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Bin Laden tied to Mogadishu massacre
WND/DebkaFile ^ | 9/20/01 | DEBKAfile

Posted on 09/20/2001 7:41:11 PM PDT by TD911

Bin Laden tied to Mogadishu massacre
Somalia trail may provide clues to leaks of top-secret U.S. codes



Editor's note: DEBKAfile's electronic news publication is a news-cum-analysis live wire, online round the clock seven days a week. A weekly edition,DEBKA-Net-Weekly, is now available through WorldNetDaily.com. Drawing on DEBKAfile's unique sources, analytical talents and forward-looking insights, it is presented as a compact, intelligence-angled weekly package. It is available as a direct e-mail feed or via the Internet.


© 2001 WorldNetDaily.com

When U.S. and United Nations soldiers got bogged down in a guerrilla war in Somalia in 1993-94, it wasn't just the rebel leader Mohammed Farah Aidid they were fighting – it was the terrorist forces of Osama bin Laden, according to new intelligence information obtained by DEBKA-Net-Weekly.

Aidid became notorious after a savage 14-hour battle in Mogadishu, the Somali capital, between U.S. elite Rangers and Delta units and the men under his command. Aidid was a former ally of the late pro-Soviet Somali ruler Said Barre and his intelligence chief.

In January 1991, Aidid led a military coup that ousted Barre, plunging Somalia in a vicious civil war that left more than a million dead in 10 years and brought a population of 7 million into deep famine. In December 1994, the U.N. launched a food aid and medical relief operation called "Restore Hope," supported by a U.S. military expedition whose purpose was to secure aid distribution and then leave the country.

This is not how it panned out. Instead of handing out relief, the U.N. and U.S. contingents, especially the one from Pakistan, were forced to stand up and defend themselves against incessant assaults from Somalia militias, the most hostile being Aidid's force. This went on for nine months, during which the U.S. was dragged deep into the Somali quagmire.

At length, the Americans faced the options of beating the Aidid force on the battlefield or retiring in defeat with heavy losses.

The Clinton administration decided the only way to extricate the American force from Somalia was to hit the Aidid militia hard. The best way to go about this was to seize Aidid himself.

A secret CIA file obtained by DEBKA reveals what no one in the White House, U.S. military or U.S. intelligence agencies understood at the time – that the hard-core fighters of the Aidid militia were not Somali but members of bin Laden's Al Qaeda network, who were deployed in his Mogadishu bases.

However, according to the data contained in that file, some person or persons in the office of U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali did know this and made sure to keep the information from the American government, according to the CIA file.

The final battle that prompted President Clinton's decision to pull his men out of Somalia bears the hallmarks of a secret ambush. The same hand that kept the Americans fighting in the dark also led them into a trap in Mogadishu, holding out the illusion that Aidid was within their grasp.

On Oct. 2, 1993, a Somali informer – who later turned out to be in bin Laden's pay – tipped off the Americans that a group of Aidid's top lieutenants, possibly even the chief himself, had just entered a building opposite the main market of Mogadishu. Black Hawk choppers took off with 99 U.S. elite troops and equipped with reconnaissance and navigational equipment hooked to spy satellite and escorted by three observer helicopters and a high-flying OH-58. No one in the U.S. command imagined that their secret code words, including their secret signals to Washington, were in the hands of Aidid's men and, as it transpired later, passed on to Bin Laden's commanders.

The jaws of the trap snapped as the men were fast-roped down to the roof of the target building, when hellish fire opened up from all the surrounding rooftops. Instead of a fast, in-and-out, 90-minute raid, the troops were pinned down in 14 hours of savage fighting, with both sides bringing in reinforcements. It was then that the Al Qaeda militants showed themselves as the fiercest combatants; Aidid was conspicuously absent.

The U.S. lost 18 elite fighters and pilots that day, and 77 were wounded. The dead were dragged through the streets of Mogadishu past a cheering mob.

Not a single one of the enemy's men was captured. By March 31, 1994, the last American troop thankfully followed the U.N. contingent out of Somalia. But the sequel of this episode is illuminating.

