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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: DuckTapeSunroof who wrote (289740)	8/24/2002 3:18:36 AM
From: JEB	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769667

You can't sell your version of the events, it doesn't work... (but it was a nice attempt anyway, ...maybe next time) ____________________________________________________________ "Unlike in the Balkans, where U.S. forces were part of a coalition, in Operations Restore Hope (ORH) and Continue Hope (OCH) the United States was the primary actor in the humanitarian and peace enforcement mission undertaken by the UN in Somalia. Prior to ORH and OCH (in July and August 1992), the UN had undertaken a limited peacekeeping effort in Somalia--UN Operations Somalia, UNOSOM I--with a small contingent of Pakistanis having been sent as monitors of the March 1992 cease-fire. Around the same time, the U.S. effort in Operation Provide Relief (OPR) began, involving the airlift of humanitarian relief supplies from Mombassa, Kenya, for the NGOs operating in Somalia. However, by September 1992 it was clear that conditions were rapidly deteriorating in Somalia and that security for the relief convoys had become critical and would require a larger force than had originally been anticipated. OPR led directly into ORH, which officially started in January 1993, with planning of this operation having begun in mid-November 1992. ORH was the U.S. component of the UN's humanitarian (and peacekeeping) effort--United Task Force, UNITAF. Operating under a UN mandate, UNITAF's mission was to secure relief operations in the assigned Humanitarian Relief Sectors, with the United States responsible for four of the nine of them. The ultimate goal was to transfer all responsibilities of the mission over to UNOSOM II by May 1993. UNITAF evolved into a joint and combined task force led by the United States under UN auspices. The Commander-in-Chief, Central Command (CINC, CENTCOM) was tasked for this mission. During UNITAF, there was also pressure from the UN for the task force to expand the original relief convoys and security mission to include disarmament and to establish a presence in the northern section of the country. The U.S.-led task force strongly resisted this expansion of the UNITAF mission but eventually did undertake some limited disarmament. In early May 1993, UNITAF transferred responsibilities to UNOSOM II, and OCH began (the U.S. component of UNOSOM II). Starting in January 1994, the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the theater began, with a March 1994 deadline set for removing all but a small contingent from Somalia." -and- "During August and September 1993, tensions in the theater continued to rise, with an increase in the number of demonstrations and displays of weaponry. The 46th CSH took more and more rounds into the embassy compound, and Somalis were attacking UN personnel, the media, and relief workers. In September, the 362nd Engineering Group was ambushed, and on 1 October 1993, a U.S. helicopter was shot down, killing three U.S. soldiers. The Ranger firefight on 3 October 1993 marked another key change in the overall mission. During the firefight with supporters of General Aideed, 18 American Rangers were killed and 77 wounded. The firefight was a culmination of an extended manhunt by U.S. troops to capture General Aideed for his alleged role in masterminding the June 5th ambush of 24 Pakistani peacekeepers. In addition to U.S. casualties, an estimated 300 of Aideed's followers were killed and another 700 wounded in this firefight. Because of the high number of American casualties incurred in this incident, U.S. public opinion turned strongly against a continued U.S. presence in Somalia.[22]" rand.org