Twenty years ago, a U.S. humanitarian mission in Mogadishu, Somalia went awry, culminating in two Black Hawk helicopters crashing in the war-ravaged African city, and led to America's withdrawal of troops within months.
An anniversary ceremony near Philadelphia honored Staff Sgt. Randall Shughart on Thursday, who was among the Army Special Operations troops who provided sniper fire against rebels in the African country, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Shughart's mission was to apprehend advisers to Mohamed Farrah Aidid. He was killed in hand-to-hand combat with rebels after running out of ammunition.
Shughart was awarded the Medal of Honor on Thursday. The battles in Mogadishu left 18 Americans dead and 79 wounded. The story was chronicled by journalist Mark Bowen in a best-selling book, which was adapted into a film.
"[Shughart] is an icon. He represents who we are," said Tom Kelley, president of the Special Operation of Carlisle. Kelly spoke at the dedication of a memorial at Shughart's gravesite near Newville, the community where his family lived.
Col. Mathew Dawson, the director of the Army Heritage and Education Center at the Army War College, also spoke of the 1992 famine and subsequent civil war, which left as many as 500,000 Somalis dead. The U.S. led a humanitarian intervention soon thereafter.
President George H. W. Bush initially directed Operation Restore Hope to try a bring some degree of peace to a war-ravaged country, as well provide food to its impoverished population.
President Bill Clinton's painful decision to pull troops out in March 1993, after six months of battle, was seen as humiliating in the eyes of many, as the image of a dead American soldier dragged through the streets of Mogadishu was plastered on TV.
"The monument is a tangible symbol of selfless bravery," Maj. Gen. Anthony Cucolo, commandant of the Army War College, said, in remembering Shughart.
The 20th anniversary of the tragedy in Somalia also represented America's first battle with Al Qaeda, ABC News reported.
"You left [Somalia] carrying disappointment, humiliation, defeat and your dead with you," al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden taunted in his 1996 fatwa against America.
Bin Laden was killed by U.S. Navy Seals in Abbottabad Pakistan in May, 2011.
