SOF News Update 20170110 – video of Australian SAS in action, Green Beret explains the 100 year war, video of “Air Commando Pride”, Green Beret families, SOF raid on Islamic State in Syria, U.S special operations forces & Trump, and more.

Video Aussie SAS in Action. Watch a short 4-min long video of training clips depicting Australian SAS in action. Published by DirectAction Productions on YouTube.com on December 22, 2016. Not sure I like the music but the action shots are pretty good.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-U3wuvT9nY

SOF Raid in Syria. U.S. special operations forces carried out a raid on Sunday, January 8th to capture senior Islamic State fighters in Eastern Syria. Read more in “U.S. troops carry out ground raid against ISIS in Syria”, The Washington Post, January 9, 2017.

The 100 Year War. Mike Waltz, a Green Beret officer, book author, Fox New military commentator, and businessman provides his perspective on the long war we are fighting in “Green Beret: US Fighting 100 Year War”, Scout Warrior, January 8, 2017.

“Air Commando Pride”. The commander of Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) LtGen Brad Webb talks about “Air Commando Pride” in this short video posted by AFSOC on DVIDS Dec 12, 2016.

Green Beret Families. The Special Forces Charitable Trust has added a new page to their website entitled “The Green Beret and his Family”.

SOF Waiting on Trump Policy. There is no doubt that the United States foreign policy will change with the Trump administration. What is not know is how much change and what will change. Currently the Obama administration has U.S. special operations forces waging conflict in places like Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, and Afghanistan. In addition U.S. SOF are conducting JCETs, training, and security force assistance mission in over 130 countries around the world. Gayle Tzemach Lemmon writes more on this topic in “Still Fighting, US Troops from Syria to Afghanistan Await Trump Orders”, Defense One, January 7, 2017.

SOF News Update 20161002 – Counter-Terrorism,  Australian SAS to train NATO troops, India’s communist rebels, museum for Navy SEALs, airstrikes in Somalia, article about UW in Gray Zones, Son Tay Raiders reunion, Soldier’s Medal for Green Beret, Turkey Special Forces in northern Syria, female attempting TACP training falls short, and more.

Maoists of India. Almost 90 percent of terrorism related deaths worldwide are caused by Islamic terrorists – the remaining terrorist related deaths are by the remnants of leftist (communist) rebel groups. One such group is the Maoists of India (sometimes referred to as Naxalites). Read more in “Counter-Terrorism: Distant Second and Fading”, Strategy Page, September 28, 2016.

Endstate Fallacy: How Do Wars End? Anthony H. Cordsman of the Center for Stategic & International Studies (CSIS) has penned a paper that discusses how wars and conflicts will result in endstates that are hard to control or pre-determine. He looks at the five conflicts (wars) the U.S. is currently involved in (with either conventional or special operations forces) – Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Read The “End State” Fallacy: Setting the Wrong Goals for War Fighting, CSIS, September 26, 2016.

Green Beret Recognized for Boston Marathon Heroism. An Army Special Forces officer, LTC David Diamond, had just completed the 2013 Boston Marathon when he heard a loud blast. A veteran of five tours in Iraq, he immediately ran to the scene of the explosion and began providing life-saving first aid. Read “Green Beret awarded for heroism during ‘pandemonium’ of Boston bombing”, The Hill Defense Blog, September 27, 2016.

Australian SAS to Train NATO Troops. Australian special operations troops are training up Iraqi government forces as part of a larger NATO-led effort. In addition, it appears that Australia’s relationship with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization will continue to grow. Read more in “Australia’s SAS elite set to train elite European troops”, The West Australian, September 28, 2016.

41-Year-Old Chaplain Earns Ranger Tab. An Army officer with zero tactical knowledge has passed Ranger school. Read his story in Task & Purpose, September 28, 2016.

Son Tay Raiders Reunion. In November 1970 a group of Special Forces Soldiers boarded helicopters and landed at a North Vietnamese prisoner of war (POW) camp thought to house a number of American POWs. The camp was empty but it prompted better treatment of the POWs by the North Vietnamese. The SF Soldiers recently held a reunion. Read “Son Tay raiders reunite at Fort Bragg”, Fayetteville Observer, October 1, 2016.

Female Attempting TACP Training Injured. The first woman to enter Tactical Air Control Party training has left the program due to an injury. She was in the TACP Preparatory Course at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. Read more in “First woman to attempt TACP training left after injury”, Air Force Times, September 28, 2016.

Paralyzed Green Beret Can Remain in Army. The Special Forces Soldier who suffered a serious injury trying to rescue a drowning victim can be honorably discharged and receive medical care for his injury after discharge. The Army has overturned a decision to discharge him with a less than honorable record which would have cost him thousands in medical expenses for the rest of his life. Sanity prevails! The current leadership in 7th Special Forces is viewed by some as ‘toxic’; which may have contributed to this case getting so out of hand – and requiring the intervention of a U.S. Congressman and the commander of USASOC. Read more in “Army Overturns Decision to Kick Out Paralyzed Hero”, The Daily Beast, September 29, 2016.

“Defensive” Airstrikes in Somalia. The U.S. has had SOF operating in Somalia for a few years – working with Somalian counter-terrorist forces. Part of the assistance the U.S. SOF provides are enablers – such as ISR and airstrikes. The United States African Command (AFRICOM) has been releasing news reports about ‘self defense air strikes’ in Somalia. There is a little more to the story. Read “AFRICOM masks military operations in Somalia as ‘self defense strikes'”, The Long War Journal, October 1, 2016.

