Direct Action

Navy releases new SEAL selection and training video

In an apparent move to attract more candidates, the Navy has released a new recruiting video about the Navy SEAL selection and training process. Many people don’t realize that shiny military career fields in special operations—such as SEALs, Green Berets, Rangers, Pararescuemen, and Marine Recon—serve as a great way to recruit quality people for the […]

Niger ambush review: Senior leadership accountability debacle or just burying the facts?

During a U.S. House Armed Services Committee hearing last Tuesday, Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan told lawmakers the long-awaited Niger ambush report will go through yet another review. The report concerns the botched Niger operation that took place in October 2017 and cost the lives of four Americans. Justifying his decision, Shanahan said his […]

How Navy SEALs are preparing for war with China

After decades of counterinsurgency operations, the United States military has begun shifting its gaze back to nation-level adversaries. According to the Department of Defense (DoD), Russia and China pose the greatest nation-level threat to the U.S. As a result, hereafter, military spending will place more importance on projects and capabilities that would be useful in […]

Exclusive: Interview with an American Mercenary who ran combat ops in Yemen

Little Bird helicopters swept down and dropped the Delta Force operators on the roof of the prison. The helicopters were so heavy with men, weapons, and equipment that some only had one pilot on board due to weight restrictions. The breacher ran forward and set the explosive charge on the door leading down into the […]

Teaching is the Art of a Special Forces Operator/A-team

We have been getting a lot of mail and tweets here at SpecialOperations.com and as we pointed out in our earlier post a day ago, many have questions about the Selection courses and what can be expected when candidates begin their quest to become part of the Special Operations fraternity and become part of the […]

In Syria the 75th Ranger Regiment is used as a political action force

The 75th Ranger Regiment describes itself as America’s premier raid force, with the missions of direct action, special reconnaissance, and forced entry operations such as airfield seizures.  However, the Ranger mission in Syria has taken a very different turn, one in which the Regiment is deployed as a political force to build rapport with allies […]

Special Operations Forces Focus on Advisory Role Paying Off

For the past decade plus, Special Operations Forces have been utilized heavily on the Direct Action, (DA) side of operations including Counter-Terrorism (CT) in the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. But the pendulum is swinging back toward the traditional advisory role of SOF as the allies in Syria, Iraq, and in Afghanistan begin to […]

Special Forces Detachment Korea: Did South Korea send infiltrators north? (Part 10)

Read Part 9 Here American Special Forces would be providing direct action and strategic reconnaissance support to the Korean Special Forces during the war, however, they would not be sending infiltrators into North Korea. Instead, they would be aiding and assisting their partner forces. The Americans perceived “the war as being initiated by the North. Our biggest […]

Croatian SOF Military Units

Special Operations Battalion (Bojna za specijalna djelovanja – BSD) INTRODUCTION The Special Operations Battalion is Croatia’s premier SOF unit. It is tasked with standard NATO SOF tasks: special reconnaissance and surveillance (SR), military assistance (MA), and direct action (DA), along with additional tasks such as counterterrorism and providing specialized aid to the civilian population in […]

Wild West culture of drug use on operations permeates SEAL Teams

Sources within the Special Operations community have described a situation to SOFREP in which SEAL Team Six operators are routinely high on drugs while conducting highly dangerous direct action missions while deployed abroad.  Operators are known to abuse methamphetamine and other uppers on a regular basis during combat operations.  The use of cocaine and methamphetamine is […]

ISOF should be source of U.S. national pride

The ISOF has been such a success that it ought to be widely known and a source of national pride. It’s time to feel good about our work. ISOF is doing the heavy lifting of U.S. Foreign Policy in Iraq. We’ve sent a great many service members over, but they aren’t in the fight. The […]