Operation Sharp Edge was a non-combatant evacuation operation

Non-combatant Evacuation Operation

A non-combatant evacuation operation or NEO is an operation conducted to evacuate civilians from another country, generally due to a deteriorating security situation.-United States:...

 carried out by the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit

22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit

The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit is one of seven Marine Expeditionary Units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit is a Marine Air Ground Task Force with a strength of about 2,200 personnel...

 (22nd MEU) of the United States Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 in Liberia

Liberia

Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...

 in 1990 and 1991.
The First Liberian Civil War broke out in December 1989. Increasing violence between political and ethnic factions, including in the capital of Monrovia

Monrovia

Monrovia is the capital city of the West African nation of Liberia. Located on the Atlantic Coast at Cape Mesurado, it lies geographically within Montserrado County, but is administered separately...

, had made it impossible for American diplomats and civilians to make safe passage to the U.S. Embassy to exit the country.
The 22nd MEU was composed of Battalion Landing Team (BLT) 2nd Battalion 4th Marines

2nd Battalion 4th Marines

2nd Battalion, 4th Marines is an infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. The battalion, nicknamed the Magnificent Bastards, is based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and are a part of the 5th Marine Regiment and 1st Marine Division.-Early years:2nd Battalion, 4th...

 (ground combat element), HMM-261

HMM-261

Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261 is a United States Marine Corps tiltrotor squadron consisting of MV-22 Osprey transport aircraft. The squadron, known as the "Raging Bulls", is based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina and typically falls under the command of Marine Aircraft...

 (REIN) (aviation combat element) and MSSG-22 (logistics combat element).

Company "H" of the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines executed a pre-dawn vertical envelopment of the besieged U.S.