2100
“Buzzz” – not the sound but a vibration. It lasted all of a second. Tapping the time piece to quell it, he swung his legs over the edge of the bunk and willed himself alert.
The meeting in the operations room lasted an agonizing 40 minutes. All details had long since been burned into their memories and listening to them again seemed pointless.
Adrenalin began to flow when they started their final equipment check. He, as well as all of them, knew the flight would consume 3 hours. Calm he told himself. It was a mental command he used often.
0058
Razor 1 and Razor 2 were within a kilometer of the compound. Razor 2 took up a position above the compound while her companion descended lower. Red Squadron rappelled from Razor 1 to the top of the 3 story structure.
The entire mission had been rehearsed times innumerable. And all went according to script.
110 seconds later Osama bin Laden was dead.
Disclaimer
A handful of individuals can confirm or deny the existence of Seal Team Six. And they’re not talking. Anything that has or ever will be written about an entity that is or was called Seal Team Six should be taken with a grain of salt.
Including this.
In his book titled ‘Rogue Warrior’ Richard Marcinko describes the events leading up the US Navy’s decision to create an anti terrorism unit, which he was tasked with bringing to life.
He also describes his stint in Federal prison for alleged misappropriation of funds and one of the conditions for his release – that he not author another non fiction book.
Marcinko went on to co author several works of ‘fiction’ based on obvious real life events. And he describes depositing ‘wheelbarrows’ of money in the bank.
Such is the fascination of the public with the mystique of covert military operations.
Seal Team Six was born in October of 1980 and was operational 6 months later. Due in large part to Marcinko’s life philosophy – full speed ahead. The original team is said to have consisted of 75 members – all hand picked by Marcinko.
According to Marcinko the training budget for the team was greater than for the entire US Marine Corps. And the team was said to have near unlimited resources at their disposal.
The cloak of secrecy surrounding Seal Team Six makes any attempt at recounting their history to be nothing much more than fiction.
In 1987 the team was officially dissolved for reasons that are still not clear today – at least not to the public.
To take their place the Navy Special Warfare Development Group was formed. Today NSWDG is still called Seal Team Six by many.
Backtrack to 11 September 2001
An entire nation watched in horror as a symbol of United States financial prowess fell crumbling to the earth. An entire nation mourned as 2752 causalities were laid to rest. And an entire nation demanded retribution.
Osama bin Laden was quickly proclaimed to be the culprit and just as quickly disappeared from sight. And a global war on terrorism was declared. As of this writing the death toll in this war stands at 66,000. And it rages on.
bin Laden couldn’t hide forever.
The long tentacles of the US Intelligence community undertook a global search for patterns that would lead to the whereabouts of bin Laden. As early as 2002 their efforts began to pay off and by 2012 his hideout was determined to be in the easternmost reaches of Pakistan.
After considering the possibilities of both an air strike and unmanned drone attacks, US officials elected to utilize CIA paramilitary and DEVGRU operators employing a 2 helicopter raid on the compound.
The mission was rehearsed at locations in North Carolina and Nevada using scale models as close as possible to the size of the compound in Pakistan. On 01 MAY 2013 the final go ahead was given.
Resulting in the narrative at the beginning of this post.
The death of bin Laden was confirmed by US officials and the news was announced to the public. Retribution was theirs.
The international terrorist community was outraged and vowed that revenge would be theirs. And 2 days later US Vice President Joseph Biden handed it to them on a silver platter.
On the evening of 03 MAY, speaking at the Washington Ritz Carlton, Biden proclaimed “Admiral James Stavridis is a, is the real deal. He can tell you more about and understands the incredible, the phenomenal, the just almost unbelievable capacity of his Navy SEALs and what they did last Sunday.”
The cat was out of the bag. Those who vowed vengeance now had a target.
US Spec Warfare operatives were in shock. Many of them concerned about the safety of family and loved ones. With good reason.
On 06 August in east central Afghanistan a Chinook helicopter, with 15 members of DEVGRU’s Gold Squadron on board, sustained a ground to air RPG strike and crashed, killing all on board. The DEVGRU operatives on board were said to have been major players in the elimination of bin Laden.
There appears to be several discrepancies concerning the attack on the Chinook and established military protocol;
- cremation of victims without prior notification of next of kin
- Afghan soldiers on board were NOT those listed on the flight manifest
- the Chinook did not have backup air support
- officials declaired that the Chinook black box was not recovered
In October 2011, US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that an investigation carried out following the attack concluded “that all operational decisions, linked to the incident, were deemed tactically sound”. Their report stated that the helicopter crashed after a RPG round impacted the aft rotor assembly. (Wikipedia)
And so a chapter in the book titled ‘The War on Terrorism’ ends.
It’s apparent that people in certain positions of authority want us to believe certain ‘facts.’ Among the most significant, that operatives who were tasked with eliminating bin Laden are no longer among the living.
If I were compelled to bet on the issue, I’d bet that they are among the living. And save and sound. With identities and physical features altered to insure, to the fullest extent possible, that they’ll be able to live out the remainder of their lives without fear of reprisal from the bad guys.
I would, however, encourage you to back and reread the ‘disclaimer’ near the beginning. And ponder why people want us to believe certain ‘things.’
