terrorism

Injuries Without Scars: How Special Operations Medics Treat Brain Injuries

Since the start of the United States’ armed engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan, many military members have fallen victim to Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and other explosive blasts. As most people know, IEDs have been a major contributing factor to the death toll of Americans in the Middle East. A lot of servicemembers have survived these blasts with visible injuries and others have walked away unscathed, or so they thought.

According to the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, in 2017 it was reported that approximately 350,000 military personnel had experienced a traumatic brain injury (TBI) since 2000. It was estimated that anywhere from 11 to 23 percent of deployed personnel had been exposed to a TBI event. There is such a wide range in the estimate because many individuals either didn’t report their injuries or didn’t realize they had experienced a TBI at the time they were exposed to a blast.

It was estimated that approximately 50 percent of the individuals who experienced a TBI also exhibited Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Before the true dangers and repercussions of TBIs were understood, many operators claimed they would experience concussive blasts while outside the wire, or on a mission, to only go out the next night and operate all over again.

Treating Brain Injuries

When I arrived at the Special Operations Combat Medic Course (SOCM) in 2012, the severity and dangers of TBIs had become fully understood. Dealing with and treating TBIs was at the forefront of the special operations medical community and was implemented into the SOCM training curriculum.

The critical piece to understanding and treating a TBI is to identify when a TBI event occurs. It had been discovered that if an operator did experience a TBI, they would be much more susceptible to serious brain damage if they were exposed to a secondary TBI or a concussive event soon after. The SOCM schoolhouse understood this and began training medics on how to properly conduct a Military Acute Concussion Evaluation, better known as a MACE exam.

During a MACE exam, the medic asks the patient a variety of questions and conducts different tests to determine the cognitive function of the patient’s brain. The MACE exam assists medics and medical professionals in determining if an individual experienced a TBI and what is its severity level.

Conducting a MACE exam provides multiple benefits for the patient. First and foremost, by conducting a MACE exam, medical providers can definitively determine if an individual experienced a TBI and thus prevent him from re-entering a dangerous environment until he is completely healed and considered fit for duty. Secondly, if an operator experiences a TBI and the event is documented by the use of a MACE exam, the operator will be entitled to disability compensation benefits and other resources to help heal and manage this “invisible” injury.

A SEAL medic who recently attended the mandatory, two-year SOCM Refresher Course, claimed that the special operations medical community is placing more emphasis on TBIs now than ever before. This is supported by the amount of training that is taking place at the SOCM schoolhouse and the implementation of the MACE 2 exam. The MACE 2 exam became available in 2018. This updated exam provides improved brain injury information, testing, and vestibular-ocular-motor screening.

The United States military has made great achievements in identifying and treating individuals who have experienced TBIs. The research, treatment, and preventative care today will help keep our warriors strong tomorrow.

IDF West Bank Units Using New Intelligence Methods To Combat Terror Attacks

After several attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians in the West Bank where the attackers were able to get away in the crowds, the IDF is revamping the way they do business to alert their troops to any suspicious activity by Palestinians in the West Bank.

There have been 16 Israeli soldiers or citizens killed in shooting or stabbing attacks in the West Bank during the past year but the IDF has also been able to stop other attacks before they occur.

This new system relies on both increased visual surveillance as well as analytics which will be connected in an operations control room. The information will then warn soldiers on the ground before a terror attack begins. The system is already being tested in the West Bank by the Samaria Regional Brigade.

The IDF is placing more surveillance cameras and other sensors around the West Bank, around areas of increased traffic like road junctions. The operations room personnel will use advanced computer algorithms to review the camera’s footage to identify any imminent threats. Soldiers will be alerted to risks through smartwatches and other wearable devices according to the IDF.

The Israelis are calling this development the “Digital Regional Brigade” and was a combined effort of the military’s intelligence, technology and ground forces units. In a released statement, the IDF said, “the system knows to identify… and prevent violent terrorist activities. In this way, it provides soldiers with a quick warning of an impending threat.”

In another development, the Israelis are putting together “mixed combat teams” during terrorist attacks in scenarios where the attackers flee and attempt to blend into the crowds, “which will help oversee large swaths of land during a manhunt.” These composite teams will consist of infantry, field intelligence, special forces, and other security services during terrorist incidents.

The Israelis are also beefing up their individual training before troops move into the West Bank. The training is designed to ensure that every combat soldier is able to make correct decisions under pressure and in a short period of time, such as overpowering an attacker at maximum speed. The infantry troops are getting advanced training in five areas that the IDF has identified as needing work:

improving shooting skills and hand-to-hand combat skills
“mentally” preparing troops for the types of threats they face in the West Bank,
Create a unified set of techniques that is most suited for operating in the region
improving training facilities
establishing division-wide standards and measurements to accurately assess effectiveness and success.

During the training, the soldiers will utilize virtual reality headsets to better simulate actual combat and terrorist situations that they’ll encounter including stabbing and shooting attacks, as well as Krav Maga and shooting courses. This is designed to speed up the response time for Israeli Defense Forces when they face an incident which will also not allow terrorists to get away.

The Israelis, in an attempt to diffuse other situations before they occur, have arrested 1000 Palestinians and confiscated 270 weapons this year. Security forces, including the IDF, police and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), carry out nightly raids in the West Bank to arrest Palestinians suspected of violence against Israelis.

The Palestine Liberation Organization’s Department of Public Diplomacy and Policy stated that the numbers are even higher with 1,600 Palestinians, including 230 children and 40 women, have been arrested since the start of 2019.

By using intelligence gathering, the IDF has been monitoring social media activity, and have arrested individuals who openly state their desire to carry out attacks and monitor social media networks especially like Facebook.

