America went in in order to a situation with a tragic misunderstanding involving the issue and furthermore the political situation.
For an entire picture, wed will need in order to go again towards the early half of the actual twentieth century, when Somalia then Somaliland, Ogaden along with Eritrea ended up being a portion of the particular Italian colonial empire which also included Ethiopia, Somalias historic rival. In The Actual Program Of WWII, the British assumed governorship of fantastic significance and associated with these lands, as well as following your war, new borders were drawn up without any interest paid to classic clan property claims, tribal borders, history or maybe the desires in the indigenous populations. the Ogaden territory was offered with for you to Ethiopia, then beneath the particular rule Haile Selassie, partially (or primarily) because Somaliland was a client of the Soviet Union.
Despite the character of Selassies rule: the feudal emperor with total power over your Ethiopian property as well as people, an oppressive tyrant, the principles with the cold war dictated that Usa back Ethiopia against Somalia, taking unhampered use of the military base inturn for military aid.
However, in 1974 any military coup led by simply Ethiopian officers ended the actual emperors rule as well as declared the country a Marxist-Leninist state.
Naturally, the 2 superpowers changed allegiances, with the Soviet Union now backing Ethiopia and the Usa supporting Somalia, now under the us government with the dictator Siad Barre. May an individual picture the actual irony? American supported Somali troops bearing Soviet arms fighting Soviet backed Ethiopian troops bearing American arms.
A mess? An Individual bet. However it was concerning to obtain worse.
Under president, Jimmy Carter, Somalia was offered with arms alongside with a tacit comprehending America would ignore aggression against Ethiopia for that return of the Ogaden land.
Unfortunately, as such arrangements based on little knowledge of the particular real circumstance do, the entire scenario escalated. the Soviet Union increased arms shipments to Ethiopia as well as Cuban troops were airlifted to the Ogaden, ousting the particular Somalis.
Hundreds involving a big range of refugees from your Ogaden poured straight into Somalia, overwhelming that struggling economy and further destabilizing the actual country.
From the particular late 70s to always be able to early 1991, the Usa sent arms for you to Somalia to the tune involving $50 million annually in exchange with regard to use of the bases originally built by the Soviets. These types of bases, the main involving which ended up being Berbera would eventually always be used to support U.S. military interventions in the Center East,.
Barres regime in Somalia had been brutal. Oppressive, tyrannical, inhumane Barres regime killed thousands of civilians, disallowed just about any political groups not supportive of his power, forced relocation involving Somalias mostly nomad population into centers involving horrific conditions, centralized almost all government manage as well as virtually destroyed the particular standard construction regarding Somali society which had once served within trying for you to keep civil order.
Further, Barre practiced the age-old game of divide as well as conquer, pitting various Somali clans against one another, getting rid of any rivals with regard to power.
As the result, within January regarding 1991, when Barres regime has been overthrown by popular uprising despite the particular well-armed government forces, no one stayed with sufficient power to adopt charge. Your total nation fell apart, disintegrating in to chaos along with clan based militias beneath the particular rule of the quantity of war lords fighting with regard to supremacy.
At precisely this time, America ended up being concerned inside the buildup to the first Gulf war, nevertheless since the particular Saudis permitted the united States in order to create extensive bases because country, Berbera had been abandoned and also Somalis left with their fate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoomiYzn_WE
By late 1991, 2 warlords battled with regard to control your capital, Mogadishu. That They had been General Mohammed Farah Aidid as well as Mohammed Ali Mahdi. The Particular remaining part associated with the nation suffered ongoing raids and also continual fighting among lesser warlords, exacerbated simply by frequent incursions of Ethiopian forces.
