U.S. Secret Wars in Africa Rage on, Despite Talk of Downsizing

An American Special Forces soldier trains Nigerien troops during an exercise on the Air Base 201 compound, in Agadez, Niger, April 14, 2018. Hundreds of American troops are working feverishly to complete a $110 million airfield that will be used to strike extremists in West and North Africa, a region where most Americans have no idea the country is fighting. (Tara Todras-Whitehill/The New York Times)

U.S. Secret Wars in Africa Rage on, Despite Talk of Downsizing

Special Operations forces in Africa are supposed to be training and advising, but they keep ending up in situations that are indistinguishable from combat.