Like most Americans, I rejoiced on learning of the death of Osama bin Laden. On any number of levels, it’s a good thing that he is dead, and dead “by our hand.” As details of the operation that took his life were revealed, usually by unnamed sources, we learned that this action took place in Pakistan, that his body was brought out, that the operation was conducted by a special operations team, and finally, that the special operators were a team of Navy SEALs. Amid the rush of misinformation about Osama being armed, then unarmed, hiding behind a wife, not hiding, etc., etc., one persistent detail remained-the SEALs got him. Very quickly the national discourse turned to SEALs, which SEALs, and the details of just who these SEALs were and what was their chain of command. Throughout all of this, official DoD, military, Special Operations, and Navy sources were silent. So the media began to scratch about, finding people like me to speak to this issue.
The media began to characterize these SEALs as the best of the best, the elite of the elite, and that they were from a secret team who reported to a secret command. There were related stories of stealth helicopters and plans for the SEAL assault element to fight their way out of Pakistan if things had not gone well. And official military and Special Operations sources remained silent. At the risk of talking out of school, let me speak to the SEAL assault element that was assigned this important target.
Our nation has a wonderful and robust Special Operations Force. Our ground-combat SOF components-the SEALs, the Army Special Forces (Green Berets), the 75th Ranger Regiment, and the Marine Special Operations Command (MARSOC)-are brilliantly supported by SOF aviators-the Army 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment and the Air Force 1st Special Operations Wing. On the ground, the missions can be roughly categorized as direct action, unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense (helping other nations counter terror), and special reconnaissance. All our SOF ground components do these missions, but each has its area of expertise-its speciality. The SOF Marines have two battalions that specialize in foreign internal defense and one battalion that concentrates on direct action. The Green Berets, with their cross-cultural skills, focus on foreign internal defense and unconventional warfare. Our Rangers in the 75th Ranger Regiment are pure raiders. They are a direct action force, but they can also perform as light infantry. Unique among our SOF ground forces, the 75th Rangers can operate as a company, a battalion, and even a regimental-sized force.
SEALs are generalists. They are talented and versatile, but still generalists in that they conduct a wide range of special operations in a maritime environment. Their mission sets include “unconventional warfare, direct action, combating terrorism, special reconnaissance, foreign internal defense, information warfare, security assistance, counter-drug operations, personnel recovery, and hydrographic reconnaissance.” (http://www.navsoc.navy.mil/) At any given time, anywhere in the world, Navy SEALs can be tasked with these missions. As the need and mission requirements dictate, SEALs may be asked to specialize and refine their skills around one or more of these capabilities. They therefore may become highly proficient at special reconnaissance or personnel recovery. I suspect (since there still has been no official word-and probably never will be) that the SEALs who conducted the operation to get bin Laden were a very proficient direct-action team of Navy SEALs. So rather than resort to terms like elite and special and secret, I think the term “focused” better describes those who were tasked with this very special operation. There are certainly other SOF components that could have done this and certainly would have liked to have done it. But due to their direct-action focus, and perhaps other considerations like availability, area orientation, and language skills, this particular group of SEALs was chosen for this important mission. And by all accounts, they indeed comported themselves admirably.
Stepping back from the personnel issues and the tactical excellence of the assault element, let us not forget that a great many people had a hand in this. Credit unsung intelligence professionals who ran bin Laden to ground. Credit the combat support teams who contributed to getting that assault element briefed, trained, rehearsed, and on target with bin Laden in residence. Credit the SOF aviators who flew the mission. I would assume there were also non-SEAL special operators with the assault element to deal with certain contingencies and exploit intelligence. So while it was “the SEALs” who are credited with getting bin Laden, their daring and professionalism are but emblematic of our Special Operations community at large. In April of 1980, the United States was humiliated with the failure of Desert One/Operation Eagle Claw, the botched attempt to rescue our embassy legation taken hostage in Iran. From the ashes of that debacle, the U.S. Special Operations Command was born. Since then it has both thrived and matured. This latest and most public success are but one example of their tireless efforts to keep this nation safe and to keep our enemies on notice. And they are most certainly on notice-anytime, anywhere.
Dick Couch is the author of The Warrior Elite and The Sheriff of Ramadi–leading books on SEAL training and SEAL operations.
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