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Testimony of James H. Smith , May 12, 1994
Mr. Chairman and Committee Members, I wish to express my appreciation for the opportunity to testify at this committee hearing. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for the committee's diligent work in investigating the events preceding, during and after the Mogadishu battle of October 3, 1993.
My name is James H. Smith . I am joined today by my wife Caroline. Immediately after graduating from high school in 1965, I enlisted in the Army. I was only 17 years old, but I wanted to be a Paratrooper. I responded to the challenge of military life and was fortunate to attend Officers Candidate School. I was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Infantry and served in Vietnam with the 4th Infantry Division and the 25th Infantry Division. In July 1967, as member of the 3rd Brigade Task Force (Tropic Lightning), I was severely wounded in a firefight. I spent the next two years in an Army Hospital recovering. I survived, but my left leg was amputated just below the knee.
In the early evening of October 4, 1993, my wife Carol arrived home from work to be met by two Army officers. The officers performed their obligation with professionalism and compassion. Our son Jamie had been killed in action. Carol called me at work and I immediately left a business meeting to be with my family. That evening I met with the press. After the expected questions of: `How would you describe your son?', and, `What were his hobbies?' I was asked two very pointed questions: `Did my son's death serve a purpose?'--and--`Am I angry or do I blame anyone? My answer was also direct: `If my son's death can keep Somali children from starving, my son's death had a purpose', `No, I am not angry. My son was a Ranger. He knew the risks and so did I. I do not blame anyone!'
On October 12, 1993 Jamie was buried at Fort Benning. Immediately after the services I met with some of the veterans of the Mogadishu battle. They had bandaged arms, casts on their legs, walked with crutches and were in wheelchairs. We talked for several hours. I left that meeting with three firm beliefs:
First: My son's death served no purpose. His courage and sacrifice had been wasted.
Second: The Rangers had been betrayed. Denied proper combat support and unreliable U.N. allies, disaster was preordained. There must be accountability.
Third: I was angry. As a disabled Vietnam Veteran I had the responsibility, the obligation, to insure that my son's generation did not suffer the fate of his father's generation.
My meeting, on October 12th, with the veterans of the Mogadishu battle was to be the first of many meetings and conversations. These contacts would be in the barracks, hospital, headquarters, on the telephone and in our home. I have spoken with virtually every veteran of that battle and the entire command structure--from the squad leader to commanding general. Unknown to me at that time, Larry Joyce was proceeding on a parallel inquiry. When Larry and I met at the 3rd Ranger Battalion memorial service in November 1993, we compared our findings. We had independently come to the same conclusions.
I am in complete agreement with Larry's comments. However, I would add that beyond the failures of the White House leadership to supply proper combat support and mismanaging the Somalia policy; the unacceptable conditions that existed in Somalia with the United Nations officials and peacekeeping forces, as they negatively affected our troops, must be investigated.
Although the concept of a U.N. multinational peacekeeping force appears the appropriate direction for U.S. involvement in such conflict situations, the conditions in Somalia resulted in the Rangers being placed in a situation without reliable allies and, in certain cases, U.N. peacekeeping forces actually supporting the enemy. Specifically:
U.N. peacekeeping forces were fragmented by geographic areas of responsibility. Forces from one country routinely refused to come to the aid of another nation's military unit that was under attack if the battle was outside their geographic area of responsibility. For example: the Italians did not come to the aid of the Nigerians. Therefore, when the Americans required assistance the Malaysians had no desire to support the Americans--since the battle was not their concern.
Aidid's informers or sympathizers had completely infiltrated the U.N. bureaucracy, the peacekeeping forces and charitable organizations. Additionally there were numerous examples of U.N. officials and peacekeeping forces actively or tacitly supporting Aidid. Therefore, secrecy in military operations was impossible. For example: there were numerous reports of Aidid's forces using U.N. or charitable organization's radios and telephone as his military communications network.
Other than the U.S. forces, there was no effort on the part of other U.N. peacekeeping units to disarm the militia and maintain order. For example: Egyptian peacekeeping forces, rather than disarm the militia, would give receipts for weapons so that when the militia left their area the weapon could be returned.
Except for U.S. forces, the multinational peacekeeping units ignored their responsibilities to secure their areas and eliminate the flow of weapons into Mogadishu. Trucks would enter the Italian sector from outside the city and the Italian peacekeepers would only direct traffic and not inspect the trucks. The result was a buildup of weapons by Aidid's militia and the ability of this force to attack the Rangers with superior numbers and firepower.
These conditions could not be resolved by our military field commanders. These problems are strictly political in nature. Their resolution could only come from our political leaders demanding that the U.N. leadership correct the situation. This was never done, and to the best of my knowledge, correcting these conditions was never attempted. The result was my son's Commander-in-Chief allowed American troops into a combat situation that at best had unreliable allies, or at worse, allies that actively supported the man who had already killed American soldiers.
This condition is unacceptable. It is imperative that these issues be investigated and resolved. This resolution can only be satisfied by holding those in elected and appointed positions of authority accountable for their inaction or dereliction. This requires that additional hearings be held by the Armed Services Committee for these issues can only be answered by the White House staff members involved in the decision making process.
Specifically we must learn: What was the decision making process in the White House? Who was involved? When were they involved? To what extent was the President, Vice President, National Security Advisor, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of State and the Ambassador to the United Nations involved? Additionally, what input did U.N. Envoy Jonathan Howe and U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali have on the deployment, combat support and rules of engagement decisions. To determine the cause of the Somalia fiasco these concerns must be clarified.
Our men and women in uniform deserve better than the `disaster waiting to happen conditions' that existed in Somalia . As a disabled Vietnam veteran, I do not want any young man or woman to experience my pain when wounded; nor as a parent of a soldier killed in action, do I want other loved ones to experience my grief--because of a flawed foreign policy or a failure to support our troops in battle.
Additional hearings must beheld. Not as a witch hunt to blame field commanders. The officers made no tactical errors and the troops perform magnificently. Nor as revenge or retribution for past mistakes by elected or appointed officials. But as a quest for the truth so that future Vietnams and Somalias are avoided.
Last weekend my wife and I visited Arlington National Cemetery, not as tourists, but to honor the grave of Sergeant James C. Joyce. I had prepared myself emotionally for this pilgrimage, but I was not prepared for the reality. As I stood saying a silent prayer at Casey's grave, I noticed that to the left of Casey's grave was the grave of MSG Timothy Martin, and to the left of his grave was the grave of PFC Richard Kowalewski. With tears streaming down my face I remembered my first visit to the Vietnam Memorial. Over 58,000 names carved in stone. Now I was gazing upon three more names carved in stone--soldiers who gave the last full measure. Sadly, like the generation before them, the sacrifice of these three brave soldiers had been wasted.
It is probably that America's military will be called to battle in the near future. However, our men and women in uniform must never again be placed in a `Somalia' situation. A quarter of a century ago my generation was ground up in the rice paddies and jungles of Vietnam. We must not allow the next generation to suffer the same fate. If additional hearings are not held, I fear that more Americans will suffer the fate of Vietnam and Somalia .