UN mission left a legacy of aid-funded warlordism and soldier abuses.

Evidence

Thus, failure though it was, U.N.O.S.O.M. inadvertently played a major role in shaping the future political economy of Mogadishu and southern Somalia. U.N. headquarters was located in southern Mogadishu which was now dominated by militias based on segments of ‘Aideed’s Habar Gidir clansmen, who, for the most part, had invaded the city during and after the guerrilla operations which overthrew Siyad Barre in 1991. Without considering the implications, the U.N. had recruited large numbers of Somali ancillary staff from this clan, which also derived an important income from backhanders it imposed when renting property and supplying transport to aid organizations. These funds paradoxically, helped to finance ‘Aideed’s fight against U.N.O.S.O.M., as well as supplying him with intelligence while disseminating misinformation. — I.M. Lewis, I. M. Lewis, A Modern History of the Somali_ Nation…, 645 (#expands, via linked claim)

A few months after the evacuation, when southern Somalia was again slipping into chaos, the very foundations of the $160 million U.N. headquarters had disappeared. This represented a kind of literal ‘dust to dust’ as the international operations that had proudly heralded the ‘new world order’ were finally buried in Somalia. Meanwhile, a new generation of faction leaders and warlords was rising to prominence on money made as scrap merchants making fortunes selling such materials as they could recycle from the ruins. — I.M. Lewis, I. M. Lewis, A Modern History of the Somali_ Nation…, 644 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The UN mission unintentionally armed the very militia it fought.; The UN abandoned clan elder empowerment in favor of warlord dealings.; UN infrastructure collapse funded the rise of a new warlord generation — I.M. Lewis, I. M. Lewis, A Modern History of the Somali_ Nation…, 644 (+2 more)

Related

• The UN mission unintentionally armed the very militia it fought. (similarity 0.93)
• The UN abandoned clan elder empowerment in favor of warlord dealings. (similarity 0.92)
• UN recruitment inadvertently financed the clan militias it was fighting (similarity 0.92)
• UN infrastructure collapse funded the rise of a new warlord generation (similarity 0.90)
• UN aid staffing inadvertently financed Aideed’s fight against the UN itself (similarity 0.87)
• The UN mission’s humanitarian mandate undermined any state-building possibility (similarity 0.84)
• UNOSOM’s hiring of Habar Gidir locals fatally compromised its intelligence. (similarity 0.80)

Broader Connections

• UN recruitment inadvertently financed the clan militias it was fighting #expands (0.80) — I.M. Lewis, I. M. Lewis, A Modern History of the Somali_ Nation…, 645
• The UN abandoned clan elder empowerment in favor of warlord dealings. #expands (0.75)
• UN infrastructure collapse funded the rise of a new warlord generation #expands (0.70) — I.M. Lewis, I. M. Lewis, A Modern History of the Somali_ Nation…, 644
• The UN mission’s humanitarian mandate undermined any state-building possibility #expands (0.65) — I.M. Lewis, I. M. Lewis, A Modern History of the Somali_ Nation…, 646