Somalia: Unending Turmoil, Since 1975

A comprehensive analysis of the effects—and aftermath—of the Cold War in the Horn of Africa during an era of mass-produced AK-47s and ICBMs.

From a quiet Indian Ocean backwater that had once been an Italian colony, Somalia remained aloof from the kind of power struggles that beset countries like Ghana, the Congo, Guinea, Algeria and others in the 1970s. Overnight, that all changed in 1969 when the army, led by Major General Siad Barre, grabbed power. His first move was to abrogate all securi...