Somalia conflict
The Event The U.S. military plays a role in a
volatile African nation
Date 1992-1994
In one of the first post-Cold War operations involving U.S.
militar y forces, a humanitarian mission changed into an
unsuccessful effort to stem violence among rival factions.
After years of war with Ethiopia followed by civil war
in his own nation, Somalia’s longtime military ruler
fled the country in January, 1991. Without a central
government, the nation was controlled by guerrilla
groups who continued to fight with one another.
Over the next two years, Somalia experienced both a
devastating famine and the effects of African’s worst
drought in a century. As many as 300,000 Somalis
died during this period. These conditions led to the
first of three U.N. operations. From April to Decem-
ber, 1992, the United Nations sought to broker a
cease-fire among competing factions as well as to
provide humanitarian relief. Fighting intensified,
however, and six U.N. military personnel were
killed. In December, 1992, the United Nations
accepted a United States proposal to establish a mul-
tinational force under its own leadership. This U.N.-
sanctioned operation, composed of twenty-four
nations, was begun while George H. W. Bush was
president and persisted after the inauguration of
Bill Clinton as chief executive. In March, 1993, the
U.N. Security Council approved a third operation in
Somalia, which included participation from thirty-
seven nations and 28,000 troops. The objectives of
this operation were to facilitate humanitarian assis-
tance, disarm rebels, establish stability, and assist in
the creation of a new government.
After the murder of twenty-four Pakistani troops
by Somali militia members in June, 1993, U.S. forces
actively sought the capture of rebel warlords, partic-
ularly Mohammed Farrah Aidid. Aidid and his allies
opposed the United Nations’ intervention and
sought to derail both humanitarian and nation-
building assistance. The Americans issued a $25,000
warrant for Aidid’s arrest. Several attacks against
rebel forces were carried out between June and
October, 1993. A July, 2003, combat operation killed
seventy-three clan elders loyal to Aidid.
Battle of Mogadishu In August, 1993, the United
States deployed Task Force Ranger in Somalia, a
combination of Delta and Ranger troops who could
conduct operations without U.N. control. This
change in strategy was approved by President
Clinton and supported by members of his adminis-
tration. On October 3, 1993, Task Force Ranger
forces attempted to capture Aidid associates. The
plan was to deploy troops from helicopters in the
capital city of Mogadishu, find and capture the tar-
gets, and transport them to the U.S. base.
A series of missteps, however, led to the downing
of two Black Hawk helicopters and the trapping of
American troops who sought to rescue the pilots. Af-
ter a day-long battle against a combination of Aidid
forces and local civilians, eighteen U.S. troops were
killed, seventy-three were injured, and one Black
Hawk pilot was taken hostage but later released. A
relief convoy of U.N. troops from Pakistan and Ma-
laysia helped to rescue American troops, though
one of its personnel was killed and nine were in-
jured. It is estimated that a thousand militiamen and
Somali civilians were killed in the battle. Following
the battle, local citizens dragged American casual-
ties through the streets of Mogadishu. On October
6, 1993, a mortar struck the U.S. base, killing one
American soldier and injuring twelve more.Impact When American television broadcast the
pictures of dead U.S. soldiers being abused by Soma-
lis, support for the mission quickly diminished. As a
result of a national security review session held on
October 6, 1993, President Clinton announced sev-
eral responses to the recent events. First, the acting
chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was ordered to stop
all actions by American forces against Aidid except
in cases of self-defense. Second, Ambassador Robert
Oakley was reappointed as special envoy to Somalia.
Third, all U.S. forces were to be withdrawn from So-
malia by March 31, 1994. The fallout from the disas-
trous Mogadishu battle led to the resignation of De-
fense Secretary Les Aspin and sidetracked the career
of Major General William Garrison, who as Task
Force Ranger commander took the blame for the
debacle. Congressional and military investigations
of the fateful Mogadishu battle uncovered several
mistakes made by American forces. These blunders
included attacking during daylight rather than at
night, not carrying needed equipment, animosity
between Delta and Ranger units leading to poor co-
ordination, flawed intelligence, and underestima-
tion of enemy capabilities.788 Somalia conflict The Nineties in America