U.S. Special Operations Command said in a statement that a Navy SEAL platoon is being ordered back to the states after, “The Commander lost confidence in the team’s ability to accomplish the mission.”
The statement from The Commander of the Special Operations Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve (in Iraq) did not give any specifics about why this decision was made but it did state that action was taken because of a “perceived deterioration of good order and discipline within the team during non-operational periods.”
Ken McGraw, U.S. Special Operations Command Public Affairs Officer added, "There were allegations of misconduct which caused the special operations joint task force commander to initiate an investigation, which is still ongoing. After the investigation began, the task force commander lost confidence in the platoon's ability to accomplish the mission and order their redeployment."
However, the Washington Post reported Wednesday that Defense Department officials said (under conditions of anonymity) that the platoon which is part of SEAL Team 7, “violated General Order No. 1, which bans alcohol use.”
Naval Special Warfare Command spokeswoman, Cmdr. Tamara Lawrence said in a statement that they are “actively reinforcing … basic leadership, readiness, responsibility and ethical principles that must form the foundation of special operations. Leaders at all levels must lead in a way that sustains and sharpens that foundation. Discipline is a competitive advantage, and enforcing those standards is critical to our success on the battlefield."
This incident comes after several misconduct incidents in the SEAL community have made the news. Earlier this week, the Navy Times reported that six members of a Virginia-based SEAL team tested positive for cocaine use last year, and earlier this month there was the high profile court-martial of SEAL Chief Edward Gallagher, who was acquitted of war-crime charges including murder but was convicted of posing for an unlawful photo with the remains of an Islamic State fighter.
Hear wild witness testimony from the SEAL murder trial
Witness testimony during the Gallagher case revealed some shocking stories involving alcohol and SEAL team members according to Paul Szoldra, Task & Purpose, Editor-in-Chief who attended the trial. "Early on in the trial one of the Lieutenants testified that they had a bar at their compound in Iraq," said Szoldra. "I saw a picture of it, and they had Christmas lights strung up ... and they had a DJ turntable set-up, and this Lieutenant was on the turntables while they were drinking booze ... while they're in Mosul, in the middle of a war zone. I don't know if that's normal for SEAL units, maybe it is. But when I was on deployment in Afghanistan we had some morale-boosting movies, but I don't remember setting up a bar or anything like that."
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