SOF Pic of the Day: Special Forces prepare to assault a building

SOF Pic of the Day: Special Forces prepare to assault a building

Baumholder, Germany – A U.S. Army Special Forces team assaults a building during a close quarters battle demonstration for Marines with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crisis Response-Africa in Baumholder, Germany, March 9, 2015. The ability to rapidly secure buildings allows Special Forces teams to complete a variety of missions ranging from hostage rescue to […]

SOF Pic of the Day: Honing skills through competition

SOF Pic of the Day: Honing skills through competition

A Special Operations Forces sniper uses a window to identify and engage targets during the United States Army Special Operations Command’s International Sniper Competition, where 23, two-man teams from special operations, foreign-partners and law enforcement agencies put their skills to the test, March 20-24. Photo courtesy of USAJFKSWCS To learn more about Special Opetaions Sniper […]

Murder or accident? SEAL Team 6 operators kill a Green Beret in Mali

Murder or accident? SEAL Team 6 operators kill a Green Beret in Mali

It was 2009 in Iraq when one of my teammates decided to initiate an impromptu combatives match with half of a SEAL platoon, never a great idea under any circumstances.  He was the senior Special Forces medic on our team and we had been doing some joint operations with a SEAL platoon in Mosul.  Now […]

SOF Pic of the Day: Sniper on the ridgeline

SOF Pic of the Day: Sniper on the ridgeline

A Special Operations Command sniper attached to the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), walks along a ridgeline during a special reconnaissance mission, Feb. 17, 2016, while participating in training at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, Calif. MCAGCC conducts relevant live-fire combined arms, urban operations and joint coalition level integration training […]

SOF Pic of the Day: Special Tactics Airmen conduct personnel rescue training

SOF Pic of the Day: Special Tactics Airmen conduct personnel rescue training

An Air Force Special Tactics Airman with the 24th Special Operations Wing rappels into the Al-Badia Cave Complex during a personnel rescue mission for Eager Lion on May 13, 2017, in Mafraq Province, Jordan. Special Tactics teams have the ability to conduct personnel recovery missions, from rapid mission planning to technical rescue, treatment and exfiltration. With […]

SOF Pic of the Day: Greatness within reach

SOF Pic of the Day: Greatness within reach

75th Ranger Regiment Wins Best Ranger competition Master Sgt. Josh Horsager of the 75th Ranger Regiment took first place in the 2017 Best Ranger competition, held April 7-9, 2017, at Fort Benning, Georgia. The event is in its 34th year. The competition is designed to determine the best two-Soldier Ranger team in the Army. Image […]

SOF Pic of the Day: Marines & Airmen take the beach

SOF Pic of the Day: Marines & Airmen take the beach

A U.S. Marine and Airman perform scout swimmer training during Marine Special Operations School’s Individual Training Course, March 24, 2017, at Key West, Fla. For the first time, U.S. Air Force Special Tactics Airmen spent three months in Marine Special Operations Command’s Marine Raider training pipeline, representing efforts to build joint mindsets across special operations […]

1st Special Forces Command Sergeant Major removed amid sexting scandal

1st Special Forces Command Sergeant Major removed amid sexting scandal

Command Sergeant Major Brian Rarey has been removed from his position as the 1st Special Forces Command CSM as of today, his name disappearing from the unit’s official table of organization chart on their website.  1st Special Forces Command is the umbrella organization under which the entire U.S. Special Forces operates, including 1st, 3rd, 5th, […]

A top U.S. general just said 4,000 American troops are in Syria. The Pentagon says there are only 500.

A top U.S. general just said 4,000 American troops are in Syria. The Pentagon says there are only 500.

A senior U.S. military commander said Tuesday that 4,000 American troops are on the ground in Syria, a figure far greater than the 503 personnel the Trump administration says are deployed there. Army Maj. Gen. James B. Jarrard, who heads the U.S.-led Special Operations task force targeting the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, offered the surprising figure while briefing […]

SOF Pic of the Day: A rare glimpse of the Night Stalkers in the light of day

SOF Pic of the Day: A rare glimpse of the Night Stalkers in the light of day

“The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment’s mission is to organize, equip, train, resource and employ Army special operations aviation forces worldwide in support of contingency missions and combatant commanders. Known as Night Stalkers, these Soldiers are recognized for their proficiency in nighttime operations. They are highly trained and ready to accomplish the very toughest missions […]

SOF Pic of the Day: Marine Raider helocast training

SOF Pic of the Day: Marine Raider helocast training

Marine Special Operations School Individual Training Course students helocast from a U.S. Navy SH-60 Seahawk Helicopter, March 23, 2017, at Key West, Fla. For the first time, U.S. Air Force Special Tactics Airmen spent three months in Marine Special Operations Command’s Marine Raider training pipeline, representing efforts to build joint mindsets across special operations forces. […]

Across the Fence: Bright Light rescue mission with James Shorten

Across the Fence: Bright Light rescue mission with James Shorten

[Editor’s Note: In the eight-year secret war fought by Green Berets during the Vietnam War across the fence in Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam from 1964-1972 under the aegis of the Military Assistance Command Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (SOG), no mission was more dangerous than a Bright Light Mission. Heavily-armed SOG recon teams […]