They’ve targeted underground weapons and bombmaking workshops, greatly reducing the number of weapons and illegal explosive devices that could end up in terrorist hands.

In related news, Israel keeps getting sporadic rocket fire aimed at it from Syria. Thus far, no one knows for sure if it is Syrian troops or Iranian proxies. But with each attack, the Israeli Defense Forces have been hitting back and hard with airstrikes. In a statement released by defense officials, the IDF stated the following:

“Last night, two rockets were launched from Syria to Israel, one landing within Israeli territory,” the IDF said. “In response, we struck a number of Syrian Armed Forces military targets. We hold the Syrian regime accountable and will firmly operate against any attempt to harm Israeli civilians.”

The Israeli counterstrike hit the area of the launches outside of Damascus and targeted a training facility for Iranian and Hezbollah forces, and an arms depot in the area of al-Kiswah.

Will the Surfaced Video Evidence Clear Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher?

Opinion: In a stunning turn of events, the defense in the upcoming court-martial case of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher is preparing to release helmet cam footage they say will exonerate their client.

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) who has been a very vocal supporter of Gallagher is planning to show members of Congress a video later this week from a Navy SEAL’s helmet camera. Hunter believes the footage will clear Gallagher on war crime charges he faces when his trial begins later this month.

Once again, Kristina Wong, from Breitbart News was the first on the story. On Sunday she spoke with Michael Harrison a spokesman for Hunter and he said, “When other members of Congress see the video as he has seen it, that it’s going to shed light on the situation as a whole and the case that the Navy is presenting against Chief Gallagher.”

The video has been placed under a protective order by the judge as to guarantee Gallagher the right to a fair trial. No one is allowed to see the footage until it is released during the court-martial.

However, Gallagher’s attorney Tim Parlatore was granted an exception to this rule for the purpose of showing the contents to Hunter and any other member of Congress who are taking an interest in this case. Parlatore successfully argued that both the prosecution and NCIS have been suspected of leaking damaging material to Gallagher’s case to the media.

“So many other members of Congress have expressed an interest in this case that they needed to see the full evidence at hand, and Congressman Hunter strongly believes that the video evidence is to Gallagher’s benefit, and not to his detriment,” Harrison added.

Parlatore in describing the video contents to the court says the two-minute clip from the helmet cam shows the wounded ISIS fighter being dragged off the hood of a military vehicle by Iraqi soldiers. Gallagher asks the Iraqis if the fighter is ISIS. When told that the wounded man in indeed ISIS, Gallagher then says, “OK, I got him.” He then cleared away the crowd, gots out his medical kit, and began to treat the wounded man’s leg.

After watching the video, Rep. Hunter was convinced of Gallagher’s innocence.

“Gallagher provided medical attention to an ISIS terrorist,” Hunter said in his Instagram post. “He tried to save his life — that’s what it shows. Eddie Gallagher’s going to be exonerated.”

This is where the story gets interesting. Does the two-minute video go all the way thru the act of Gallagher treating the wounded ISIS fighter until he dies from his wounds?

Because the fact that Gallagher initially began treating the wounded fighter has never been in doubt. Navy Times detailed the events according to eyewitnesses:

Later, another SO1 who was trained in battlefield medicine told NCIS that he remembered watching the other SEAL corpsman treating the detainee, who appeared to have suffered a leg injury and struggled to breathe, possibly from “blast lung,” a condition that often affects those who survive explosions.
He watched as the SO1 inserted a chest tube while Gallagher, using a special kit, performed a cricothyroidotomy — or “cric” — a simple and rapid surgical method for opening up a blocked airway by inserting a tube through an incision in the cricothyroid ligament, according to records provided to Navy Times.
Gallagher also was present when the prisoner received a trachea tube, two chest tubes and a Sternal Intraosseous Infusion, which bores through bone to reach veins when other IVs won’t work, records indicate.
That SO1 told NCIS he left as the other two SEALs continued working on the prisoner, although other interviews and the prosecution’s own legal filings in the case portray a chaotic scene, with memories about the incident often jumbled by all the witnesses.
In his statements to NCIS, the LPO said he later returned to the area, rounded a parked Humvee and spotted Gallagher kneeling on the right side of the wounded teen.
He insisted that he then saw the chief “stab the ISIS fighter multiple times in the right side of the neck” in a manner that “was in no way a medical procedure,” according to an NCIS report.
He described Gallagher’s knife as the same weapon the chief always carried in a leather sheath. He told NCIS it had a blade a few inches long, although photographs of the weapon make it look stubbier.
The LPO told the agent that an SO1 who remained to assist Gallagher with the medical care was “freaking out a little bit over what Eddie just did” but there was nothing anyone could do “because the subject was dead.”

Was the act of what one witness saw the act of inserting a trach or chest tube? Or did Gallagher suddenly go from potential lifesaver to murderer in a split second? His supporters point out that it is inconceivable that Gallagher would go from trying to save the man’s life to kill him with his knife just seconds later. And that much is true. But sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction.

The message that Gallagher sent to another SEAL where he allegedly said that he killed the ISIS fighter with his knife was either just braggadocio on his behalf or an admission of guilt. But another SEAL testified that Gallagher did stab the ISIS fighter, but after he was already dead.

A Marine who was there but declined to assist in the NCIS investigation stated that he saw no stabbings in the neck and chest area and that the ISIS fighter died from his wounds and not anything that Gallagher did.

However, another SEAL said that he was only about a foot away from the prisoner when Gallagher pulled out his knife and stabbed the boy two or three times in the neck.

The truth lies in between there somewhere. Gallagher, his defense team as well as his family believe that these allegations are nothing more than the results of “bad blood” between the senior chief and the younger SEALs who chafed under his leadership style.

