SOF Pic of the Day: Marine Raiders train with the US Coast Guard

A Marine UH-1Y Venom helicopter crew hovers after deploying members from Hotel Company, 2nd Raider Battalion, Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, during a joint training exercise with a Coast Guard 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew from Station Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, on base, March 28, 2017. The Coast Guard […]

SOFREP Exclusive: League delegation en route to Southeast Asia

Only two months after Vietnam quietly announced unprecedented levels of cooperation regarding on-going U.S. POW/MIA efforts in Southeast Asia (SEA), a delegation from the National League of POW/MIA Families and a parallel group of Green Beret Vietnam veterans will travel to Southeast Asia (Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, & Thailand) January 11-30th to meet key U.S. and […]

The many faces of Stolen Valor

The latest case of stolen valor to hit the news was self-acclaimed Green Beret war hero, Papotia Reginald Wright, who had created a group called the “8th Special Forces Regiment New York Honor Guard.” He claimed to have earned a Purple Heart and Bronze Star, among other awards he was never actually awarded. Though he […]

The Haunting Begins: Rescue mission with James Shorten

[Editor’s Note: This is the sixth in a series of exclusive SOFREP stories of what led to the MACV-SOG Bright Light mission that haunts SOG Green Beret SSG James H. Shorten (Jones) to this day. It has taken him back to Cambodia twice and he hopes to return to Cambodia in 2018 to help DPAA […]

A history of things, the fashion of war: Berets

The history of things, whatever they are, has always been fascinating to me for one reason or another. The same goes for etymology or the history of words. But, for today I’m going to attempt to write a few articles on something that’s popped up. Berets–their respective colors, whose heritage those colors are tied to […]

On this day in history: The death of Che Guevara

October 9, 1967: Che Guevara is hurled into a hut, shot in the arms and legs with a rifle, then quickly dispatched by rounds to the chest. The man’s face is plastered across t-shirts in universities, painted on walls in Cuba and associated with Marxist images all over the internet.  He is a symbol, no […]

Unique and remarkable aspects of life as a Special Operator (Part One)

When I look back over a short career as a green beret – I’m left with some vignettes that stick out more than others. There are these lingering moments you can’t escape – and will stick in the back of your mind forever. They’re less specific and real moments and more sensations and feelings captured in […]