Turkish SF in northern Syria. Turkey has deployed hundreds of its Special Forces into northern Syria. Not to fight the Syrian regime troops; not to wage war against ISIS; but to stop the advance of the Kurdish forces that have been doing the heavy lifting against the Islamic State. Read more in a news report by The Independent, October 1, 2016.

More on northern Syria. A week ago the press was reporting that U.S. Special Forces were ‘run out’ of a northern Syrian town by a militia group. Seems it didn’t quite go down that way; it was a propaganda ploy by one of the many factions involved in the fighting. The situation in northern Syria is confusing at best. One recent news report tries to shed light on the whole mess. Read “Syrian Rebels Taunt U.S. Troops”, The Daily Beast, September 30, 2016.

Article – UW in Gray Zones. Two writers, currently working with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, explore the similarities between covert action and unconventional warfare that have led to a negative perception of UW and lengthy delays in its use. The authors offer three actions to overcome these perceptions and enable the use of UW as a timely foreign policy option. Read “Enabling Unconventional Warfare to Address Grey Zone Conflicts“, Small Wars Journal, September 28, 2016.

Museum for SEALs. A museum is being planned in suburban New York to honor U.S. Navy SEALs. It is expected to be built by 2018 at a county park on eastern Long Island. Read more in a news report by Stars & Stripes, September 30, 2016.

SOF News Update Topics: We like football, they like soccer; airborne & SOF books, CIA’s ‘Elephant Counter’, Paratrooper Leapfest competition, endgame in Libya, SAS in Syria, DoD IG report on JIDA, TV documentary on India’s paratroopers, CENTCOM ‘cooked the books’ on intel reports about ISIS, and more.

CIA’s ‘Elephant Counter’. During the Vietnam War the Central Intelligence Agency employed Laotian tribesmen to conduct surveillance on the ‘Ho Chi Minh’ trail. The trail was a jungle / mountain road that traversed the length of Laos from the North Vietnamese border to the South Vietnamese border. The trail was used by North Vietnam to move men, supplies, equipment, and weapons from North Vietnam into South Vietnam. The CIA’s ‘trailwatchers’ were usually illiterate so a device called the ‘elephant counter’ was designed for the Laotians dispatched to watch the trail and record the traffic. Read more in an account by the CIA in “Elephant Counter”.

Books – by ASOMF. The Airborne & Special Operations Museum Foundation (ASOMF) has an online bookstore worth checking out. http://shop.asomf.org/category-s/1823.htm.

Leapfest Competition. Paratroopers from around the world gather once a year to participate in the Rhodes Island Leapfest competition. The 19th Special Forces Group stages the competition every year. Read more on the “Leapfest Facebook” page.

Modern Warfare Has Changed. The U.S. Marine Corps top general, Marine Commandant Robert Neller, has made some comments on the changing nature of warfare. He compares our (the U.S.) concept of warfare with that of our adversaries in sports terms. Read “Top Marine general: We like football, they play soccer”, Washington Examiner, 9 August 2016.

Australian Defence Magazine. The latest issue (August 2016) of Australian Defense Magazine has been published online. www.australiandefence.com.au/home/adm-editions

More on Lost SOF Equipment in Afghanistan. Earlier reports had said that a special operations forces position had been overrun and some SOF equipment captured by the Islamic State in Afghanistan. Now it appears that the Resolute Support HQs is refining the story by saying that the equipment was inadvertently abandoned due to a withdrawal of SOF personnel under fire. Read more in a news report by Reuters, August 9, 2016.

Libya – What is the Endgame? Once the U.S. gets involved in a conflict there is consternation about how it all ends. As in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, . . . and now Libya. We currently have special operations forces on the ground and are conducting bombing raids (manned and unmanned). So we are looking for a short-term gain (degrading or defeat of ISIS in Libya) but what about long-term stability? Read “How Not to Plan for ‘The Day After’ in Libya”, The Atlantic, August 9, 2016.

Brit SAS in Syria. It appears that the Brits are committing their Special Air Service troops to Syria for the long-haul. Read a news report in The Sun, August 9, 2016.

Private U.S. Contractors in Syria. It appears that private contractors will soon be working alongside U.S. troops in Syria. Read more in “Spies-for-Hire Now at War in Syria”, The Daily Beast, August 9, 2016.

Pentagon IG Report on JIDA. The Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Agency has some housekeeping to do according to the Defense Department’s inspector general. Read “Effectiveness of some counter-IED efforts unproved, Pentagon report finds”, Military Times,  August 9, 2016.

TV Special on Indian Army’s Paratroopers SF. The Discovery Channel will air a special program titled ‘India’s Paratroopers: Earning the Badge’ on August 15th, 2016 at 9:00 pm.

USSOCOM Awards Aviation Contracts. Four firms are the recipients of contract work from the United States Special Operations Command. Read more in a news report by IHS Jane’s 360, August 9, 2016.

CENTCOM Intel Officials Cooked Books. Inaccurate reports by leading intelligence officers at Central Command downplayed the strength of the Islamic State. Read more in “ISIS Intel Was Cooked, House Panel Finds”, The Daily Beast, August 9, 2016.