LET OFF

No Disciplinary Action for Top Military Brass Involved in Botched Niger Mission

Acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan found no fault after investigation into 2017 special forces mission that killed four soldiers.

Acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan said Thursday that he agreed with an independent investigation that cleared top military brass in a 2017 special-forces mission in Niger that left four U.S. soldiers dead. The Wall Street Journal reports Shanahan said none of the officers in charge of the mission that led to a deadly ambush of Green Berets by militants should be disciplined. The Pentagon inquiry recommended administrative discipline for “mistakes and oversights” by nine of those involved in the fatal mission, but stopped short of further action that might have included dismissals from service. Nine others were awarded for their actions in the mission. “Having examined an independent review by a senior general officer of the investigation into the 2017 ambush in Niger, I am satisfied that all findings, awards, and accountability actions were thorough and appropriate,” Shanahan said in a statement.