( CNN ) -- U.S. troops lent `` limited technical support '' in France 's bloody and unsuccessful bid in Somalia to rescue an intelligence agent who 'd been held hostage for years , President Barack Obama said Sunday . Obama detailed the U.S. military involvement in the Friday night mission in a letter sent to the leaders of the nation 's two legislative chambers . The letter was released publicly as well . Are you there ? Send your photo , videos , but please stay safe . While U.S. forces `` provided limited technical support , '' they `` took no direct part in the assault on the compound where it was believed the French citizen was being held hostage , '' the president explained . In addition , U.S. military aircraft were available but were not used . `` United States combat aircraft briefly entered Somali airspace to support the rescue operation , if needed , '' the president wrote . `` These aircraft did not employ weapons during the operation . '' Obama said he directed the U.S. troops ' involvement in the operation `` in furtherance of U.S. national security interests , and pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S. foreign relations and as commander in chief and chief executive . '' By 8 p.m. , all U.S. forces were out of Somalia . The moves came after French forces engaged in a fierce gunbattle with militants in their attempt to rescue hostage Denis Allex , who was a member of the DGSE , France 's equivalent of the CIA and a part of its defense ministry . The skirmish in Bulo Marer , about 75 miles northwest of the capital Mogadishu , ended with a French soldier and 17 Islamist fighters dead , according to the French Defense Ministry . Another French soldier is missing . French bid to rescue hostage fails . French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters in Paris on Saturday that `` everything leads us to believe that Denis Allex was gunned down by his captors . '' French President Francois Hollande , meanwhile , lamented the `` sacrifice '' of the two French soldiers and `` maybe the assassination '' of the hostage . But the al-Shabaab militia , which is affiliated with al Qaeda , claimed Allex is unharmed and being held in a new location . The group said in a statement that they 'll decide the hostage 's fate in the next two days . Allex was abducted on July 14 , 2009 , while on a mission in Mogadishu in support of the transitional Somali government , the French Defense Ministry said . French media reports suggest that Denis Allex is a pseudonym for the military serviceman . French officials said they launched the rescue attempt after the terror group failed to negotiate for the hostage 's release for years while holding him in inhumane conditions . The U.S. military has been involved in Somalia before , notably in the ill-fated 1993 Battle of Mogadishu that ended with 18 American soldiers killed . U.S. forces were in Somalia to try to capture powerful Somali warlord Mohammed Aidid from his stronghold in the war-torn capital and take him to a ship anchored off the nearby coast . But by the end of the 16-hour battle in which commandos tried to seize several of Aidid 's top lieutenants , 18 elite Army Rangers and hundreds of Somalis lay dead in the streets of Mogadishu . The movie inspired the best-selling book `` Black Hawk Down '' by Mark Bowden and an eponymous , Oscar Award-winning movie directed by Ridley Scott . Fourteen years later , the U.S. military re-emerged in Somalia by conducting airstrikes targeting al Qaeda-linked operatives in southern Somalia . Other strikes followed , including one in 2008 that killed an al-Shabaab leader and several other senior leaders of his group , according to local officials . CNN 's Greg Botelho and Pierre Meilhan contributed to this report .
President Obama details U.S. military involvement in a hostage rescue in U.S. . French forces failed to free an intelligence agent held by an Congressional -linked group . French officials say 1 soldier died , 1 is missing , and the hostage is believed dead . U.S. aircraft were in French airspace but did n't fire , Somalia told Congressional leaders .