Which is why this two-minute video is extremely important to both sides in this case. If it shows everything up to and including the ISIS fighter’s death, then the manner in which he dies will determine Gallagher’s guilt or innocence. And without this conviction, the charges that he shot unarmed civilians will quickly seem like a witchhunt. If it only shows the initial treatment of the wounded fighter, then both sides are back to square one.

“The truth will set you free” or maybe not.

Photo: US Navy

Ceasefire Reached After Rockets, Airstrikes Produce Bloody Weekend in Gaza

Op-Ed: Hamas wanted to send a message to Israel and in two days, they launched nearly 700 rockets into Israeli territory. Israel responded with heavy airstrikes and moved armor up to the border area in the latest outbreak of violence. When the smoke cleared, 24 Palestinians were dead with hundreds wounded and 4 Israelis were killed, with another 234 wounded.

The Egyptians brokered another ceasefire which began at 0130 hours local on Monday. They are trying to hammer out a long-term deal but the chances of that happening or ever coming to fruition are slim.

Hamas is trying to force the Israelis to ease blockade restrictions into Gaza and that it wanted to disrupt the upcoming music competition “Eurovision” which was slated to begin on Monday. Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad vowed to “prevent the festival” in statements released by each.

“We will prevent the enemy from succeeding in establishing any festival aimed at harming the Palestinian narrative,” Palestinian Islamic Jihad released in a statement. Then Hamas began the weekend by launching 150 rockets into Israel.

The Israelis then began a series of airstrikes in Gaza City at the site of the rocket launches as well as targeting Hamas military targets. And as is the norm for Hamas, they launched their rockets from the middle of crowded neighborhoods, knowing full well that the Israelis would immediately launch counter-strikes before the first rockets hit the ground. Many of the Hamas commanders and their fighters’ homes were targeted as well.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ‘s office told David Friedman, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, and ambassadors from Europe that Hamas was “committing a double war crime by indiscriminately shooting at civilians from civilian centers.”

The resultant civilian casualties are always what Hamas counts on, including two pregnant women, two infants and a child — were killed, along with two unborn children. However, the Israelis were quick to point out one Palestinian woman and child were not hit by Israeli strikes but from a malfunctioning Hamas rocket. Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a spokesman for the IDF, said in a statement that, “It was from internal fire,” he said.

The IDF said it struck rocket launchers, tunnel shafts, “terror squads and operatives,” and weapons-making factories belonging to Hamas, who controls Gaza, and the Iranian-funded group Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Of the 690 rockets fired from Gaza at Israel, the IDF announced that their “Iron Dome” missile defense system, successfully shot down 240 of the rockets. In response, Israel targeted over 350 Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets in Gaza. The Israelis killed a senior Hamas commander allegedly involved in transferring Iranian funds to the group was killed during an airstrike.

On Monday, Netanyahu said that “the campaign is not over and requires patience and judgment. We are preparing to continue. The goal was and remains to ensure the peace and security of the residents of the south.”

This latest spate of violence began on Friday when Islamic Jihad fired across the border and hit two Israeli soldiers. The airstrikes in retaliation killed two Hamas militants. Then on Saturday, Hamas began launching missiles at Israel which further escalated events. The two sides had attacked each other in March before the Egyptians stepped in again to broker yet another ceasefire.

Among the dead on the Israeli side was a 68-year old man whose minivan was hit with a Russian made Kornet wire-guided, anti-tank missile. Hamas took credit for that and proclaimed “victory” in that Israel has promised to expand the fishing limits for Gaza fishermen, Israel will stop shooting at Palestinians during the weekly protests near the border, also known as the Great March of Return; easing the blockade on the Gaza Strip; allowing international relief organizations to assist families whose houses were destroyed in the last round of fighting; an end to Israeli targeted assassinations.

With the influx of tourists this week for Eurovision. Netanyahu was forced between a rock and a hard place. But for Israeli citizens who live close to the Gaza border and who provided the Prime Minister the edge in the latest election, they’re wanting a much harder line between the government and Hamas.

But this isn’t the end of this latest back and forth affair. Israel this week celebrates their Memorial Day followed by Independence Day. For the Palestinians in Gaza, this week begins the Holy month of Ramadan. Tensions always get high during this time frame.

Of course, as soon as the violence erupted, American Congresswoman and noted anti-semite Ilhan Omar jumped into the fray with this latest bit on social media.

@IlhanMN – How many more protesters must be shot, rockets must be fired, and little kids must be killed until the endless cycle of violence ends?

The status quo of occupation and humanitarian crisis in Gaza is unsustainable. Only real justice can bring about security and lasting peace.

She must have forgotten or doesn’t know (nor care) that Israel doesn’t occupy Gaza. The Israelis withdrew years ago leaving behind warehouses full of food and synagogues. Which the Palestinians burned… but the truth never got in the way of a good social media rant to incite the sheeple….right?

Photos of Offices of Hamas chairman Ismail Haniyeh – Rimal: IDF

Israeli Special Forces Training Deemed Unsafe, Going Through Changes

The Israeli Defense Forces have been looking at the way their military trains their various Special Forces units and after several incidents will revamp their training.

The Israelis have several different units with very different missions but they’ve had a spate of accidents lately in their training of their candidates and they created an investigative team to look into how their training cadres were testing their candidates while looking at their current missions.

This probe was ordered last summer by the then IDF Chief of Staff, Gadi Eisenkot after several different incidents occurred during training events for soldiers trying to gain entrance into their Commando Brigade.

Eisenkot created a committee to interview former and current commanders of the various commando units, visited the individual units and interviewed the soldiers and officers. They looked at how the IDF Commando Brigade operates as well as other different Special Operations military units around the world and balanced that against the instructional material the Commando Brigade utilizes.

