Operation Restore Hope
By Kody Wagemann & Jordan Gonzales
What happened and who was involved?
A United Nations task force was designed to keep peace between Somali warlords Mohamed Farrah Aidid (military commander), Ali Mahdi Muhammad (President), and Osman Ali Atto (powerful oil company manager). The task force and US forces soon attacked Somalia in order to end the civil war, eventually killing Aidid and keeping peace between the two surviving warlords.
When and where did this happen?
The operation occurred almost entirely in Somalia from when the first US troops arrived in December of 1992 to the spring of 1995 when the last of the UN troops were withdrawn from the country.
Troops in Somalia
How did it unfold, and why did it happen the way it did?
The three warlords described earlier were leaders of different groups/factions. These factions were in major conflict, and led Somalia into a civil war. The United Nations enacted Operation Provide Relief, which involved delivering food to Somalia and attempting to keep peace. but it ultimately failed. The UN soon accepted President Bush's offer to send 25,000 US troops into Somalia to keep peace. A year into the operation, the US turned the operation over to the UN, and most US troops were withdrawn from Somalia. For a short while, UN and US troops attacked Pakistan soldiers and targets in Mogadishu who were related to Mohamed Farrah Aidid. An arrest order was placed on Aidid and President Clinton tried to negotiate with him. Task Force Ranger's searched for Aidid, resulting in a 17 hour battle currently known as the Battle of Mogadishu. After the battle, Clinton ordered the rest of the US troops to be withdrawn. The UN continued to provide assistance in the Somali civil war and keep peace throughout the country, eventually withdrawing completely.
Operation Restore Hope Air Assault