War Widow of Green Beret Finds the Truth When four Green Berets were killed in an ambush in Niger in 2017, media and the American public largely focused on President Trump’s ham-fisted condolence call to one widow. But for Michelle Black, whose husband Bryan was one of the men killed in the attack, this shattering ordeal was made indescribably worse by vague and conflicting reports from the Army about what happened that day along the Niger-Mali border. A widow struggling to raise two sons alone, Black was determined to discover the facts about how and why her husband and his comrades died. In SACRIFICE: The Green Berets, A Fateful Ambush, and A Gold Star Widow’s Fight for the Truth (G.P. Putnam’s Sons; May 10, 2022), Michelle Black gives readers a meticulously researched and uncompromising account of the circumstances behind Bryan’s and his fellow soldiers’ deaths.
Upon their return trip the following morning, they were set upon by ISIS militants outside the remote village of Tongo Tongo. The hours long firefight left four Americans and five Nigeriens dead and all but two of the survivors wounded. Homeland When did you first decide to write SACRIFICE, and to investigate the circumstances of the ambush in Niger?
We sat down with Michelle to discuss her book about the incident. Homeland This is the story of a flawed mission that senior military leaders never fully took responsibility for. Explain to us what this mission was. Michelle The Niger Ambush was the largest loss of American life on the continent of Africa since the battle of Mogadishu, also known as Black Hawk Down. My husband’s team, ODA 3212, (a Special Forces A-Team) were sent out on a routine one-day patrol. While headed back from a successful patrol higher headquarters contacted them ordering the team to turn around and go on another mission. Despite a major lack of assets, they were forced ahead to the dangerous Mali border alone. 18
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Michelle In April 2018 I was stunned to find I had more questions than answers as I left my family brief. I felt I’d been lied to by the investigators of the ambush who’d made it clear that those lowest down the chain of command were being blamed and would be punished, while the officers who ordered the mission and forced the team ahead would not be held to account. A week later the commander of Africom held a press briefing and stated that my husband’s team was not indicative of special operators. This statement dishonored all who had fought and died alongside my husband and was the tipping point for me. Homeland How did you go about your research? Michelle I interviewed the Green Berets that survived the ambush one at a time. I also spoke with the commander of a heliborne unit involved in the mission, men who were running communications at the AOB (Advanced Operating Base) during the ambush, the AOB commander, and a former SocAfrica Commander.