The committee, which was named the IDF Committee to Examine Normative Conduct in Special and Elite Units, was led by Maj.-Gen Itai Virov, and then presented their findings to the new Chief of Staff LTG Aviv Kochavi.

In a statement released by the IDF, the committee said, “The commission found gaps in the norms of these units, which could be seen in some of their exercises and training, and which originated in the way in which team leaders were trained in these units.”

Kochavi, who began his term as the new Chief of Staff in late January, after reviewing the findings of this investigation, called for several changes in the way that the IDF Special Forces are trained. These changes will go into effect this summer once the Commando Schools begin their training of new candidates.

These changes begin with “a large emphasis on safety principles,” the military released in a statement, adding that there is a “need to change the specialized training process for Special Forces team leaders by adding an additional training course for officers.”

Kochavi, in a move that has also taken place with United States Special Operations units, called for safety issues to be investigated, citing that there is a need to “examine norms, routine procedures and the organizational culture” in all IDF units.

The Jerusalem Post published several of the incidents that the investigation looked at and listed several. The first was where an SSG Shachar Strug from the elite Duvdevan Unit was killed in March 2018 when a fellow training candidate, playing with his weapon had an accidental discharge and the round killed Strug.

Duvdevan (Hebrew for cherry) is a mista’arvim (counter-terrorism) unit. They are noted for their work undercover in urban areas, where they often wear Arab civilian clothes as a disguise. They are also trained in human and mechanical counter-surveillance.

Duvdevan units can operate independently in more than one place at a time. The unit performs many high-risk and complicated operations, including targeted assassinations, kidnappings, and a range of other undercover operations in Arab areas.

The Israeli television series “Fauda” was based on a mista’arvim, Duvdevan unit.

Last summer, a soldier from the Maglan Unit was permanently paralyzed after he was ordered to jump from a moving Hummer during a training exercise into a thatch of thorns without wearing a helmet and hit his head on a rock as he hit the ground.

This jumping into thorn bushes is a tradition in the Maglan Unit, in order for candidates to get over their fear of the unknown and of dangerous situations. Maglan is an Israeli sayeret (reconnaissance) unit, which specializes in operating behind enemy lines and deep inside enemy territory using advanced technologies and weaponry. A Maglan is a bird (Ibis) who according to the IDF ‘that knows how to adapt in every situation.”

Their training is considered some of the toughest in the IDF, even amongst the other SF units. Candidates undergo 18 months of training and it includes a 100km (62.5-mile) beret march to continue the next phase of their training.

The army, however, determined that the “action was improper, unprofessional, immoral, dangerous and unnecessary,” and the team commander of the injured soldier, Lieutenant Y., was dismissed from the service.

Another Maglan soldier was injured and required hospitalization during a Krav Maga exercise conducted without proper authorization and performed without protective equipment. The injured soldier was punched in the stomach during the exercise and while he complained of pain after being hit, was not taken immediately treated. Only after the soldiers’ condition worsened did the unit officer allow for him to be evacuated to the hospital.

This unit officer was also dismissed for conducting unauthorized training without the proper equipment and for withholding the medical attention of this soldier unnecessarily.

Eisenkot established the Oz Brigade (Hebrew for courage) in December 2015 under the Central Command’s 98th Division with the goal of being an accessible, independent and integrated force which operates directly under the Chief of Staff’s orders. The forming of the unit had much to do with the lessons learned during the 2014 Operation Protective Edge fighting in Gaza.

The units in the Oz Brigade consist of Maglan, Duvdevan, Ergoz (a guerrilla warfare unit) and a new formation Rimon which specializes in working in desert environments and operates desert high-mobility vehicles known as “wild cats”.

The thinking behind this move was to parallel the usage and capabilities of the United States’ 75th Ranger Regiment. However, other Israeli special operations units, Sayeret Matkal, Shayetet 13, Shaldag, Oketz and Yahalom will continue to operate independently.

Photo of SF training exercise debrief: IDF

MARSOC Needs To Stay, Says Next Marine Corps Commandant

Just a couple of months ago, the Marine Corps’ Special Operations Command (MARSOC) celebrated its 13th anniversary. Then a think tank pushed an idea that the Marines would be better off, disestablishing the Marine SOF and return to their roots which is their forced amphibious capability. But now the next commandant of the Marine Corps says not-so-fast.

Lt. Gen. David H. Berger, the current deputy commandant for Marine Combat Development and Integration and on tap for being the next commandant, was grilled by Congress on whether it is cost effective for the Marines to stay in SOCOM.

Saying their services were vital to the overall effort, Berger answered a direct question by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-NY if the Marine Raiders should be disestablished with a strongly worded statement.

“At this stage, they have developed farther, faster than most thought possible,” Berger said. “I think they’re vital. I think the (MARSOC) and the command are better with them there.”

That has to come as a relief from the Raiders since the article calling for their disbandment has grown legs.

In March, former Marine officer Dakota Wood, who is a senior fellow of research on the Heritage think tank foundation, wrote that the Marine Corps had strayed too far from their amphibious mission.

Wood’s comments which will ring very familiar to U.S. Army Special Forces veterans stated that the drain of outstanding NCOs and Officers from the Marine Corps was pulling the service away from its primary mission. In his “Rebuilding America’s Military: The United States Marine Corps.” Woods wrote the following:

“MARSOC, while a boon to U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM or SOCOM) and doing good work for the country, is an opportunity cost for the Corps. The Marines consistently resisted creating a special operations component until directed to do so in 2006, driven by a shortage of special operations teams needed to prosecute the global war on terrorism following the attacks of September 11, 2001. That national emergency has long been over, and the Corps should redirect its efforts to its primary role,” Wood said in his report.

