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October 3, 1993 Battle of Mogadishu

The Battle of Mogadishu (also known as the Battle of the Black Sea) was fought between forces of the United States against Somalian guerilla fighters loyal to warlord General Mohamed Farrah Aidid on October 3, 1993 in the Black Sea district of Mogadishu, Somalia.

A team of US Army Special Forces were executing an operation (Operation Code Irene) that involved travelling from their compound on the outskirts of the city to capture leaders of Aidid's militia. The assault force was composed of nineteen aircraft, twelve vehicles and 160 men. During the operation, two U.S. UH-60 helicopters were shot down by rocket propelled grenades and three others were damaged. Some of the soldiers were able to evacuate wounded back to the compound, but others were trapped at the crash sites and cut off. An urban battle ensued throughout the night. Early the next morning, a joint task force was sent to rescue the trapped troops. It contained soldiers from Pakistan, Malaysia, and U.S. soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division. They assembled some 60 vehicles, including Pakistani tanks, Malaysian armored personnel carriers, and were supported by US AH-1 and UH-60 helicopters. This task force reached the first crash site and led the trapped soldiers out. The second crash site was overrun; the lone surviving American was taken hostage.

The battle resulted in the death of 18 American soldiers and another 69 wounded. Two Malay soldiers died and seven were wounded; two Pakistanis were also wounded. Somali deaths were not well recorded, but estimates put the number at 500-1000 Somali militia and civilians killed and 3000-4000 injured.

Background

In 1992, Somalia was in the midst of a civil war. This, combined with a drought, led to famine. The United Nations sent workers to stabilize the country and oversee the relief effort. This was unsuccessful due to the warring factions. In frustration, the United States sent troops as part of Operation Restore Hope in December 1992. These initial troops included the first Marine Expeditionary Force and Navy Seals. A U.N. resolution was passed authorizing a U.N. force and later a United Nations force anchored by the 10th Mountain Division of the U.S. Army arrived. This multinational U.N. force, comprising some 38,000 soldiers from 23 nations, stabilized Somalia from February to May 1993.

In May 1993, the opearation was transferred from United States command to United Nations command and named UNOSOM II. The overall operation was under Turkish Lieutenant General Cevik Bir. The U.S., however, maintained their own command structure, led by Major General Timeline of the Battle of Mogadishu for a detailed synopsis.

On October 3, 1993 U.S. Special Operations Forces composed mainly of Rangers and Delta Force (1st SFOD-D) operators, attempted to capture Aidid's foreign minister Omar Salad and top political advisor Mohamed Hassan Awale. The plan was to fast rope down from hovering UH-60 helicopters, capture the targets, and load them onto a ground convoy for transport back to the U.S. compound. Four Ranger chalks, also inserted by helicopter, were to provide a secure square perimeter on the four corners of the operation's target building.

The ground extraction convoy was supposed to reach the captive targets a few minutes after the beginning of the operation. However, it ran into delays. Somali citizens and local militia formed barricades along the streets of Mogadishu with rocks and burning tires, blocking the convoy from reaching the Rangers and the captive targets. A five-ton truck, part of the convoy, was struck by a rocket propelled grenade.

Other complications arose. A U.S. Army Ranger was seriously injured during the insertion. He fell while repelling from a helicopter hovering 70 feet above the streets. Minutes later, a MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter was shot down by a rocket propelled grenade.

There was confusion between the ground convoy and the assault team. The assault team and the ground convoy waited for twenty minutes just out of sight of each other, ready to move, but each under the impression that they were to be first contacted by the other. During the wait, a second Black Hawk was also downed.

Most of the assault team went to the first crash site for a rescue operation. Upon reaching the site, about 90 Rangers found themselves under siege from heavy militia fire. Despite limited air support, the Rangers were effectively trapped for the night.

At the second crash site, two Delta Force snipers, Sgt. First Class Randy Shughart and Master Sgt. Gary Gordon, were inserted by helicopter to protect the wounded pilot from the approaching mob. Both soldiers were later killed by the mob. The site was overrun by Somali militiamen. The pilot, Mike Durant, was seriously injured during the crash. He was taken hostage. Shughart and Gordon received the Medal of Honor posthumously for their heroic action during the battle. They both repeatedly volunteered to be dropped on the ground, against the advice of their superiors who knew the magnitude of the mob and the risk of the insertion.

Repeated attempts by the Somalis to mass forces and overrun these American positions were neutralized by the soldiers at the first crash site, aided by rockets and Gatling guns fired from U.S. aircraft. Attacks by Somali militiamen were fended off during the night until reinforcements from the U.S. Army 10th Mountain Division aided by Malaysian and Pakistani U.N. forces arrived in the early morning. No contingency planning or coordination with U.N. forces had been arranged prior to the operation. This lack of planning complicated the rapid recovery of the surrounded U.S. soldiers at the first crash site.

The battle was over by the next morning, October 4 at 6:30 AM. American forces were finally evacuated to the U.N. Pakistani base. In all eighteen US soldiers died and 69 were injured. A nineteenth US soldier died a few days later during a mortar attack that injured another four. Casualties on the Somali side were heavy with estimates on fatalities from 300 to over 1000 people. The Somali casualties were a mixture of militiamen and local civilians.

The battle was the most intense urban battle faced by the U.S. forces during the Somalian U.N. mission and is often cited as the reason behind America's withdrawal from U.N. peacekeeping duties.

According to the American soldiers, Aidid's forces used civilians pushed out in front of their fighters as a screen. However, these civilian screens reduced after the Americans soldiers showed repeatedly that they were willing to fire and kill the screening civilians in order to reach their opponents.

General information of the operation

The Battle of Mogadishu spurred the development of the United States Marine Corps Urban Warrior programme.

Military procedure for the operation

1. 160th SOAR will provide air support for the operation:
   • MH-60 Black Hawks
   • 1999, writer Mark Bowden published the book ‘Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War’ which chronicles the events that surrounded the battle. The book was turned into a film by director Ridley Scott in 2000.

A film by Ridley Scott, based on the book ‘Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War’ by Mark Bowden, describes the events surrounding the operation and some of the acts of bravery seen on that day. There are obvious differences between the book and the subsequent movie, which left out central sections and themes of the book, such as the involvement of civilians in the battle, and de-emphasized the key decision to stay in the area after the initial operation was completed, among others.

Links with al-Qaida

There have been allegations that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida movement was involved in training Aidid's men. According to CNN, al-Qaida claimed to supply a large number of rocket propelled grenades to Aidid's fighters. Bin Laden himself denied giving military aid and training to Aidid's men but openly praised the attack and killing of the 19 Soldiers. Reportedly, al Qaida operatives had instructed Somali militiamen on ways to modify rocket propelled grenades to make them more effective against Black Hawk helicopters, for instance, by adding curved guide tubes to aim rocket exhaust in a safe direction.

U.S. Military Fatalities

CW3 Donovan Briley

SSG Daniel Busch

CPL James Cavaco

SSG William Cleveland

SSG Thomas Field

SFC Earl Fillmore

CW3 Raymond Frank

MSG Gary Gordon

SGT Cornell Houston

SGT James Joyce

PFC Richard Kowalewski

PFC James Martin

MSG Timothy Martin

SGT Dominick Pilla

SFC Matthew Rierson

SGT Lorenzo Ruiz

SFC Randy Shughart

CPL James Smith

CW4 Clifton Wolcott