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Tongo video ambush1/13/2024 The actions of the soldiers of ODA 3212, Waldhauser claimed, were “not indicative” of the “fantastic job” U.S. The soldiers of Operational Detachment-Alpha 3212 had not completed “basic social-level routine tasks” ahead of the mission, Waldhauser said, adding that they “inaccurately portrayed” the intent of a mission they carried out the day before the ambush. Instead, the blame was laid at the feet of the special operators themselves. The problems weren’t with AFRICOM, officials claimed, or even with the chain of command that oversaw an operation that placed American soldiers in a situation where they had little to no support and were vastly outnumbered by enemy militants. Roger Cloutier - laid out a list of problems the investigation had found. But that sense of ownership quickly dissipated as the official who carried out the investigation - Waldhauser’s own chief of staff, Maj. Africa Command, stated in his opening remarks that he took “ownership for all the events connected to the ambush.” The “responsibility is mine,” he said. While speaking to the press at the Pentagon on May 10, 2018, Marine Corps Gen. LaDavid Johnson, 25, of Miami Gardens, Fla. ![]() For them, the ambush is over.Left to right: Staff Sgt. Staff Sergeant Wright dies just feet away. Still, he is shot by the militants at close range. A short time later, two armed militants appear on screen. Militant fire seems to be coming from this area. Johnson is seriously wounded and falls, but then moves about another 40 feet. There are more edits to the video, but we’re able to map their final steps. This suggests they’re about to be overrun. ![]() He and Johnson begin running without covering each other. We don’t know how much time has passed here, but Wright changes his direction of fire. Wright then drags Black to cover, behind the car. It could be for support or for the enemy. The car begins to move again, when Johnson and Black fall. In the next scene, the red smoke has cleared. After they’ve reached the smoke, there’s a cut in the video. Johnson, taking cover at the rear, fires toward the tree line. The smoke could be to mask their movements from the militants, or to mark their position for supporting units. Wright drives the car toward the mark of a red smoke grenade. The white car has disappeared, and we don’t know how much time has elapsed. Next, we only see the black car and three soldiers - Staff Sergeants Johnson, Wright, and Black. Then, he runs for cover behind the white vehicle, and the video cuts to a new scene. He steps out and begins firing towards the tree line. An American soldier we believe to be Staff Sergeant Jeremiah Johnson wearing a helmet camera enters the white vehicle and drives it a short distance. The attackers are somewhere in this area. Footage of that fight shows that two American vehicles are separated from the convoy. They’re quickly ambushed by militants loyal to Islamic State. ![]() A convoy of around eight American and Nigerien army vehicles leaves the village of Tongo Tongo after a mission in the area. But helmet camera footage from one of the soldiers allowed us to reconstruct some of the attack. The Defense Department launched an investigation into what happened. These four American Green Berets were killed last fall when their patrol was ambushed in Niger. ![]() Soldiers in Niger Unfolded One of the American soldiers ambushed by militants in Niger was wearing a helmet camera – we analyzed the footage to understand what happened.
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