“Facing relentless operational tempo and ongoing budget woes, the Marine Corps should reevaluate where it’s spending resources,” Wood wrote. As part of that effort, he said service leaders should “strongly consider disestablishing [MARSOC].”

Wood doubled down on those feelings, and in an interview with Military.com, he said, “It’s a great outfit and they’re doing great things, so this is not to disparage MARSOC,” Wood stated. “It’s stepping back and saying, ‘OK, Marine Corps, what are you supposed to be doing? And how are you using the resources that you have?'”

Wood’s report was on the heels of the Marine Corps’ budget request for FY2020. The Marines currently have 2742 Special Operations Forces, or “Critical Skills Operators”. They plan on expanding that number to 3110 by creating 368 more billets in MARSOC.

This set off a storm among the Marine SOF community.

Elliot Ackerman, a MARSOC Operator who was awarded a Silver Star and Purple Heart and deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan five times, totally disagreed with the feeling that SOF will play a back role to the “Big Armies” conflict with Russia or China.

“If there’s a major theater war with China or Iran, it’s not going to look like the Second World War,” Ackerman said. “… “To say these 2,700 guys will be better suited in [another] Marine regiment belies a lack of understanding of what Marine Raiders have contributed in the last 10 years.”

Nick Koumalatsos, a 12-year veteran of MARSOC, would be a huge blow. “This would set us back two decades, if not more,” he said. “It’s not the world we live in anymore. We’re not lining up tanks and we’re not lining up in trenches to fight a conventional battle.”

Koumalatsos added, that the entire military draws great advantage from MARSOC’s relationship with SOCOM and the other branches. “We can’t just go over here and color with our own coloring books and not have any friends,” he said.

However, outgoing Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller said that despite the talk of large conventional conflicts, the next opponent that Marines face “will not be against a near-peer adversary. It’s going to be against someone else,” he said.

But MARSOC has a proponent with the selection of Berger as the next commandant. A career infantry officer, Berger was also a company commander and a battalion operations officer for the 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion. He is a graduate of the Corps’ tough Amphibious Reconnaissance School, Army Ranger School and is a qualified parachutist and combat diver.

His nomination flies in the face of the former Marine Corps mantra that Recon was a career killer. Now some of his officers have their own MOS. The Critical Skills Operator MOS was adopted for NCOs in 2011 and for officers in 2014.

Photo: Marine Corps

The US to Label Iran Revolutionary Guard a Terrorist Organization

Iran Threatens Tit-for-Tat

In a slightly surprising move, the United States is for the first time labeling the military of a foreign power as a terrorist organization. Possibly as early as today, the U.S. State Department may label Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization.

While the U.S. has frequently stated that Iran is the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism, it was only a matter of time before it went after the IRGC since the Guards, as well as the Quds forces, are the major players in Iran’s support for terrorist organizations around the globe. They provide training, logistical support, and direction for Iran’s proxies. They have aided in assassinations, bombings, cyber warfare and have funded missile development in the Third World.

Last week, the State Department’s Brian Hook made an announcement that the Iranians were responsible for the deaths of 603 U.S. troops from improvised explosive devices (IEDs), rockets, mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, and small-arms and sniper attacks by Iranian-backed proxies.

However, critics of the administration believe that this opens the door for unfriendly governments to do the same to U.S. intelligence and military assets abroad.

Since he became the U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo has strongly advocated a change in labeling the IRGC as a terrorist organization. He stated, “the Islamic Republic of Iran is not a normal state” because “normal states do not support terrorism within their armed forces” like Iran does with the Revolutionary Guard.”

This expected move isn’t without precedent. Back in 2007, the U.S. Treasury Department designated the IRGC’s Quds Force, at that time the unit in charge of operations abroad, “for its support of terrorism,” and has described it as Iran’s “primary arm for executing its policy of supporting terrorist and insurgent groups.”

The Treasury Department began to move against the IRGC in 2017 when it labeled the Guards as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, which made it a target for the U.S. to combat Iran’s terrorism funding by targeting its financing and imposing more sanctions. In their statement at the time, Treasury said this:

“The IRGC has played a central role to Iran becoming the world’s foremost state sponsor of terror. Iran’s pursuit of power comes at the cost of regional stability, and Treasury will continue using its authorities to disrupt the IRGC’s destructive activities,” said Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. “We are designating the IRGC for providing support to the IRGC-QF, the key Iranian entity enabling Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s relentless campaign of brutal violence against his own people, as well as the lethal activities of Hizballah, Hamas, and other terrorist groups. We urge the private sector to recognize that the IRGC permeates much of the Iranian economy, and those who transact with IRGC-controlled companies do so at great risk.”

Republican Senator Ted Cruz from Texas has been pushing for the IRGC to be designated a terrorist organization since 2015. When the Obama Administration entered into the nuclear deal, Cruz among other Republicans were against the deal, which the U.S. withdrew from last year. Cruz was outspoken about the revelation about the U.S. troops’ deaths as well.

“The Obama administration downplayed the scope and nature of these murders in the interest of promoting its diplomacy with Iran, including the Obama nuclear deal.”

Republican Senator Ben Sasse approved of this latest move to go against Tehran. “A formal designation and its consequences may be new, but these IRGC butchers have been terrorists for a long time,” Sasser released in a statement.

Back in 2017 as well, IRGC commander Mohammad Ali Jafari warned that if Trump and the United States went ahead with the move “then the Revolutionary Guards will consider the American army to be like Islamic State all around the world.”

Just on Saturday, the Iranians took to Twitter to utter a tit-for-tat designation. “If the Revolutionary Guards are placed on America’s list of terrorist groups, we will put that country’s military on the terror blacklist next to Daesh (Islamic State),” Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, head of parliament’s national security committee, said in a Twitter post.

