Inside the hot, humid and hostile 'green hell' where French Foreign Legion test their mettle
Welcome to the place known by the French Foreign Legion as 'green hell'.
It is hot, humid and at times, pretty hostile.
However, that is exactly why the French Foreign Legion (FFL) is here, as they use it to test international soldiers and themselves in one of the most savage environments on Earth.
The jungle warfare training centre
BFBS Forces News ventured to CEFE, a jungle warfare training centre in the Amazon forest of French Guiana, to see the FFL's jungle warriors in action.
A company of Belgian infantry launched a raid on the complex as part of their final exercise.
The Belgians were trained in the arts of jungle warfare by the 3e REI, or the FFL's 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment.
The 3e are Paris' jungle warfare experts and have been based out here in this French Overseas territory since 1983.
"It's a jungle warfare training centre," said Captain Quentin, Chef Du Centre, CEFE. "Its main mission is to form the legionnaires and international soldiers in hardening and combat in [the] jungle forest."
Beyond the training, the 3e REI is also tasked with two main missions out in French Guiana.
The first is protecting the European Space Agency (ESA), and the second is patrolling an area the size of Switzerland in search of illegal gold mining gangs, known as garimpeiros.
The space mission
Titan is a joint military operation to defend the space centre during the launch of various types of rockets.
It combines elements of the French navy, air force and army.
The ESA has worked in French Guiana since 1968, supporting missions beyond Earth for almost six decades.
The FFL patrols the area before each Ariane and Vega rocket launch and secures the surroundings to prevent potential threats.
In search of the gold mining gangs
At the 3rd Foreign Infantry's forward operating bases, a two-hour boat ride from the nearest road, the FFL launches patrols deep into the Amazon rainforest in search of the gold mining gangs year-round.
Legionnaires can spend up to six weeks at a time at one of these bases, so they have made it a bit more homely.
There is a gym, a kitchen, a dining area, a shelter for their hammocks and a few fishing rods.
The operation, known as Harpie, can get heated at times. In 2023, a French military policeman, a gendarme, was killed in a confrontation.
Lieutenant Colonel Royet, Chef du Corps, 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment, said that there is a distinction between the two types of gold gangs operating.
"We have the poor guy trying to find gold, who is normally not violent," Lt Col Royet told BFBS Forces News.
"But, we have another population, which is the population of the logisticians. People who are going to bring the means to dig, to find gold inside the forest.
"These people can be very violent, and very often there can be a confrontation and use of weapons."
They are unsupported for weeks at a time, meaning that these missions are physically and mentally demanding, especially when the rain is falling.
"All of your action during the mission is conditioned by the water," Capt Quentin said. "You need water to drink. You have water with the rain on your face all day.
"You have water when you have to cross the river. So, all your stuff is totally wet every day and every hour of the day."
Capt Quentin also said that jungle vegetation can be used to survive, as they use it to sleep, hunt, and fish.
Capturing the gold miners
During one of the patrols in the rainforest, a member of personnel spotted some movements in the distance.
The FFL had found a camp and apprehended four men and two women after a three-day patrol.
The gendarme, with the help of a legionnaire translator, took the details of the gold panniers before they were sent away.
These groups mostly cross the border from Brazil and set up camps to extract gold from the rivers and earth.
They will tell you that it is a fair game and entrepreneurial, while France will tell you that they pollute the rainforest with mercury through their extraction techniques and contribute to crime and violence.
With the group intercepted, the FFL can get back to their two main missions: protecting the ESA and patrolling the massive expanse of the rainforest.
For some people, French Guiana's jungles would be hell, but for the FFL, it is just another day in their baking, green office.
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