19 years ago today - Blackhawk Down

[Gtracer]

Thanks to the men who died for their brothers. A true inspiration and a standard that I idolize and strive to acheive. Give 100% and when your done, give another 100%

I am sure Dave would be just as happy not being recognized, he lost some brothers that day and I am sure I would not want to reflect back on the day too much if at all.

Though, if I ever do run into him, I am buying that man whatever drink he wants, no questions, nothing just a thanks for showing up.

[phaux]

Army chaplin Sgt. Jeff Struecker

An enlisted chaplin, is that a new thing??

[motoman]

An enlisted chaplin, is that a new thing??

Sorry I should have specified. He was a SGT where he lead a sqaud in Mogadishu and later on became a chaplin after going through OCS. He was honorably discharged in 2011 as a Major.

[helosailor]

20 years later, and two things remain certain:
1) Somalia is still a shithole
2) Our men that fought, and in some cases died, are still heroes.

[zachary]

Those stories are amazing and show such courage. What about the others that died that day? How many more were killed in battle like that? Anyone have links to the other stories?

[Chili]

More like "in crowed" classified cause I had no clue and i'm no newbie.

Thanks, Dave, we all owe you one

It's got nothing to do with an "in crowd", it was mentioned at least a few times on the old board at a minimum. It's more about those who read just about every thread vs those who skim here and there.

[motoman]

Former Ranger Jeff Steucker returns to Mogadishu for the first time.

http://vimeo.com/70572090

[CJ]

Well, I honestly did not know that about davbrucas, that is something. Much respect sir.

[mstng86]

"This is where I made a right turn onto this road and got hit by A COUPLE OF HUNDRED OR A THOUSAND ENEMY FIGHTERS."



HOLY SHIT!

[Chili]

He may get irritated that I post these but I think he deserves a lot of credit for what he did and saw. If I remember correctly Dave was a medic in the Ranger battalion involved. If not a medic, a Ranger for sure. As I mentioned when this thread was posted last year, I was in AIT when it all went down and had no clue about it until much later. When I was in Korea I was in a light infantry air assault unit (1/506th - same unit Frost was in a couple years later) and a couple of the guys in my unit there were Rangers that were in Somalia. One of my Drill Sergeants from basic training was a Ranger and was accepted into Delta Force during my cycle. Not sure if he was in Mogadishu, but the timing would have been about right.

Anyhow.. Much respect for all those involved, including Dave. Keep in mind, this was well before 9/11 and all that has followed, and during that time I would say that 90% or more of active duty military saw zero action.

After Korea I was in an armored cavalry unit (1/3 ACR) and a number of guys in my unit there were in Desert Storm. They were mostly tankers though, and the ground war was very short and non-eventful for many.

Some references after a quick search of the old board:

http://www.dfwstangs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=44200

http://www.dfwstangs.net/forums/showthread.php?p=2009970

B Co 3rd Batt

i didnt read the book. but from what i hear it was pretty close. only ~50 Rangers were interviewed for the book. i remember when mr bowden was looking for Rangers to interview he sent me an email. i declined the interview b/c at the time i was still dealing with PTSD and the death of my childhood friend.
Denny, if you have any specific questions you can PM or email me.

davbrucas@aol.com

Pro Trash,
where did you see combat? i was a part of just cause and desert storm also.

http://www.dfwstangs.net/forums/showthread.php?t=23556

[Chas_svo]

Well, I honestly did not know that about davbrucas, that is something. Much respect sir.

This.

[Tannerm]

I am having the privilege and honor of working an off duty event today. The Perot family is throwing a 20th anniversary function for all involved personnel and units from Gothic serpent. A true honor. Thought I'd share.

[motoman]

I had the privilege to run the Mogadishu mile today with 3 veterans. Pictured from left to right (i'm in the Nike shirt), they are as follows

Navy Corpsman, Kevin McGinnis
Army Ranger, Josh Robertson
Army Ranger, Ryan Lundeby

[KBScobravert]

Fuck yeah

So just shortly after the 20 year anniversary, Somalians got to meet some US SPECOPS guys, AGAIN!

If inappropriate for this thread, I can start a new one. Just thought it would be relevant as some payback and symbolic timing.

http://news.yahoo.com/us-forces-hit-extremists-behind-e-africa-attacks-011046451.html

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — In a stealthy seaside assault in Somalia and in a raid in Libya's capital, U.S. special forces on Saturday struck out against Islamic extremists who have carried out terrorist attacks in East Africa, snatching a Libyan al-Qaida leader allegedly involved in the bombings of U.S. embassies 15 years ago but aborting a mission to capture a terrorist suspect linked to last month's Nairobi shopping mall attack after a fierce firefight.

A U.S. Navy SEAL team swam ashore near a town in southern Somalia before militants of the al-Qaida-linked terrorist group al-Shabab rose for dawn prayers, U.S. and Somali officials told The Associated Press. The raid on a house in the town of Barawe targeted a specific al-Qaida suspect related to the mall attack, but the operation did not get its target, one current and one former U.S. military official told AP.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the raid publicly.

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman George Little confirmed that U.S. military personnel had been involved in a counter-terrorism operation against a known al-Shabab terrorist in Somalia, but did not provide details.

U.S. officials said there were no U.S. casualties in either the Somali or Libyan operation.

The Somali raid was carried out by members of SEAL Team Six, the same unit that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in his Pakistan hideout in 2011, another senior U.S. military official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak publicly.

But this time, SEAL Team Six members encountered fiercer resistance than expected so after a 15-20 minute firefight, the unit leader decided to abort the mission and they swam away, the official said. SEAL Team Six has responsibility for counterterrorism activities in the Horn of Africa.