Former Under-Secretary of State and lead Iran negotiator under the Obama administration, Wendy Sherman, said she worried about what this means for U.S. forces in the region and hinted that this may have been the rationale behind the move..

“One might even suggest, since it’s hard to see why this is in our interest, if the president isn’t looking for a basis for a conflict,” said Sherman, who is now the director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. “The IRGC is already fully sanctioned and this escalation absolutely endangers our troops in the region.”

What does that mean for U.S. troops abroad? Things could get more dangerous for U.S. troops in Iraq. Several of Iran’s proxies, Shi’ite militias are located in close proximity to U.S. forces. If they are taking Jafari’s comments to heart, then they may decide to test the water and try to attack U.S. troops there.

During the latest fighting in Iraq to rid the country of Islamic State fighters, a coalition of U.S. Special Operations troops and air assets, Shi’ite militias, and the IRGC have formed an unlikely, uneasy coalition in ridding Iraq of ISIS. The Iraqi military has done a good job of holding it together and keeping the IRGC and the U.S. apart and on target during this time.

This move may not result in open fighting, however, any kind of confrontation, open or non-confrontational will ultimately benefit ISIS and will undermine the efforts of the U.S. troops in the area. That in itself can be a more dangerous environment for them.

IRGC Commander Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari said on Sunday that if the U.S. takes such does make the announcement, its forces in western Asia “will lose peace and quiet”.

“If the U.S. takes this step and endangers our national security we will take reciprocal measures, based on the policies of the Islamic Republic,” Jafari said.

On Sunday, Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted the accusation that he believes the #NetanyahuFirsters of pulling Washington’s strings in the decision to designate IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization.

“#NetanyahuFirsters who have long agitated for FTO designation of the IRGC fully understand its consequences for US forces in the region. In fact, they seek to drag the US into a quagmire on his behalf,” Zarif tweeted. He added, “DonaldTrump should know better than to be conned into another US disaster.”

On Sunday, 255 out of 290 Iranian lawmakers have decided to take reciprocal action. “So the leaders of America, who themselves are the creators and supporters of terrorists in the (Middle East) region, will regret this inappropriate and idiotic action,” they said in a released statement.

Photo: Wikipedia

Operation Chavin de Huantar, Peruvian Commandos Rescue 72 Hostages

Operation Chavin de Huantar is considered one of the most important operations of the Peruvian military. On April 22, 1997, commandos from the Peruvian Special Forces were able to conduct a rescue operation of 72 hostages held by the terrorist group Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) at the Japanese Ambassador’s residence.

The operation was named Chavin de Huantar from the pre-Incan civilization Chavin. The area of Peru where they lived was called Huantar. The Chavin were known to hide from their enemies in deep tunnels built under their temples. The reason would come to light later.

What made this operation even more fulfilling for the Peruvian commandos was the fact that this mission was considered too difficult for them to conduct. They proved the naysayers wrong and were able to take down the target. Two commandos and one hostage were killed in the assault. All 14 terrorists were killed and the remainder of the hostages were freed.

Background:

The Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement was a Marxist terror group that was founded in the 1980s. The terror group was initially led by Víctor Polay Campos until he was captured and sentenced to 32 years’ in prison in 1992, and then by Néstor Cerpa Cartolini (“Comrade Evaristo”) until his death in this operation in 1997.

The MRTA took its name from Túpac Amaru II, an 18th-century rebel leader who was himself named after his claimed ancestor Túpac Amaru, the last indigenous leader of the Inca people

Like many Marxist organizations, there was tremendous in-fighting amongst the membership. The Peruvian military took a toll on their numbers as well as several clashes with their Maoist rivals the Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path). As a result, their numbers never went higher than several hundred.

On the night of December 17, 1996, 14 members of the group gained entrance to the Japanese ambassador’s residence by blasting a huge hole in the garden wall to gain entrance to the residence. The Japanese government had fortified the building to defend it from within. Many of the windows were made of bulletproof glass, heavy steel grates were placed on windows and the wall was 12-feet high to discourage any scaling attempts. The doors were constructed to withstand a grenade blast.

Peruvian President Fujimori called the MRTA assault and hostage-taking as “repugnant” in his first aired statement on the takeover, but not until December 22. He stated that Peru needed no outside assistance. He hoped to settle the matter peacefully.

MRTA leader Néstor Cerpa Cartolini announced that he would gradually release any hostages who were not connected to the Peruvian government. During the long drawn out siege that followed, the terrorists released all of the female hostages (including Fujimori’s mother) and all but 72 of the men.

MRTA made a series of demands:

The release of their members from prisons around Peru (including recently convicted US activist Lori Berenson as well as Cerpa’s wife).
A revision of the government’s neoliberal free market reforms.
They called for the end of Japan’s foreign assistance program in Peru, arguing that this program benefited only a narrow segment of society.
They protested against the cruel and inhumane conditions in Peru’s jails.

Reportedly, from one of the socialist hostages…that had been released, the terrorists were heavily armed and had anti-tank weapons at their disposal. They also were reportedly wearing explosive backpacks and had the rooms wired for detonation.

Preparations By the Peruvians:

Despite President Fujimori’s negotiations which dragged on for months, the President couldn’t find a European nation which would give the terrorists asylum. However, the military began planning for an eventual hostage rescue just four days after the takeover in December.

The Peruvians put together a 140-man joint task force—comprising 70 National Police members and 70 personnel from army, navy, and air force special operations units. The Peruvians were breaking the fourth of the SOF Truths, Competent Special Operations Forces cannot be created after emergencies occur. However, this unit would eventually have the time to train and prepare to conduct a very successful operation.

