ACCESSION NUMBER:301278

FILE ID:POL204

DATE:08/31/93

TITLE:DEFENSE DEPARTMENT REPORT, TUESDAY, AUGUST 31 (08/31/93)

TEXT:*93083104.POL

DEFENSE DEPARTMENT REPORT, TUESDAY, AUGUST 31



(Somalia, Bosnia)  (340)

NEWS BRIEFING -- Spokesman Kathleen deLaski discussed the following topics:

RANGERS IN SOMALIA USED BEST INTELLIGENCE AVAILABLE

The U.S. Army Ranger unit in Somalia was "operating with the best

intelligence that it had at the time" when it raided a building in south

Mogadishu August 30 that was thought to be the hiding place of members of a

Somali faction, deLaski said.



"Intelligence in a place like Mogadishu is not going to be perfect, but

because it's perishable it has to be acted upon quickly.  They reacted as

they best saw fit" when they entered the building and found only U.N.

personnel there, the spokesman asserted.



"The primary target was a place where the Quick Reaction Force believed they

had intelligence that would help in their goal of improving the security

situation.  It turned out that they found nothing at that location," she

said.



"The people who might be hampering the security situation in Mogadishu move

around constantly," she told reporters.  "There were reports that one of

the elements of the security threat might have been at this place."



DeLaski declined to identify the Rangers' target.  In response to reporters'

questions about whether warlord Mohammed Farah Aideed was the object of the

search, she said: "The U.N. has a warrant for Aideed's arrest, and the

Quick Reaction Force is doing what it can and what it is asked to do in

1rying to achieve the objective of improving the security situation in

Mogadishu."



U.S. BOSNIA PEACE ROLE RESTS ON VIABILITY

The spokesman reiterated President Clinton's August 30 assertion that a

peacekeeping role in Bosnia for U.S. troops would depend on several key

elements.



"We haven't seen what the peace plan looks like," said deLaski.  "Whether

the United States would be prepared to supply some peacekeeping forces

depends on whether we're convinced that the agreement is fair and fully

embraced by the Bosnian government and that it is enforceable."



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