Photo: Adm. William H. McRaven Admiral Defends Use Of Elite Unit In Calamitous Raid -- New York Times
TAMPA, Fla. — The new commander of American Special Operations forces has defended the use of commandos in a Navy Seals unit to back up a raid in Afghanistan earlier this month that ended in tragedy when a Chinook helicopter was shot down, rejecting criticism that planning for the operation was different from other missions that had been carried out successfully, as many as a dozen on a typical night.
The commander, Adm. William H. McRaven, said “there was nothing unusual about this mission” to warrant the sustained criticism heard from some retired commandos and military analysts, who have questioned how the operation was planned and carried out and whether it was an appropriate use of the vaunted Navy Seals.
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My Comment: The final results from the investigation in this disastrous operation have yet to be published. Therefore .... Adm. William H. McRaven's comments are probably premature .... unless he already knows what the conclusions will be in this report.