The Battle of Mogadishu

1. By: Sean Godfrey The Battle of Mogadishu

2. Background • At the time Somalia was crumbling due to civil war, mainly between the drug lords, and widespread famine • Operation Restore Hope was put into place by George H.W. Bush to help reestablish order in Somali (Dec. 1992- May 1993) • Operation Continue Hope was put into place May 4th 1993 by Bill Clinton • Somali people were already angry at U.S. forces for a failed attempt at killing Mohamed FarrahAidid which resulted in 60 dead Somalis

3. What? When? Where • Part of Operation Gothic Serpent • Mission changed aster 2 Black Hawk helicopters got shot down • October 3rd & 4th, 1993 • Mogadishu, Somalia

4. Forces Involved • Somali civilians and militia • Pakistan forces • Malaysia forces • United States: • Delta Force • Army Rangers • Navy Seals • 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment

5. Operation Gothic Serpent • Plan to capture the Somali warlord Mohamed FarrahAidid and other high profile targets • Plan was to assault a building by planting Delta force operators on the roof to secure the building while four platoons of Army Rangers surrounded the building • Commanded by Gen. William F. Garrison

6. Vehicles Used • A/MH-6 Little Bird helicopters • MH-60L Black Hawk helicopters • Condor armored personnel carriers • Humvees • M48 Tanks

7. Mission Change • The mission was beginning to become delayed when humvees to extract captives from the building arrived late • The mission ultimately changed to a rescue mission once two Black Hawk helicopters were shot down (Super 61 and Super 64) • Michael Durant, pilot of Super 6-4 was taken captive and released after 11 days

8. Mission End • Super 64 was over run by Somali forces • Trapped pilots in Super 61 were saved after an rescue teams arrived late that night and into the early morning hours • Constant raids by Little Bird helicopters protected them through the night

9. Casualties • American • 18 killed • 73 wounded • Somali • Estimates range from 100-300 killed • Estimates range from 1,000-3,000 wounded

10. Impact • United Stated would completely withdraw from Somalia by March 31st, 1994 • Many citizens were frightened and scared by the images they had seen of soldiers bodies being dragged through the streets

11. Causes • This mission failed because of the two helicopters being shot down by RPG’s • Another possible reason was that during the time of the mission, Somali men would chew Khat, which was believed to make them more willing to fight

12. Pre-21st Century Relations • Hostage Crisis in Iran (1979-1981)

13. Hostage Crisis in Iran • November 4th, 1979 – January 20th, 1981 • Mob of students (called Imam’s disciples) took over U.S. embassy in Iran • Held 66 original hostages for then released 14 • Held the remaining 52 hostage for 444 days • Operation Eagle Claw (Jimmy Carter) was a failed attempt at rescuing the hostages

14. Was the battle a success? • Yes an No • It did capture the people in the original building • It took longer than expected and turned into a dangerous rescue mission that cause several casualties and deaths • Overall successful but with exceptions

15. What was this battle preventable? • Yes and No • Somali resistance was expected but not in such large number • Could have always planned ahead for possible blockades

16. What caused the mission to fail? • Todd Blackburn falling 70 feet from a helicopter an being severely injured • The delay of the humvees due to Somali blockades • The helicopters being shot down (this is the most probable cause but the others could have also led to this)

17. Was it tactically smart to attempt to rescue the downed pilots? • No it wasn’t, U.S. forces were severely outnumbered and were basically fighting an entire city to saved a couple pilots • It was necessary to attempt because you never leave a fellow soldier behind

18. Primary Source • My primary source was an article covering the U.S. involvement in Somalia and Operation Restore Hope • I believe that this gives insight to my topic because it includes quotes from that period of time about my topic

19. Bibliography Information  • http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:MHWRfb-92nAJ:www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/navy/pmi/somalia1.pdf+did+somalia+oppose+operation+restore+hope&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShNSxwhEMOYT-hqvhDJqBSlwBNjsHuwD2wtlsaoI-SrkSYB1L94njYRlJ0I6v2VS0-Yo39CCegA32e4sRxvbqh83S9_L48V8R-NK3gwiB7iBn07iK3PRjSkl4tCRKwllPwHlSpe&sig=AHIEtbSouv0YbB3tx_haeSYRo1mfjunUow • http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01864/american/mission.html • http://www.militaryfactory.com/battles/battle_of_mogadishu.asp • http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/somalia/somalia.htm#p24 • http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:V_51oiA60XYJ:www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs5/5116/5116p.pdf+khat&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESgdyb63c7Ba9GwzD8EiE5jYJqTQKfaQ1UEIYcJkIzbFDc7OqTR4q-bIrhiBwggTPu8XIYH_QlNmADrWcX5rE3uG9lzTrF-KNMZhqBtDPKXXksBFSIO75q0oSVAe1a56mmlBitWP&sig=AHIEtbTjGcXiYM897QM1_HQYGc71ISTVKA • http://www.historyguy.com/iran-us_hostage_crisis.html • http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/restore_hope.htm • http://www.helis.com/featured/eagle_claw.php • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mogadishu_(1993) • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Gothic_Serpent Pictures • http://www.knowledgerush.com/wiki_image/c/c4/Black_Hawk_Down_Super64_over_Mogadishu_coast.jpg • http://www.celebritysentry.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/1304606713-37.jpg • http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2784/4464020860_3bd03d5c0e.jpg • http://www.the-reel-mccoy.com/movies/2002/images/BlackHawkDown3.jpg • http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2007/03/21/mog372.jpg • http://cdn-english.alshahid.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/dead-somalis.jpeg • http://moblog.net/media/c/r/i/crickson/military-graveyard.jpg • http://www.nato.int/kfor/media/photos/2002/big/b020311b.jpg