An intense investigation followed the Mogadishu debacle to discover how the enemy was so well informed of U.S. plans. There were signs that bin Laden's men knew the secret U.S. codes and also the U.S. battle plan, enabling them to keep a jump head and lay traps. The investigation picked up the trail of leaked codes in Boutros-Ghali's office in New York, following them to the U.N. command in Mogadishu and bin Laden's aides.

Barred access to U.N. command offices to collect proof of the conspiracy, they resorted to an alternative scheme. On Feb. 26, 1994, a CIA special unit was flown directly from the States to Mogadishu and took over the U.N. building. A search turned up the documents containing the most secret U.S. codes.

Five days before the CIA break-in in Mogadishu, the FBI arrested senior CIA officer Aldrich Ames at his home in Arlington, Va., and charged him with spying for Moscow. A search of his home turned up evidence that Ames had been feeding secret U.S. codes to a recipient at U.N. headquarters in New York. Among them were the secret signals of the Mogadishu operation.

After the CIA agents in Mogadishu reported their findings to the White House, they were told to destroy all the papers, making sure they had the originals.

This was the first and only time the CIA got hold of evidence that its most secret codes were in the hands of the ex-Saudi terror master.

Boutros-Ghali is a former Egyptian diplomat who served as U.N. secretary-general from 1992 through 1995. In the '70s, he officiated as undersecretary for foreign affairs in his country's government under President Anwar Sadat. Boutros-Ghali is currently secretary of the Francophone Group of Nations, which disseminates French culture and influence, especially in the Middle East and Africa. He is also an unofficial adviser on the Middle East to French President Jacque Chirac.

Less known are his close ties with the Palestinians and long personal friendship with their leader, Yasser Arafat, from the '60s, when Arafat made his debut on the international stage. Ghali still retains considerable influence in the plotting of Arafat's strategy, DEBKA reports.


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Another beautiful Clinton Coverup.
1 posted on 09/20/2001 7:41:11 PM PDT by TD911
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To: TD911
OH, THIS MAKES ME WANT TO SCREAM! #42 WASN'T A PRESIDENT - HE WAS A TRAITOR AND A SCUM.....in addition to being a lying, male slut.
2 posted on 09/20/2001 7:44:13 PM PDT by anniegetyourgun
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To: TD911

3 posted on 09/20/2001 7:52:35 PM PDT by Diogenesis
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To: TD911
Wait till hubby reads this. He lost some ranger buddies in that fight.
4 posted on 09/20/2001 7:55:19 PM PDT by rangerwife
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To: TD911
Bump for later read...
5 posted on 09/20/2001 7:56:21 PM PDT by Fury
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To: TD911
Can I be forgiven for being a little bit skeptical about this report? I'm having a little trouble believing that this is just being found out right now...seems awful coincidental. And I'm not sure of the accuracy of WND's source...who are those guys?

}:-)4

6 posted on 09/20/2001 7:58:28 PM PDT by Moose4
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To: TD911
It misses some points and is false on a couple. First, Aidid was in a clan war that went back a number of years. Boutros Boutros Gali was tied to the opposite clan from his days as an ambassador. Gali wanted Aidid captured and removed, whence the support of the U.N. for this type of operation.

Second, we did score a number of Aidid's aids during the raid. The operation consisted of Rangers securing the perimeter and Delta commandos taking down the house and capturing the inhabitants. This part of the operation was successful. Humvee's carrying the prisoners were ambushed but they made it back to the base. We literally killed THOUSANDS of the fighters that went up against the Rangers and Delta. In terms of the battle, we kicked ass. Two Blackhawk helicopters were shot down with RPG's and it was the rescue of the chopper crews that caused the mission to go awry.

Third, Pakistan saved our bacon by driving their Armored Personnel Carriers in with the 3rd Mountain Division to extract Delta and the Rangers.

