Black Hawk Down Incident in Somalia

Black Hawk Down (the movie is called "Black Hawk Down", and the U.S. military operation in Somalia in 1993 is generally called the "Black Hawk Incident") was an accident that occurred during the U.S. military's military operation in Somalia in 1993. , due to incorrect intelligence, two Black Hawk helicopters were shot down by RPG rocket launchers. And triggered people throughout the city to attack the US military. After several hours of fierce fighting, most of the 120 American troops successfully returned to their base with the support of reinforcements.

Reason: This incident made the front pages of major newspapers around the world, and American public opinion was in an uproar, unanimously criticizing the US government for sending troops to Somalia. At the same time, international criticism is endless: former British Prime Minister Edward Heath said that the United Nations should not become a protective umbrella for US military operations; Egyptian Foreign Minister Moussa said that everything that happened in Somalia will add new dimensions to the Somali national reconciliation process. Obstacles; French Defense Minister Leotard accused the United States of going beyond the scope of a "humanitarian mission" and turning into an "intolerable confrontation"; German newspapers stated that the United States was waging "a dirty war" in Somalia ". The Battle of Mogadishu dealt a blow to the US government. Clinton finally realized that the Somali issue should be solved through political means, because the "encirclement and suppression" for several months not only failed to capture Aidid, but made Aidid more popular in Somalia.

Extended information: Summary of failure

1. The United Nations is too optimistic about the situation in Somalia, especially after increasing its troops in Somalia. The United Nations has positioned itself as a savior. But in fact, under the misinformation of the warlords, the peacekeepers were portrayed as devils. Incidents of Somali residents attacking peacekeepers often occur. In the end, the United Nations had to withdraw its peacekeeping troops from Somalia.

2. The US military underestimated the difficulty of the mission. Before the operation, the US military did not expect to fight an entire city. Therefore, it did not ask for strong air and ground support. Apart from Black Hawk helicopters carrying soldiers, there are no other strike forces in the air. The ground troops were even worse, with only armored transport vehicles and no tanks to clear the way.

3. The US military made a scheduling error. Although the US military is trapped in the city. But the US military is an elite force, and each of them can defeat one against a hundred. As long as we focus on defense together, we can completely avoid maximum casualties and wait for reinforcements to arrive. However, because two Black Hawk helicopters crashed one after another, the US military in the city had to establish defense lines at four locations. The number of U.S. troops was originally small, but now they have to divide their forces to fight. Therefore, the combat effectiveness of the US military is greatly reduced.

Reference: Black Hawk Down - Baidu Encyclopedia