Operation Provide Relief

Operation Provide Relief was part of United Nations (UN) endorsed effort called The Unified Task Force (UNITAF) to secure and facilitate humanitarian relief for the people of Somalia, an effort that was assisted by the UN UNOSOM I mission beginning in 1991 in light of a severe famine, initiated and exacerbated by the ongoing Somali civil war.

It was initiated and spearheaded by the United States of America and other Western nations that committed troops to conduct the operation. However most of the food was looted shortly upon the landing of these planes. This made the operation a failure and the UN therefore asked its members for assistance, leading to Operation Restore Hope.

Somali Civil War
  • Revolution
  • UN intervention
  • Consolidation
  • Advance of the ICU
  • Ethiopian intervention
  • Inter-factional war

(This article regards only Operations RESTORE HOPE and PROVIDE RELIEF which were not part of the UNOSOM mission but of UNITAF, separate from UNOSOM but also under the UN aegis. As it stands, this article largely ignores the mandate and duties of UNOSOM I and UNOSOM II and opts instead for a description of US actions solely.)

Read more about Operation Provide Relief:  Background

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