Author: Matt Eversmann
Publisher: Presidio Press
ISBN: 0345459660
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 274
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Book Description
“No matter how skilled the writer of nonfiction, you are always getting the story secondhand. Here’s a chance to go right to the source. . . . These men were there.” –MARK BOWDEN (from the Foreword) It started as a mission to capture a Somali warlord. It turned into a disastrous urban firefight and death-defying rescue operation that shocked the world and rattled a great nation. Now the 1993 battle for Mogadishu, Somalia–the incident that was the basis of the book and film Black Hawk Down–is remembered by the men who fought and survived it. Six of the best in our military recall their brutal experiences and brave contributions in these never-before-published, firstperson accounts. “Operation Gothic Serpent,” by Matt Eversmann: As a “chalk” leader, Eversmann was part of the first group of Rangers to “fast rope” from the Black Hawk helicopters. It was his chalk that suffered the first casualty of the battle. “Sua Sponte: Of Their Own Accord,” by Raleigh Cash: Responsible for controlling and directing fire support for the platoon, Cash entered the raging battle in the ground convoy sent to rescue his besieged brothers in arms. “Through My Eyes,” by Mike Kurth: One of only two African Americans in the battle, Kurth confronted his buddies’ deaths, realizing that “the only people whom I had let get anywhere near me since I was a child were gone.” “What Was Left Behind,” by John Belman: He roped into the biggest firefight of the battle and considers some of the mistakes that were made, such as using Black Hawk helicopters to provide sniper cover. “Be Careful What You Wish For,” by Tim Wilkinson: He was one of the Air Force pararescuemen or PJs–the highly trained specialists for whom “That Others May Live” is no catchphrase but a credo–and sums up his incomprehensible courage as “just holding up my end of the deal on a bad day.” “On Friendship and Firefights,” by Dan Schilling: As a combat controller, he was one of the original planners for the deployment of SOF forces to Mogadishu in the spring of 1993. During the battle, he survived the initial assault and carnage of the vehicle convoys only to return to the city to rescue his two closest friends, becoming, literally, “Last Out.” With America’s withdrawal from Somalia an oft-cited incitement to Osama bin Laden, it is imperative to revisit this seminal military mission and learn its lessons from the men who were there and, amazingly, are still here.
Author: Andrew Harding
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781849049511
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 296
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Book Description
The Mayor of Mogadishu tells the story of one family's epic journey through Somalia's turmoil, from the optimism of independence to its spectacular unravelling.Mohamud 'Tarzan' Nur was born a nomad, and became an orphan, then a street brawler in the cosmopolitan port city of Mogadishu - a place famous for its cafes and open-air cinemas. When Somalia collapsed into civil war, Tarzan and his young family joined the exodus from Mogadishu, eventually spending twenty years in North London. But in 2010 Tarzan returned to the unrecognisable ruins of a city largely controlled by the Islamist militants of Al-Shabaab. For some, the new Mayor was a galvanising symbol of defiance. But others branded him a thug, mired in the corruption and clan rivalries that continue to threaten Somalia's revival.The Mayor of Mogadishu is an uplifting story of survival, and a compelling examination of what it means to lose a country and then to reclaim it.
Author: Danny McKight
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780615511641
Category : Command of troops
Languages : en
Pages : 214
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Book Description
Author: Shirin Ramzanali Fazel
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781717341792
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 194
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Book Description
There was time when my country was the country of fairy tales, a country where every child would want to grow and play. This is the story of the author's physical and emotional journey from her war-torn homeland, Somalia. Some time after the military coup in 1969 Shirin left Mogadishu and moved to Italy to make a new life and home for herself and her family. Since then she has crossed continents and lived in several cities, facing the challenge of integrating with many different kind of society before settling in England in 2010. This book encapsulates her reflections on the Somali diaspora.
Author: Hassan Abukar
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: 1504911555
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 155
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Book Description
This memoir is an evocative, intimate account of a country struggling how to balance tradition and modernization, as seen through the eyes of a young man coming of age. With insight and humor, the author shares his story of abandonment, love, and family through Somalias greatest period of social and political upheaval.
