Posted on 02/02/2017 3:14:11 PM PST by SeekAndFind
The SEAL Team 6 raid in Yemen that resulted in the death of Chief Special Warfare Operator William "Ryan" Owens was declared a success by President Donald Trump, who praised Owens and his fellow commandos, three of whom were wounded, for "killing 14 [Qaeda] members" and "capturing important intelligence that will assist the US in preventing terrorism."
But as more details of the weekend covert counterterrorism operation emerge, it's evident that the mission didn't go according to plan.
US Central Command has now acknowledged that the raid resulted in civilian casualties, saying in a statement that an investigating team had "concluded regrettably that civilian noncombatants were likely killed" during the raid, which culminated in a nearly hourlong firefight. Central Command also conceded that children may have been among the dead.
Reports of civilian casualties first came from medics at the scene who claimed that 30 people, including 10 women and children, had been killed in the battle. Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters that both women and men were firing at US forces.
Three unnamed US military officials told Reuters that the battle, which one described as a "brutal firefight," resulted in the deaths of at least 15 Yemeni women and children, and that one of them was indeed the 8-year-old daughter of Anwar al-Awlaki, an American citizen who was the target of a US drone strike in 2011.
The girl's death, not yet confirmed by Central Command, was first announced by members of her family. "She was hit in the neck with a bullet and suffered for two hours," her grandfather, Nasser al-Awlaki, told Reuters.
Nasser al-Awlaki said in an interview with The Guardian that he believed his granddaughter's death was not intentional.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
If al-Awlaki’s kids move back here, they will be just as eligible then.
I’m sure that’s exactly what the founders had in mind...../s
It is reported that the roof of the landing building held women with machine guns behind sandbags, and that they fired at the landing helicopter.
“...it’s evident that the mission didn’t go according to plan.”
They never do. The SEALs’ greatness is that they adapt and overcome better than anybody on Planet Earth.
I understand the source and who the author is. What can I say though about the content to refute this story?
McCain
The qualifier was omitted from the initial report.
“When our side kills women and children it is because it was unavoidable.”
William Calley?
“Sean Spicer (WH spokesperson) said that it’s hard to call a mission where there is loss of life (of our side) a “complete” success. He had said that on two separate press release dates. I think that the statement is accurate, especially taken in the contexts of what he was explaining.”
^^^^^^
Thanks for the clarification and perspective. I should have looked for the exact quote before posting. It’s just that these threads move so fast and I wanted to counter part of the original article.
“She was hit in the neck with a bullet and suffered for two hours,” her grandfather, Nasser al-Awlaki, told Reuters.
There’s a lesson in there, Nasser.
L
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