Zulu Zulu Golf

Book excerpt: ‘There is no dignity in death. Six bodies are piled up in front of me, shot to shit. I can see that their bones are white, their blood is red and their brains are yellow. I’ve done this; I’ve helped to kill them.’ A unit of the South African Police, Koevoet was the most deadly fighting force involved in the Border War. This is the story of Arn Durand’s first years with Koevoet, from 1982 to 1983. Through his eyes, the madness, mayhem and complexity of war come alive as he describes patrols, ambushes and contacts, situations of certain death, dealings with the enemy and relationships with his Ovambo colleagues. A powerful account of extreme experiences, the book shows what it took to survive combat in the hostile environments of Namibia and Angola. Zulu Zulu Golf does not glorify war. It simply relates, in deadpan style, what it was like to be a killing machine in the heat of battle.