This joint special operations task force was charged with the planning and eventual conduct of the operation. While the task force prepared for the rescue, the National Intelligence Service, SIN (Servicio Nacional de Inteligencia) set up a headquarters next door to the ambassador’s residence, in the same house the terrorists had used to launch their attack.

Scale model of the Japanese ambassador’s residence used by Peruvian SOF to plan their assault.

The Peruvians began to tunnel deep under the ambassador’s residence. To cover up the sound and the vibration, they began blasting loud music into the residence as well as having tanks rumble around in the streets to throw off the terrorists. But MRTA did hear the tunneling efforts and ceased negotiations. A small two-way radio was furnished secretly to Navy Admiral Luis Giampietri. Also, the hostages were gradually furnished lightly colored clothes which contrasted very well with the dark clothing the MRTA terrorists were wearing.

In addition, the planning for the joint task force was made easier when the terrorists decided to move all of the hostages to the second floor. The Peruvians also over the period of time were able to smuggle in several hidden microphones and cameras which the hostages were able to hide around the residence.

The task force learned that security of MRTA was at its highest every night, but that each afternoon, eight of them, including four of their leaders would take an hour to relax and play football inside.

The task force built a scale model of the ambassador’s residence which the leaders of the rescue operation based their training. This included the tunnels from the adjacent buildings that the commandos would use to gain entry into the residence.

The Assault and Rescue Operation:

The night before the operation, half of the task force began to assemble in their assault positions. The police began to assemble around the residence while snipers took positions on top of the surrounding buildings. Everything was ready, they were just waiting for the green light.

At 15:17 local time, President Fujimori gave the commandos the go-ahead. The assault element was divided into three different groups. Six minutes later at 15:23, the Peruvians knew that the terrorists would be playing their indoor football game. It was precisely then when they blew explosive charges beneath the dining room and kitchen.

The first, exploded directly under the middle of the room where the football game was being played, killing three of the terrorists immediately – two men involved in the game, and one of the women, who was watching from the sideline.

The first assault group emerged from the tunnels on the side of the residence and assaulted the service area and moved to the second floor. The second assault team with 20 commandos breached the front door of the residence. They neutralized the other two female terrorists who were guarding the door. Behind this initial group was another wave of commandos carrying ladders.

The third prong of the assault consisted of commandos who entered via another tunnel. They scaled the ladders that were in place and with charges, they blew out the grenade proof doors on the second floor to evacuate the hostages. The also cut holes in the roof so that the MRTA could be neutralized before they had an opportunity to kill the hostages.

The entire operation took 28 minutes. All but one of the 72 hostages were saved. Two commandos were killed in the assault. All of the terrorists were dead. One of the terrorists, Roli Rojas attempted to mix with the hostages to sneak out. He was recognized by a commando who took him to the rear of the residence and blew his head off with a burst from his weapon. The MRTA flag that flew during the standoff was burned.

Aftermath:

President Fujimori arrived soon after the raid was completed. He was photographed on the staircase with the body of Cerpa and the headless body of Rojas close nearby. Television cameras captured him riding with the freed hostages thru the streets of Lima.

Fujimori enjoyed a huge jump in popularity over what was seen as Peru standing up to terrorists and standing on their own. His popularity rating nearly doubled to 70 percent. To Peruvians, it gave them a huge boost of morale as they saw their military plan and conduct a vital operation as a First World Nation would.

But there would be controversy over the deaths of the terrorists. Specifically, the execution of prisoners, after forensic investigators said that several of the terrorists were shot in the back of the neck in a defenseless position. Eleven army officers were arrested but eventually, three senior officers were charged with ordering the extra-judicial killings of the MRTA terrorists. They were exonerated at a trial in 2012.

Photos: Wikipedia, Peru armed forces

Israelis Blast Hamas Targets in Gaza After Latest Rocket Attacks

The Israeli Defense Forces launched a series of airstrikes in Gaza after the latest round of rocket attacks launched by militants in Gaza streamed toward Israel. Tensions are rising in the area as Israel called up some of their reserve Air Force, Intelligence and Special Forces units.

Things began badly on Monday when Hamas launched rockets at Tel Aviv, several Israelis were injured when a rocket hit their house. Israel responded with air attacks on several Hamas military targets.

Then on Tuesday night, around 9 p.m. Israel’s air raid sirens sounded in the southern half of the country when Hamas militants launched a rocket supposedly at the Eshkol Regional Council. Israel quickly responded with a series of blistering air attacks.

Hamas then countered with a barrage of rockets launched toward the southern city of Ashkelon. However, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad denied responsibility for the rocket barrage and blamed it on “rogue elements” in the Gaza strip.

Meanwhile, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov urged the United Nations Security Council in a rare move on Wednesday to condemn Hamas’ provocations in Gaza.

“A new conflict will be devastating for the Palestinian people, it will have consequences for Israelis, who live in the vicinity of the Gaza perimeter, and it is likely to have regional repercussions. This is why I ask you all today to join the United Nations in condemning the continued indiscriminate firing of rockets by Hamas towards Israel. Such acts of provocation only dramatically increase the risk of escalation and ultimately damage our collective efforts to support the people of Gaza and intra-Palestinian reconciliation. We must also call on all sides to exercise maximum restraint as the situation remains extremely tense.”

The IDF was having any of the talk about “rogue elements” and put the blame squarely on Hamas and held them solely responsible.

“The Hamas terror organization bears responsibility for everything in and around the Gaza Strip,” the army said in a statement. “The IDF is determined to continue protecting the Israeli citizens and is prepared for a variety of scenarios.”

The Israeli Air Force blasted sites of Gaza’s Hamas rulers and the smaller Islamic Jihad group. The targets included a multistory building in Gaza City that reportedly had served as a Hamas military intelligence headquarters and the office of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Hamas reported seven casualties in the strikes, all civilians.