Author: Kent DeLong
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0275971597
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 145
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Book Description
Every American should read this book in order to gain a clear insight about military combat and war. From the foreword by Ross Perot Recommended for readers who enjoy suspenseful accounts of close combat. Publishers Weekly Most Americans remember...the two troubling televised images that follwed [the operation]....But there is more about that day that is told in this book and that should be known by Americans. The Wall Street Journal Among America's clearest memories of ongoing conflict in Somalia will certainly be the swollen, bloodied face of helicopter pilot Michael Durant, displayed on the international television news reports after his capture in Mogadishu on October 3, 1993. While the failed mission leading to Durant's imprisonment captured the rage and anguish of the world, few Americans truly understood how many U.S. Army Ranger compatriots shared Durant's fortitude and courage there. Indeed, Durant was only one member of the elite Task Force Ranger Regiment deployed to apprehend Mohammed Farrah Aidid, Somailia's most powerful warlord on the fateful October day. Here is the little-known story of the 15 fierce, deadly hours of fighting that followed the Americans tightly calibrated attempt to target Aidid. Moment by moment, Mogahishu! recounts how this mission, intended to deflate the heart of Somali resistance, became instead a tragic showcase for the heroism and breathtaking self-sacrifice of the American servicement--and the catalyst of U.S. withdrawal of peacekeeping troops. Mogadishu! reveals while the operation produced on the most decorated military units in American history, it cost 18 of America's best-trained servicemen their lives. Using rare testimony from other military personnel, Kent DeLong offers the first complete account of how these Americans died, not for glory but for each other, far from their loved ones in a God-forsaken place called Mogadishu.
Author: David W. Shenk
Publisher: Herald Press
ISBN: 9780836195576
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
In 1991, Ahmed Ali Haile returned to the chaos of his native Somalia with a clear mission: to bring warring clans together to find new paths of peace—often over a cup of tea. A grenade thrown by a detractor cost Haile his leg and almost his life, but his stature as a peacemaker remained. Whether in Somali’s capital, Mogadishu, or among Somalis in Kenya, Europe, and the United States, Haile has been a tireless ambassador for the peace of Christ. Into this moving memoir of conversion and calling, Haile weaves poignant reflections on the meaning of his journey in the world of Islam. Part of the Christians Meeting Muslims series
Author: Lt. Col. Michael Whetstone, USA (Ret.)
Publisher: Stackpole Books
ISBN: 0811715736
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 282
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Book Description
On the afternoon of October 3, 1993, two Black Hawk helicopters were shot down over the Somali capital of Mogadishu, leaving a handful of U.S. Army Rangers and Delta Force operators at the mercy of several thousand approaching militants. Ordered to "go find the glow"—the burning wreckage—hard-charging Capt. Mike Whetstone, commander of a Quick Reaction Company in the 10th Mountain Division, led part of the convoy sent to rescue the survivors. This powerfully vivid story of modern war is the intense firsthand account of the mission to find the crash site and retrieve the downed soldiers. • Raw descriptions of urban combat in the labyrinthine streets and shantytowns of Mogadishu • Complements the bestselling book and Oscar-winning movie Black Hawk Down, which recounts these events primarily from the perspective of the Rangers and Delta Force • Presents battle-tested lessons for young leaders
Author: Nuredin Hagi Scikei
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN: 1527506851
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 139
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Book Description
Mogadishu is a medieval trading city in Somalia, which reached the peak of its prosperity during the 14th and 15th centuries, when it became an important commercial and cultural crossroad between the Middle East, India and Eastern Africa. This text describes the incredible and neglected history of the Mogadishu. Rich and rare photographic evidence in the text makes it possible to explore the mosques, ruins, gravestones and residences with their 300-year old beams. The book will be of interest not just to scholars of history and archaeology, but also to anyone concerned by the destruction and decline of the medieval treasures of the first so-called freight village in the Horn of Africa.
Author: Neil C. M. Carrier
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 9780190646202
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
Nairobi's Eastleigh estate has undergone pro- found change over the past two decades. Previously a quiet residential zone, the arrival of vast numbers of Somali refugees catalyzed its trans- formation into 'Little Mogadishu', a global hub for Somali business. Dozens of malls and hotels have sprouted from its muddy streets, attracting thousands of shoppers. Nonetheless, despite boosting Kenya's economy, the estate and its residents are held in suspicion over alleged links to Islamic terrorism, especially after the 2013 Westgate Mall attack, while local and international media have suggested with little evidence that its economic boom owes much to capital derived from Indian Ocean piracy. In contrast to such sensationalized reporting, Little Mogadishu is based on detailed historical and ethnographic research and explores the social and historical underpinnings of this economic boom. It examines how transnational networks converged on Eastleigh in the wake of the collapse of the Somali state, attracting capital from the Somali diaspora, and bringing goods--especially clothes and electronics--from Dubai, China and elsewhere that are much in demand in East Africa. In so doing, Little Mogadishu provides a compelling case-study of the developmental impact diasporas and transnational trade can have, albeit in a country where many see this development as suspect.