Clinton was played the fool by Gali and the U.N. by getting goaded into a clan war that Gali had an interest in. We also underestimated the ability of an RPG to shoot down a Blackhawk. But what we did learn is that our special forces are AWESOME. They kicked some serious terrorist ass in Somalia, Yes we lost men due to some logistics and backup support issues (no APC's in theater and no immediate backup, only a single chopper rescue crew, etc.

If you want to learn about this operation and the 100 men who were involved, read "Black Hawk Down." It's an excellent account.

7 posted on 09/20/2001 8:03:37 PM PDT by tbeatty
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To: Moose4, TD911
Can I be forgiven for being a little bit skeptical about this report? I'm having a little trouble believing that this is just being found out right now...seems awful coincidental. And I'm not sure of the accuracy of WND's source...who are those guys?

Ditto!

8 posted on 09/20/2001 8:07:08 PM PDT by F-117A
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To: tbeatty
As I recall the field commanders requested armored vehicles be made available and the request went up to the JCS. Colin Powell was CJCS and was told by Clinton not to send armor as it would appear that we were escalating the level of hostilities. I can only imagine that advice came from Maddy Halfbright. This is from memory but I think it is true.
9 posted on 09/20/2001 8:13:45 PM PDT by Movemout
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To: F-117A
Before all of this is done I expect Bin Laden to be blamed for the number of sesame seeds on a Big Mac bun.
10 posted on 09/20/2001 8:14:10 PM PDT by IncPen
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To: TD911
Has Aldrich Ames been hanged yet?

Time to load the UN onto a garbage scow and tow it out into the Atlantic . .

11 posted on 09/20/2001 8:16:32 PM PDT by Crowcreek
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To: TD911
Bump for the truth.
12 posted on 09/20/2001 8:16:51 PM PDT by b4its2late
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To: TD911
</font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"></font face="Palatino, Times New Roman, Georgia, Times, serif"> Good post. Bookmarking for later reference.
13 posted on 09/20/2001 8:18:07 PM PDT by Roebucks
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To: tbeatty
I admit I just kinda scanned the article at first, I'm bad about that. Guess that's why I never do well on reading comprehension! Anyways, what you say is true about the Rangers and Delta and the prior missions to that one. I've read Blackhawk Down too. Great book.

But, I have heard or read somewhere, that someone did tip off Aidid's crew to that impending raid. I heard it was either the Italians or French, can't remember now. Could've been the informer we trusted too though.

14 posted on 09/20/2001 8:23:01 PM PDT by rangerwife
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To: TD911
There may be elements of truth to this story, but it's description of the battle and outcome is pretty inaccurate which makes me wonder about the rest. I believe we actually captured 24 of Adid's men including the 2 target persons.

http://www.blackhawkdown.com

15 posted on 09/20/2001 8:24:39 PM PDT by tobiasjodter
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To: Movemout
My understanding was that it was Les Aspin who refused the heavier duty APCs - thought it would look bad PR-wise.
16 posted on 09/20/2001 8:30:34 PM PDT by ikka
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To: tbeatty
Black Hawk Down is a truly amazing book. I hope that the movie version does the book justice. I worry that the producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, will end up bastardizing it with "blowed up good" effects though.
17 posted on 09/20/2001 8:32:03 PM PDT by ikka
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To: ikka
You are probably correct. My memory is nowhere near perfect. But the gist of the point is the same. Commanders who ask for armored vehicles should be heeded. And they asked for them well in advance of the fatal raid. That PR is more important says a lot about the priorities of the Nation's top leadership at the time I think.
18 posted on 09/20/2001 8:46:27 PM PDT by Movemout
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To: Movemout
It is true. But the request for armor came only days before this firefight. It would never have been in theater quick enough to affect the outcome. Also, the Ranger and Delta force wouldn't have used it but it would have come in with the 3rd Mountain Division as part of the assist. Armor would have enabled them to respond quicker but (I think it took twelve hours to hook the Pakis and the 3rd MD up and coordinate). I still don't undertand why 3rd MD was in theater without armor in the first place.
19 posted on 09/20/2001 8:49:40 PM PDT by tbeatty
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To: TD911



20 posted on 09/20/2001 8:51:24 PM PDT by B-Cause
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