Battle of Mogadishu

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militia was closing in fast. The tension between the militia and the U.S. presence had reached its boiling point. Urban warfare was now the battle ground for Task Force Ranger. The capturing of Aidid’s top men was successful, but the mission quickly changed when a Black Hawk helicopter was shot down by a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG). This was now a rescue mission and needed to be priority because fellow soldiers and friends were on the line. With the cities militia closing in with aggression and sporadic attacks, made it almost impossible for Task Force Ranger to identify targets and make it to the crash site in a timely manner. It was literally a city of militia versus a handful of U.S.’s finest soldiers.

A second Black Hawk helicopter was shot down not long after. Pilot chief warrant officer Mike Durant was alive but injured and pinned down by the militia closing in. Two Delta snipers, Master Sergeant Gary Gordon and Sergeant First Class Randy Shughart took the risk to go in a secure the second downed helicopter until help came. They stabilized Mike Durant and held their defense position as long as they could but were overran by enemy forces. SFC Shughart and MSG Gordon both were killed, they did in fact save Mike Durant’s life he was taken as a prisoner of war by the Somali militia. SFC Shughart and MSG Gordon’s bodies were beaten after death they were stripped and dragged through the streets of Mogadishu. There were horrific pictures of this and when America had finally seen and heard about the fighting is when they focused their attention to what was going on in Africa. SFC Shughart and MSG Gordon were the only soldiers since the Vietnam War to be awarded the Medal of Honor for defending the downed helicopter and its crew.

Seventeen hours of fire fighting in the city and holding up with limited ammo and water Task Force Ranger was finally pulled out with help of the Tenth Mountain Division. Some of the soldiers had to run out on foot and had to watch each other’s back until they had reached the safe zone. After the battle had ended on October 4, 1993 there were 18 U.S. soldiers that lost their lives and 84 wounded. The Somali casualties estimated between: 1,000-1,500. The search for Mike Durant was underway. On October 7, 1993 President Clinton send combat troops as short term reinforcements but declares that U.S. troops will be fully withdrawn from Somalia by the end of March 1994. The mission for General Aidid was abandoned and U.S. representatives were sent to negotiate with warlord. On October 14, 1993 Mike Durant was released by Aidid’s men. In March 1994, all remaining U.S. forces leave Somalia. General Aidid died in August 1995 during an outbreak of fighting in Mogadishu.

“To look at them today, few show any outward sign that one day not too long ago they risked their lives in an ancient African city, killed for their country, took a bullet, or saw their best friend shot dead. They returned to a country that didn’t care or remember. Their fight was neither triumph nor defeat; it just didn’t matter.”

The above passage from Mark Bowden, the author of Black Hawk Down describes that no matter how strong our government or U.S. forces are. The United States government cannot change the way another country chooses to live. In battle of Mogadishu, as in any war there are no winners.

Work Cited Pages

Bowden, Mark. Black Hawk Down. N.p.: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1999. Print.

"1993: US forces killed in Somali gun battle." BBC On This Day 4 Oct. 1993: 1. Print.

On the Town. Jeffrey T. Manuszak, 1994. Web. 22 Apr. 2013.

<http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/Somalia/Somalia.htm#p5>.