance of Luanda, before withdrawing by late March 1976 amid international and domestic political fallout. South Africa's first large post-WWII conventional deployment and the opening chapter of the Border War's Angola phase.
Unit History
Part of
Infantry Formation (SAAIF) — Motorised Infantry — Regular
Awards
Pro Patria Medal
Pro Patria Medal
South Africa
Pro Patria Medal warrant, Government Gazette No. 5171 (25 Jun 1976), Rule 5, as amended by GG No. 5575 (3 Jun 1977); discontinued by GG No. 25213 (25 Jul 2003, Schedule corrected by GG No. 26778, 17 Sep 2004) for service on/after 27 Apr 2003. Gazette extracts: https://rohsa.co.za/award.php?id=24
Notes

Son of Mr. D. F. Senekal.

Research notes

Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 27 Aug 2026 / Bushwar Books Lest We Forget 27 August (https://www.warbooks.co.za/posts/lest-we-forget-27-august/ Ops Savannah, Pereira D'Eca (Ongiva). Graham: ran out of ammunition, lobbed grenade into building, killed by small-arms fire while running back; 1 Parachute Battalion elements also engaged. ROH CauseDeath (shot while clearing houses) left; OperationID set to Savannah.
25 Sep 2026, Unit2 service-branch sweep: the stored Secondary Unit "Army" was CLEARED as a duplicate. It was not a sub-unit, it was a service-branch word repeating what the Branch column already says. Secondary Unit is for sub-units -- a company, a squadron, a commando -- and this record's branch of service is unchanged at "Army".

Citations
Unknown
External References
Stories 2
by Peter on 30 May 2008 · via source
According to the book PARABATS by Mathew Paul (page 70) Rfn Senekal was part of a force that attacked and took the town of Pereira de Eca in Angola, in late 1975. The capture of the town had already been accomplished and Senekal was walking through houses on the northern side of the town, when he was shot and killed by an enemy soldier who had remained undetected in one of the houses. This man was in turn promptly shot and killed by another parabat.
by B G Kirby on 09 August 2010 · via source
Rfn Senekal was indeed fatally wounded at Pereira d'Eca. He was a member of 2 SAI Bn Gp.
Dedications

No dedications have been added yet.