Within hours of the Somalia attack, the U.S. Army's Delta Force carried out a raid in Libya's capital, Tripoli, to seize a Libyan al-Qaida leader wanted for the 1998 bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed more than 220 people, the military official said. Delta Force carries out counterterrorism operations in North Africa.

The Pentagon identified the captured al-Qaida leader as Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, known by his alias Anas al-Libi, who has been on the FBI's most wanted terrorists list since it was introduced shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

This is a HUGE W for us. Someone find me a towel and a bucket of water. They are going to bounce the shit pulled from OBL's hide against his brain and I would expect to see more raids carried out in the next 6 months by ST6 and the Delta guys. That, or drone strikes in Africa.

Al-Libi "is currently lawfully detained by the U.S. military in a secure location outside of Libya," Pentagon spokesman Little said.

Saturday's raid in Somalia occurred 20 years after the famous "Black Hawk Down" battle in Mogadishu in which a mission to capture Somali warlords in the capital went awry after militiamen shot down two U.S. helicopters. Eighteen U.S. soldiers were killed in the battle, and it marked the beginning of the end of that U.S. military mission to bring stability to the Horn of Africa nation. Since then, U.S. military intervention has been limited to missile attacks and lightning operations by special forces.

A resident of Barawe — a seaside town 240 kilometers (150 miles) south of Mogadishu — said by telephone that heavy gunfire woke up residents before dawn prayers.

The U.S. forces attacked a two-story beachside house in Barawe where foreign fighters lived, battling their way inside, said an al-Shabab fighter who gave his name as Abu Mohamed and who said he had visited the scene. Al-Shabab has a formal alliance with al-Qaida, and hundreds of men from the U.S., Britain and Middle Eastern countries fight alongside Somali members of al-Shabab.

Why can we not take their family members and deport them from the US? Apparently they are linked to terrorism, send them somewhere else. Yes, slippery slope for another thread.

A separate U.S. official described the action in Barawe as a capture operation against a high-value target. The official said U.S. forces engaged al-Shabab militants and sought to avoid civilian casualties. The U.S. forces disengaged after inflicting some casualties on fighters, said the official, who was not authorized to speak by name and insisted on anonymity.

The leader of al-Shabab, Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr, also known as Ahmed Godane, claimed responsibility for the attack on the upscale mall in Nairobi, Kenya, a four-day terrorist siege that began on Sept. 21 and killed at least 67 people. A Somali intelligence official said the al-Shabab leader was the target of Saturday's raid.

An al-Shabab official, Sheikh Abdiaziz Abu Musab, said in an audio message that the raid failed to achieve its goals.

Al-Shabab and al-Qaida have flourished in Somalia for years. Some of the plotters of the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania hid out there.

Barawe has seen Navy SEALs before. In September 2009 a daylight commando raid in Barawe killed six people, including Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, one of the most-wanted al-Qaida operatives in the region and an alleged plotter in the 1998 embassy bombings.

The Libyan al-Qaida leader also wanted for the bombings, al-Libi, is believed to have returned to Libya during the 2011 civil war that led to the ouster and killing of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

His brother, Nabih, said al-Libi was parking outside his house early Saturday after dawn prayers when a convoy of three vehicles encircled his car. Armed gunmen smashed the car's window and seized al-Libi's gun before grabbing him and taking him away. The brother said al-Libi's wife saw the kidnapping from her window and described the abductors as foreign-looking armed "commandos."

Al-Libi, who was believed to be a computer specialist for al-Qaida, is on the FBI's most-wanted list with a $5 million bounty on his head. He was indicted by a federal court in the Southern District of New York, for his alleged role in the bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya, on August 7, 1998.

Libyan officials did not return calls seeking comment on al-Libi's abduction.

In Somalia, a resident of Barawe who gave his name as Mohamed Bile said militants closed down the town in the hours after the assault, and that all traffic and movements have been restricted. Militants were carrying out house-to-house searches, likely to find evidence that a spy had given intelligence to a foreign power used to launch the attack, he said.

"We woke up to find al-Shabab fighters had sealed off the area and their hospital is also inaccessible," Bile told The Associated Press by phone. "The town is in a tense mood."

Al-Shabab later posted pictures on the Internet of what it said was U.S. military gear left behind in the raid. Two former U.S. military officers identified the gear as the kind U.S. troops carry. Pictures showed items including bullets, an ammunition magazine, a military GPS device and a smoke and flash-bang grenade used to clear rooms. The officials could not confirm if those items had come from the raid.

In Kenya, military spokesman Maj. Emmanuel Chirchir on Saturday gave the names of four fighters implicated in the Westgate Mall attack as Abu Baara al-Sudani, Omar Nabhan, Khattab al-Kene and Umayr, names that were first broadcast by a local Kenyan television station.

Matt Bryden, the former head of the U.N. Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea, said via email that al-Kene and Umayr are known members of al-Hijra, the Kenyan arm of al-Shabab. He added that Nabhan may be a relative of Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, the target of the 2009 Navy SEALs raid in Barawe.

The identities of the four men from the mall attack came as a Nairobi station obtained and broadcast the closed circuit television footage from Westgate. The footage shows four attackers calmly walking through a storeroom inside the complex, holding machine guns. One of the men's pant legs appears to be stained with blood, though he is not limping. It is unclear if the blood is his, or that of his victims'.

Government statements shortly after the four-day siege began on Sept. 21 indicated between 10 to 15 attackers were involved, but indications since then are that fewer attackers took part, though the footage may not show all of the assailants.

[soap]

I can't Believe it's been 20 years already. RIP to all our guys we lost that day.