The United States in Somalia
“Operation Restore Hope”
August – October 1992
Where is Somalia?
Brief History of Somalia
• Post-World War II
– Was a protectorate of Great Britain
• 1960
– Achieved independence
• 1970s
– Military dictatorship
• Under Mohamed Siad Barre
• 1980s
– Somalia's strategic importance was diminished due to
end of the Cold War
– Government became even more totalitarian
Somali Civil War – 1991
• Results of the Somali Civil War
– Barre is ousted from leadership
– Disrupted agriculture, food & water distribution
– Based on clan allegiances and competition for
resources
Somali Civil War – 1991
• More Results
– Famine – approx.
300,000 dead
– UN Security
Council authorized
the limited
peacekeeping
operation
• Completely
disregarded by
the warring
factions
Warlords
• The country was ruled by a
number of warlords
– A person with power who has
military and civil control over a an
area
– Armed forces loyal to the warlord
and not to a central government
• Alliance of warlords was formed
in 1992
– Operated under the authority of
Mohamed Farrah Aidid
– Declared himself President of
Somalia
United States Response
• In December of 1992,
President Bush
ordered Operation
Restore Hope
– Primary mission of
restoring order in
Somalia
• President Bill Clinton
took office in January
1993 and continued
the Operation
The Home-Front
• Many Somalis resented the
international forces
– Many took up arms and actively
resisted the UN and US
• On June 5, 1993, one of the
deadliest attacks on UN
forces in Somalia occurred
– 24 UN soldiers were killed in
Mogadishu (controlled by Aidid)
The UN Responds
• The next day, the UN
issued Resolution 837
calling for the arrest and
trial of those responsible
for the ambush
– US and UN began an
attack on Aidid’s control
– Aidid remained defiant,
and the violence between
Somalis and UN troops
escalated
The Battle of Mogadishu
• Fought on October 3
and 4, 1993, in
Mogadishu, Somalia
• Operation was to
capture top officials to
Aidid
The Battle of Mogadishu
• During the operation, two US
Black Hawk helicopters were
shot down
– Some soldiers were trapped at
the crash sites
– A combined task force was
sent to rescue the trapped
soldiers
• Results
– US Forces
• 19 Killed
• 84 Wounded
– Somali Forces
• Est. 700+ Killed
• Est. 1,500 Wounded
Fallout from Mogadishu
Fallout from Mogadishu
• American Foreign Policy
• Became a cautionary influence on US policy
– When US considers sending soldiers into foreign
crisis zones – “remember Somalia”
• Americans were repulsed at the images of
soldiers' corpses being dragged through the
streets
The End of
International Involvement
• Withdrawal
– President Clinton called
for a full withdrawal by
March 1994.
• Marines were
completely removed
from the area by 1995
– The UN also withdrew
forces
• Ended the UN effort to help
a country in anarchy and
civil war
The End of
International Involvement
• Results
– Secretary of Defense
Les Aspin resigned
• Blamed for denying
the US Army
permission to use
tanks
– US politicians didn’t
want tanks in Somalia
• Thought it would look
bad for “peacekeeping”
THE END