Trump Approved Covert Counterterrorism Operation Without Sufficient Intelligence, Ground Support, Adequate Backup Preparations
Reuters is reporting a potential bombshell about Donald Trump’s first counterterrorism operation. According to the report, “U.S. military officials told Reuters that Trump approved his first covert counterterrorism operation without sufficient intelligence, ground support or adequate backup preparations.”
The Reuters report continues:
As a result, three officials said, the attacking SEAL team found itself dropping onto a reinforced al Qaeda base defended by landmines, snipers, and a larger than expected contingent of heavily armed Islamist extremists.
The Pentagon directed queries about the officials’ characterization of the raid to U.S. Central Command, which pointed only to its statement on Wednesday.
One U.S. soldier was killed during the raid and there are growing reports of significant civilian casualties during the raid.
There have been reports over the last few days suggesting that the raid didn’t go well. The New York Times reported that, “a chain of mishaps and misjudgments that plunged the elite commandos into a ferocious 50-minute firefight that also left three others wounded and a $75 million aircraft deliberately destroyed.”
White House may not be telling the truth about intelligence gathered by the raid
On Wednesday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said on Wednesday the raid yielded intelligence results, saying “Knowing that we killed an estimated 14 AQAP members and that we gathered an unbelievable amount of intelligence that will prevent the potential deaths or attacks on American soil – is something that I think most service members understand, that that’s why they joined the service.”
According to the Reuters report, “One of the three U.S. officials said on-the-ground surveillance of the compound was ‘minimal, at best.'”
Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong
The New York Times wrote in great detail about just how poorly the raid went, saying:
As it turned out, almost everything that could go wrong did. And on Wednesday, Mr. Trump flew to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to be present as the body of the American commando killed in the raid was returned home, the first military death on the new commander in chief’s watch.
The death of Chief Petty Officer William Owens came after a chain of mishaps and misjudgments that plunged the elite commandos into a ferocious 50-minute firefight that also left three others wounded and a $75 million aircraft deliberately destroyed. There are allegations — which the Pentagon acknowledged on Wednesday night are most likely correct — that the mission also killed several civilians, including some children. The dead include, by the account of Al Qaeda’s branch in Yemen, the 8-year-old daughter of Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born Qaeda leader who was killed in a targeted drone strike in 2011.
