No, they killed the hostages and left. If they tried to hold up, and maybe go for a prisoner swap, there’d be more people at risk.

Not claiming Hamas is good but if there’s no resistance, they don’t kill as many people while finding the bodies.

They’re not trying to protect the ‘innocent’, they didn’t want the IDF gunning them down. When they saw the news about the IDF laying waste to everyone, they said “Fuck that,” killed the hostages and left.

Warfighting 101, that’s why you don’t go scorched earth for your hostages. If you make it a smart move to just kill them, they’ll just get killed…

Granted if you’re not looking for the hostages but looking to make your opponent look more inhuman, well, in that case great idea.

Is that what the Israeli forces said to the children they gunned down?

In one exchange, Sgt Schultz said he “wished he could be Jason Bourne” in reference to the fictional spy character.

After being promised more money from his handler, he said in another message: “I hope so! I need to get my other BMW back!”.

Unless the Army repo’d his Beamer, I’d assume no. He was just bad with money and delusional.

Americans own piles of guns. Russians drink themselves into the ground. Rich people the world over pay for ‘exotic’ hunting trips to shoot endangered animals. All of these things are bad.

The Japanese aren’t the only ones clinging to outdated traditions despite controversy.

The commentators have repeatedly said Russia and Belarus are both banned this year due to the invasion of Ukraine.

Just, They dope like crazy but I guess in Olympic speak that just means they can’t fly the Russian flag.

Should Russia get a black eye and Ukraine be pleased by Chinese assistance, when the Western spigot gets turned off, then China will have an amazing hook on Ukraine. Putin quietly gets told his place, Ukraine has stockpiles of Western gear to sell and China has another part of the Belt and Road.

Of course, the West will try to keep the funds flowing but without “big strong Russian bear” knocking at their door they’ll drop them like a new year’s resolution.

Now, Ukraine gets to play Belle of the ball courting China and the West and in the end The Rich win. Exactly according to plan.

When the invasion kicked off, like day 0, SF assets all over the place were ready to bounce and get in there. I know at least one GROM and UK guy who were training their counterparts in case they got told they could support.

But, as others have said, these are more akin to advisors than “behind the lines” active missions. If you don’t think everyone has someone backing up the tax dollars they’re sending, you’re naive at best.

Tower 22 is more like a rear det for Al Tanf. It’s a way to project force into Syria without actually going in and leaving the SDF to work the Syrian side, with the implication that Syria might attack the SDF base but not risk attacking Jordan. There are bases in Jordan, well, not bases like Germany or Kuwait but diplomatic compounds with every thing that comes with that.

It’s not a black site though, they’ve posted pictures a few years back when a Syrian drone wrecked a few buildings.