| Revision as of 21:45, 14 October 2006 editAthaenara (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users54,866 editsNo edit summary← Previous edit | Revision as of 22:15, 14 October 2006 edit undoAthaenara (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users54,866 edits →ReferencesNext edit → | ||
| Line 33: | Line 33: | ||
| * Lutz, David. Hannover Institute of Philosophical Research. (research paper). Front Royal, Virginia: ''Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics''. 2000. | * Lutz, David. Hannover Institute of Philosophical Research. (research paper). Front Royal, Virginia: ''Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics''. 2000. | ||
| * McKinley, James. <u>How a U.S. Marine Became a Warlord in Somalia</u>. New York: ''The New York Times''. August 16, 1996. | * McKinley, James. <u>How a U.S. Marine Became a Warlord in Somalia</u>. New York: ''The New York Times''. August 16, 1996. | ||
| ==External Links== | |||
| * Article by Harun Hassan, about the difficulties involved in "journalistic objectivity, balance and ‘involvement’" when General Aidid was one of Mogadishu's most powerful warlords. | |||
| {{start box}} | {{start box}} | ||
Revision as of 22:15, 14 October 2006
General Mohamed Farrah Aidid (Somali: Maxamed Faarax Caydiid) (December 15 1934 – August 1, 1996) was a Somali leader of the Habr Gidr subclan (itself part of the larger Hawiye clan). He was chairman of the United Somali Congress (USC) and later the Somali National Alliance (SNA) who drove President Mohamed Siad Barre’s regime from the capital, Mogadishu. Later he challenged the presence of United Nations and United States troops in the country.
General Aidid was one of the main targets of Operation Restore Hope, the United Nations and United States military operation to break the military siege and to provide humanitarian aid in Somalia. Evading capture, he declared himself president of Somalia after forcing UN forces to abandon the country in 1995. He died as a result of injuries acquired in 1996.
Biography
General Aidid was educated in Rome and Moscow and served in the government of Mohamed Siad Barre in several capacities; in the end as intelligence chief. Barre suspected him of planning a coup d'état and had him imprisoned for six years. In 1991, the clan of General Aidid did indeed overthrow Barre, and General Aidid, as leader of the United Somali Congress, emerged as a major force in the ensuing civil war.
General Aidid hindered international U.N. peacekeeping forces in 1992. As a result, the U.S. put a $25,000 bounty on his head and attempted to capture him. On October 3, 1993 a force of United States Army Rangers and Delta Force operators set out to capture several officials of Aidid's militia in an area of the Somalian capital city of Mogadishu, controlled by him. Although technically successful, with the capture of several "tier-one personalities," the operation did not completely go as planned, and between 500 and 1000 Somalis, as well as 19 American soldiers, died as a result. The people of Somalia were later angry at the Rangers and supported Aidid. Videos showed Somalis chopping the flesh of Cliff Wolcott and his crew members of Super 6-4. Aidid himself was not captured. The events are commonly known outside Somalia as the Battle of Mogadishu.
The United States withdrew its forces soon afterwards (a move viewed by some as a sign of weakening American strength on the international front), and the United Nations left Somalia in 1995. Aidid then declared himself president of Somalia, but his government was not internationally recognized.
General Aidid died on August 2, 1996 as a result of gunshot wounds sustained a week earlier in a fight with competing factions.
There have been persistent rumors (including articles in the LA Times and USA Today), that US Special Operations forces, or CIA SAD officers, were directly or indirectly involved with General Aidid's death.
Heir
Hussein Mohamed Farrah, son of General Aidid, migrated to the United States when he was 14 years old. He stayed 16 years in the nation and became a naturalized citizen, and later a United States Marine. Two days after his father's death, the Habr Gidr clan selected him to become the new president of General Aidid's self-proclaimed republic, though Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed was subsequently elected transitional President of Somalia. Hussein Mohammed Farrah is seen by the West as a chance of improvement for the relationships between them and Somalia. When asked about his Marine days, he replied: "Once a Marine, always a Marine."
Alongside Mohamed Hussien Farah's mother, General Aidid was also married to two other women. He married the third and final wife, Khadijah Gurhan, after divorcing his second wife. Khadijah and Aidid have three girls and one boy (Sadia, Raisa, Amina, Garad).
References
- Binney, Michael. Joint Close Air Support in the Low Intensity Conflict (thesis). Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School. June 2003.
- Bowden, Mark. Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War. Berkeley, California: Atlantic Monthly Press. March 1999.
- "Somali faction leader Aidid dies". CNN. August 2, 1996.
- Lutz, David. Hannover Institute of Philosophical Research. The Ethics of American Military Policy in Africa (research paper). Front Royal, Virginia: Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics. 2000.
- McKinley, James. How a U.S. Marine Became a Warlord in Somalia. New York: The New York Times. August 16, 1996.
External Links
- Article by Harun Hassan, In Mogadishu objectivity is a luxury most journalists cannot afford about the difficulties involved in "journalistic objectivity, balance and ‘involvement’" when General Aidid was one of Mogadishu's most powerful warlords.
| Preceded byAli Mahdi Muhammad | President of Somalia 1995 – 1996 |
Succeeded byHussein Mohamed Farrah |