Just my opinion - nothing substantial to base it on.
I think they were sent in by Deep State to be more black hats but they were in reality /our guys/. I think they infiltrated then helped to ID/eliminate the actual black hats, ours and NK's. They came home more as heros than freed hostages. No family present, well fed. (As compared to poor Otto W.) POTUS made a display out of it for a reason. Right in the faces of MSM to give a finger to the cabal and to keep them from REALLY prying into "Who are they?"
May have also brought Kim in at same time while MSM was watching the squirrel. Oh look! Something shiny!