A Donald Trump-approved plan to send Navy SEALs into North Korea to spy on leader Kim Jong Un resulted in the U.S. killing of civilians, according to a bombshell report.
The mission, carried out in early 2019 during Trump’s first term, tasked SEAL Team 6’s Red Squadron with sneaking onto the shores of the reclusive state via mini-subs to plant an electronic device that would allow the U.S. to intercept Kim’s communications, The New York Times reported.
But as the SEALs were on the shore, they spotted a small boat, with one person entering the water. Believing the boat could be North Korea’s security force, the U.S. team opened fire, killing two or three people in a hail of gunfire.
When the SEALs approached to confirm the kills, they discovered the men were civilians who had simply been fishing for shellfish, the Times reported. Realizing their mistake, members of the Red Squadron—the same unit that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011—pulled the bodies from the water so they would not be discovered by North Korean authorities.
One official familiar with the mission told the Times the SEALs even punctured the fishermen’s lungs to ensure the corpses would sink.
North Korea has never publicly acknowledged the deaths, and U.S. officials remain unsure whether the regime ever learned what happened six years ago, according to the report.
The Times noted that several factors may have contributed to the deadly mistake. Communications were blocked as the SEALs approached the shoreline, meaning they had no way of detecting people nearby until arrival. The could not use overhead drones as usual to scan the area, and instead relied on satellites and high-altitude spy planes to send images, but those could not be relayed in real time.
The blackout also prevented SEALs on the ground from contacting the mission commander, who remained aboard a larger submarine miles away. The SEALs’ night-vision goggles were also designed to detect heat, meaning they wouldn’t have spotted the fishermen, as their wetsuits worn during their shellfish dive had been chilled by the icy seawater.
According to the Times, before the SEALs entered the no-communications zone, Trump had to personally give the final go-ahead for the mission.
The botched operation was subjected to a series of military reviews during Trump’s first term. Investigators concluded it was justified under the rules of engagement and declared that the deaths were part of a chain of “unfortunate occurrences” that could not have been foreseen or avoided, according to the Times. The findings were then classified and never made public.
Several of those involved in the failed mission were later promoted.
Matthew Waxman, a law professor at Columbia University who previously served in national security roles under President George W. Bush, suggested that the Trump administration may have violated federal law by failing to disclose details of the North Korea mission to key congressional committees.
“The point is to ensure that Congress isn’t kept in the dark when major stuff is going on,” Waxman told the Times. “This is exactly the kind of thing that would normally be briefed to the committees and something the committees would expect to be told about.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and the Pentagon for comment.
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