Bombing of Véragyőr

Bombing of Véragyőr
Part of Granzerian War
The destroyed Granzerian capital.
Date 25 December 1970 Location Véragyőr, Granzery Result Extensive Civilian casualties Extensive National Front Casualties
Belligerents
PLA Air Force	Granzerian National Front
Commanders and leaders
Lazar Klimovich	Zsombor Hegedűs
Strength
40 bomber aircraft 42 fighter escorts	50 fighters 28 Anti-aircraft guns 4 S-125 Pechora SAMs
Casualties and losses
10 aircraft, including crews	37 aircraft, including crews 400 soldiers 2,000 civilians

The bombing of Véragyőr (Granzerian: Véragyőr Bombázása; Gorbatovic: Бамбардзіроўка Самаго Верагйор), also known in Granzery as the Christmas Massacre (Granzerian: Karácsonyi Mészárlás) and in Gorbatov as the Christmas Raid, (Gorbatovic: Калядны Hалёт) was a Gorbatovic bombing raid on the city of Véragyőr, the capital city of Granzery. Over the course of the day, Proletarian Liberation Army Air Force dropped tens of thousands of tonnes of explosives and incendiary devices on the city, as what have been described as revenge killings for the Gorbatov Embassy Massacre of 1970.

The Granzerian National Front were mostly armed with Juhasz J-1 aircraft that had been kept in reserve, which while still effective, proved to be far inferior to the far more modern Gorbatovic contemporaries. Six Juhasz J-2 aircraft that had been captured by the Granzerian National Front also took part in the battle, and were able to shoot down three Gorbatovic fighters and a Gorbatovic bomber for the loss of only a single J-2, however due to a lack of available infrared missiles, the J-2 aircraft spent much of the day grounded.

Aftermath

The attacks on Véragyőr are considered to be one of the biggest contributing factors in the growth of the Granzerian Republican Army. As reports were given across Granzery of the destruction of the capital, entire divisions of the Granzerian People's Army defected to the Republican forces of the civil war in the months following. Contemporary historians consider the bombing of Véragyőr to be the greatest turning point of the Granzerian war, as immediately after the bombings Gorbatov launched an interventionist invasion of Granzery, causing further defections in the Granzerian People's Army.

International Reactions

• Gorbatov - The Gorbatovic government considers the air raids a lawful response for outright murder committed by the GNF, further stressing the fact that GNF positions were largely targeted, though did not take into account the human error that would lead to some bombers in dropping their munitions over civilian centers in the city.

• Granzery - The Granzerian state considers the air raids alongside the Novak Chemical Attack to be war crimes and crimes against humanity, claiming that the attacks specifically targeted civilian locations with the intent of spreading terror. However the bombing have been largely overshadowed by the Novak chemical attack, which received far more international attention.