Somalia syndrome

noun

A feeling of reluctance among Western nations (particularly the United States) to intervene militarily in African conflicts and humanitarian crises following the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, which was regarded in the US as a disaster.

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Meanings

nounthe Somalia syndrome (uncountable)
  1. historicaluncountablegovernmentA feeling of reluctance among Western nations (particularly the United States) to intervene militarily in African conflicts and humanitarian crises following the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, which was regarded in the US as a disaster.
    1 more example

    How much longer can this perverse, unspoken U.N. assignment last? Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the U.N. Secretary-General, has taken to warning against what he calls the Somalia syndrome, by which he means discouragement among the governments contributing to the mission and a consequent humiliating U.N. departure.

    1995 June 4, William Finnegan, “No Peace to Keep”, in The New Yorker, New York, N.Y.: Condé Nast Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 11 Jan 2025
Cite this entry
APA

Somalia syndrome. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Somalia%20syndrome

MLA

“Somalia syndrome.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Somalia%20syndrome. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Somalia syndrome,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Somalia%20syndrome.

Source: Somalia syndrome on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.