After War Zone Scandals, Special Operators Are Curbing Deployments and Investing in Ethics Training
In the world of special operations, the moral choices troops must make are "definitely not black and white," Robert Mitchell, associate dean for Joint Special Operations University, acknowledged.
But in recent years, some special operations forces have pushed the envelope on "gray area" behavior, acting in ways that are clearly unethical or illegal, and in cases, even committing war crimes. These high-profile scandals prompted U.S. Special Operations Command to launch a major review to get at the root of the problems plaguing the SOF community.
Now, more than a year after SOCOM unveiled the results of its comprehensive review, the command is making headway on several fronts.
Since the review's January 2020 release, SOCOM has changed its force structure, cut deployments significantly, and centralized leadership and oversight of special operators in the field. The command has also revamped how it trains special operators, with added emphasis on ethical conduct, particularly in morally uncertain environments.
But while the command has taken positive steps including publicly releasing the review and discussing the issues it faces it still has more work to do, Rand Corp. researcher Linda Robinson said in an April 5 interview.
The review was launched in 2019, after a series of incidents involving special operators including allegations of rape, hazing that led to a soldier's death, and posing for a photograph with a slain enemy combatant.
The finished review recommended 16 ways to improve how SOCOM uses its forces and holds them accountable, how it develops leaders, how its forces are structured, and how it assesses and selects people to become special operators.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2021/04/12/after-war-zone-scandals-special-operators-are-curbing-deployments-and-investing-ethics-training.html