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Operation Blackhawk
down.
A brief introduction
On October 3rd, 1993, 120 Delta Force
Commandos and Army Rangers were dropped into the heart of Mogadishu,
Somalia. Their mission was a fast daylight raid to kidnap lead terrorist
Mohammed Farrah Aidid, who had been killing U.N. workers delivering food
to starving Somalis. Aidid’s goal was to control the country by
controlling all the food.
The U.S. raid went off with clockwork
precision, until the unexpected happened. Two of the U.S. Black Hawk
helicopters, the soldiers’ airlift out, were shot down. The mission
abruptly changed to a rescue operation. Surrounded by Somali militia, a
fierce firefight ensued that left American troops trapped and fighting for
their lives. The ordeal left 18 American men dead, 70 wounded, with 3,000
Somalis casualties.
No authentic pictures of the incident are available for the public. All
that is available is screenshots from the movies and the games. As there
are enough of those at other sites already, we thought we shouldn't also
carry the same stuff.
The situation in Somalia
When clan violence in 1992
threatened international relief efforts in Somalia, a U.S.-led coalition
was sent in to provide relief for the thousands of Somalis who were caught
in the crossfire of a deadly civil war.
The problems leading to U.S.
intervention began in the 1980s when an insurgent group in North Somalia
rebelled and proclaimed itself the Somaliland Republic. Tensions
intensified as different rival factions proclaimed both Mohammed Ali Mahda
and Mohammed Farah Aidid as the president. The resulting civil war,
coupled with the worst African drought of the century, resulted in the
loss of 300,000 lives.
The UN stepped in and brokered a
truce while humanitarian aid could be provided, but the fighting continued
and President George Bush sent in American troops to protect relief
workers in an operation called Restored Hope. The coalition consisted of
30,000 American military personnel and 10,000 personnel from allied
nations.
The operation succeeded in
ameliorating the mass starvation of the Somali people as well as
constructing and improving 2,000 kilometres of roads. Civic action
projects also helped to open schools, hospitals, and orphanages.
Unfortunately, the fighting continued and several peacekeepers were
killed, including 18 Americans during an ambush in the city of Mogadishu.
The raid is chronicled in the book and movie Blackhawk Down.
While the U.S. failed in its efforts
to capture Aidid and re-establish a central government by the time the
military withdrew in 1994, UN organizations have been able to continue
their humanitarian efforts as the region maintains a stable existence.
-signing off
hemanth
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Art of war