This is a dangerous time in the region. We’re approaching the one-year anniversary of the March of Return protests, which began March 30, 2018. During these protests along the border between Gaza and Israel, 190 of the Palestinians were killed and even more wounded in the past year. Now, the terror group hopes to draw hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the border to riot and try to breach the security fence with their most hated enemy. The goal is to ease the blockade but it has thus far been unsuccessful.

But Hamas didn’t plan on what unfolded just a week ago. Palestinians protested in the streets against Hamas, blaming the terror group for the dire plight the people are in right now. And they were cracked down on badly, Hamas men fired into the crowds, and beat up and arrested countless others.

As Hamas is encountering its worst problem in the 12 years that they’ve been in power, the blockade by Israel and Egypt, sanctions by the Palestinian Authority, and terrible governmental mismanagement by the Hamas leadership have left the region in tatters. Unemployment is running north of about 50 percent.

Also happening in Israel is the upcoming election where Benjamin Netanyahu is locked in a very tight race for re-election. With the election right around the corner on April 9, a new war in Gaza with Hamas could prove to be devastating for his reelection bid. He’s is getting criticism from both supporters and opponents for failing to contain Hamas.

But the savvy Netanyahu also knows that he can’t back down either. He raced home from the United States after the initial rocket attack and has made it clear that Israel will not stand for more.

“Hamas needs to know that we will not hesitate to go in and take all necessary steps, regardless of anything, any date, other than Israel’s security needs,” he said.

He later added, “I can tell you, we are prepared to do a lot more,” he said. “We will do what is necessary to defend our people and to defend our state.”

Palestinians weren’t taking any unnecessary risks after the air strikes, staying at home and indoors. Businesses and shops were closed, schools didn’t open. And if they needed a reminder, it was reported that despite the calm, Israeli drones stayed overhead, waiting for the next rocket launch and ready to pounce.

So with the Egyptian delegation in Gaza in long sessions with Hamas, they’ll try to hammer out something longer than just a ceasefire, but in reality, the peace will only be temporary here for quite some time.

As Israeli troops mass on the border, neither side wants another large scale protracted war, but it seems that their both being thrust into one anyway.

File Photo of Israeli tanks on the Golan Heights: IDF

Green Beret and EOD Tech Killed in Afghanistan Identified

The two Amerian soldiers killed in northern Afghanistan this past Friday have been identified by the Pentagon and both are from Ft. Carson, Colorado.

Green Beret SFC Will D. Lindsay, 33, and SP4 Joseph P. Collette, 29, died from wounds by small arms fire sustained during combat operations in Kunduz province, Afghanistan according to U.S. officials in Afghanistan.

Kunduz was the scene of heavy fighting back in 2015. The Taliban attacked the city and took it from Afghan forces in late September. Afghan government troops aided by U.S. Special Forces retook the city but at great cost to themselves and the civilians there. One hospital staffed by “Doctors without Borders” was hit by fire from an AC-130 gunship and destroyed which supposedly killed 42 people.

Lindsay was assigned to the 2nd Bn. 10th Special Forces Group and is from Cortez, Colorado, while Collette, originally from Lancaster, Ohio was assigned to the 242nd Ordnance Battalion, 71st Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group.

According to SOCOM spokesman LTC Loren Bymer, Lindsay enlisted in the Army in July 2004. He graduated Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) in July 2006 and was assigned to 10th SFG.

Lindsay’s deployments include five tours to Iraq supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn; to Tajikistan in 2016 supporting the Counter-Narcotics Terrorism mission; and Afghanistan supporting Operation Freedom’s Sentinel.

He attended both static-line and military free-fall parachute training. He also graduated from several other special operations training programs, including the Special Operations Target Interdiction Course, (SOTIC or Sniper Course) and the Special Forces Intelligence Sergeant Course.

Lindsay’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters, a Purple Heart, the NATO Medal, the Special Forces Tab, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Military Free Fall Jumpmaster Badge, the Master Parachutist Badge and the Chilean Airborne Wings.

Colonel Lawrence Ferguson, the commander of the 10th SFG said the entire command was saddened upon hearing the grim news.

“Will was one of the best in our formation, with more than a decade of service in the Regiment at all levels of noncommissioned officer leadership,” Ferguson said. “We will focus now on supporting his family and honoring his legacy and sacrifice.”

Collette, was on his first deployment to Afghanistan but had been in the military for nine years. He and his wife had just been married in December. Colonel David Green, the commander of the 71st EOD Group passed along his condolences to Collette’s extended family.

“The 71st Ordnance Group is deeply saddened by the loss of Spc. Joseph P. Collette,” the unit’s commander Col. David Green said in a released statement. “We extend our deepest sympathies and condolences to his family and friends.”

His widow Caela posted to her Facebook account of his death. “For those of you who don’t know, Joey was killed in action last night while serving our country,” she wrote. “I have no words but so many words at the same time. He was my best friend and I’m so lost without him right now.”

Lindsay was also married and is survived by his wife and four daughters.

EOD technicians often work with Special Operations units, clearing IEDs and roadside bombs that insurgents place in areas where Americans or coalition troops patrol in. Reportedly, the unit was in a firefight with Taliban forces when the two Americans as well as on Afghan soldier were killed in the fighting.

Then, American and coalition Afghan forces began firing accidentally on one another and an airstrike was called in where Afghan civilians were killed. The incident is under investigation. There have been four combat deaths in Afghanistan in 2019 after 13 in 2018 as well as two non-combat related fatalities.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is trying to come to a peace agreement with the Taliban where the United States can end the longest war in its history. But while negotiations are on-going, both sides push against one another to gain an advantage.

Photos: US Army