Report 19980929A
Date
September 29, 1998
Administration
Bill Clinton (Second Term)Location
Liberia Sierra LeoneWas 4(a)(1) Triggered? (Hostilities/Imminent Hostilities)
No, as described in/inferred from report
Was 4(a)(2) Triggered? (Combat- Equipped Introduction)
Yes, stated or used terms in statute
Was 4(a)(3) Triggered? (Substantial Enlargement)
No, as described in/inferred from report
Joint/Coalition Mission
No
Article 51 Report to UN
Not applicable because no self-defense claim
Purpose/Mission
Protect US citizens, propertyDetails: "to augment the Embassy’s security unit in Monrovia and to conduct an evacuation of American citizens, if required"; "solely for the purpose of preparing to protect American citizens and property"
Domestic Legal Authority
Constitution (Art. II)Details: "I have taken this action pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S. foreign relations and as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive."
Claimed International Legal Basis
UnknownEstimated Scope/Duration
Mission-bound but indeterminate
Details: U.S. forces "will redeploy as soon as it is determined that the threat to the Embassy compound has ended or, if an evacuation is necessary, it is completed."
Type of Enemy or Mission
Embassy protectionDetails: Embassy protection in Monrovia, Liberia
Military Activity
Use of naval forces/vessels Use of ground forcesDetails: "a stand-by response and evacuation force of approximately 30 U.S. military personnel... deployed to Freetown, Sierra Leone. About half of this unit has moved onto the Navy’s coastal patrol craft, USS CHINOOK (PC–9), which is operating in the waters off Monrovia"
US Casualties Reported
No
Details: But in response to situation in which "[t]wo Americans were wounded in the melee and four members of the Johnson party were killed. The U.S. personnel injured in the gunfire were a government contractor and an Embassy staff member."
Non-US Casualties Reported
No
Details: But in response to situation in which "... four members of the Johnson party were killed."
