Just In Case You Missed It . . .
. . . we’re sending US troops back to Somalia. Again.
But we’re sending fewer this time than we had there prior to January 2021.
The stated purpose is to combat al-Shabab – a nasty Somali terrorist group allied with al-Qaeda that recently has stepped up its attacks on Somali government targets, as well as other targets in the Horn of Africa (including US forces in Kenya). Apparently we’ll be both training allied troops as well as going after “key personnel” in al-Shabab.
The redeployment may well be necessary to protect US national interests. But in that case, I have to wonder why it took nearly 16 months to figure out that pulling out of Somalia in January 2021 was a mistake.
And if pulling out of Somalia was a mistake, then why wasn’t pulling out of Afghanistan a mistake? Last time I checked, many of the terrorist groups there are similarly allied with al-Qaeda. Inquiring minds want to know, Joe.
I also have to say that the phrases “déjà vu all over again” and “I’ve got a bad feeling about this . . . .” come immediately to mind.
Why? Because I remember what happened roughly 28 1/2 years ago in Somalia – when we sent a relatively small detachment of US forces there to go after “key leaders” in an armed Somalia group that was threatening Somalia’s stability.
The memory isn’t a pleasant one. As it turned out, we weren’t ready to follow through after we got out nose bloodied. And I hope I’m wrong, but this new deployment looks at least in part like yet another attempt at more “nation building” nonsense to me.
Category: "The Floggings Will Continue Until Morale Improves", Military issues, Terror War
“Nuke the entire site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.”
Exactly!
Somalia… as in Black Hawk Down? Asscrackistan was too much, but let’s do this goatscrew again?
We should check with the False Commander “Phony” Phil Monkress (CEO of All-Points Logistics).
If memory serves, he was the CO of SEAL Team 4 during that time and spent a good amount of time running and gunning and just kicking ass in general. Lots of first hand accounts of his days of derring do out there.
Would like to know his opinion of this situation.
Wait..what? I thought we moved most of Somalia to Lewiston Maine where they have been model citizens despite the soaring
murder and other crime rate.
There as well as Mogadishuappolis MN!
The real purpose being an excuse to increase the refugee input to the US. Ukraine is not providing enough volume.
Too industrious and non-minority for Democrars, too.
At least in Afghanistan, the terrorists launched an attack on American soil.
So there was a reason for us to get involved. At least in the beginning.
There is zero US national interest in Somalia.
None
Al Shabab is a naughty terrorist group, piracy in the horn of Africa is a problem, political unrest and failed governance are a problem, but none of those are a US national interest.
Napalm. Lots and lots of Napalm. Literal scorched earth policy. Maybe we let Kismayo stay. It has a nice beach.
Send Illhan Omar ahead for “fact finding” prior to the deployment. 😜
And while she’s there add her to the no fly list since we’re such a hateful oppressive place to live. She would be much happier among her peeps. Wouldn’t she?
Someday I hope our government shares with us what some of those “national interests” are.
You had me surprised at the point where you said “somali government targets”.
Other than putting a stop to piracy from somalia, just wtf “interest” do we have in that place? This is about the worst of the worst in africa. Why do WE have to be the savior, again?
Blackhawk Down happened because of Bill Clinton.
To protest the crisis in Somalia, minor Justice Department staffer Deval Patrick was going to announce a hunger strike. To avoid bad press, Clinton asked his advisors to send the smallest force package they could to look like he was doing something. It was a Delta Force team and a company of Rangers. They were to wear santitized uniforms and false name tapes to look like they were helicopter ground crews sent to repair and expand the airfield.
Clinton was told not to reveal that they were being sent and to not make any statements about their intent until they had figured it out.
While they were still in the air, Clinton gave a press conference where he revealed the Special Operations troops real identities. He also said they were there to assassinate warlord Farah Adid despite not first deciding on it at a joint meeting with the Department of defense and State Department.
When the troops arrived, the foreign press and CNN photographed and filmed them. This revealed what they looked like, making it easier for them to be followed or observed. Clan militias had children armed with cellphones spy on the airfield base and notify their superiors if they saw any movement.
Farah Adid pulled out of talks with the US and would not continue until they publicly apologized for threatening his life. Adid and the other warlords began negotiating with the other UN garrisons to either withdraw entirely, denounce the US and refuse to work with them, or stay neutral.
There was a strong belief by the Rangers that Italy was passing information to the Somalis to avoid being attacked and build a diplomatic relationship with the local powers-in-being.
The raid on Adid’s compound didn’t score its most important Person of Interest because he was elsewhere. Adid was about to sign a treaty with a State Department diplomatic team that supposedly included Madeline Albright herself.
Clinton’s advisors didn’t coordinate this information in a timely fashion because Clinton often slept in until almost noon and often deferred his responsibilities to subordinates.
Air support from a AC-130 gunship and/or ground support from a troop of M1 tanks held in reserve were proposed, but denied due to how it would look if they inflicted civilian casualties.
The failure of the operation led to Clinton ordering the withdraw of US troops from Somalia in 1995. This strengthened Adid’s position as a claimant to Somalia’s leadership. Osama Bin Laden claimed in an interview that it inspired him to attack America because he viewed us as weak and in decline as a world power.