NBC: Green Berets Were Chasing ISIS Terrorist in Niger

By James Morrison / NEWSMAX

The U.S. commando unit attacked in Niger earlier this month was tracking an Islamic State terrorist recruiter, NBC News reported Tuesday, citing "multiple" U.S. sources.

The officials did not identify the target of the U.S. Army Special Forces detail that was ambushed by about 50 Islamic State militants, the network added. Four American soldiers and five Niger troops were killed in the fight Oct. 4, but specifics of the attack remain unclear.

Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in a press conference Monday outlined the known details of what began as a reconnaissance mission.

"I don't have any indication right now to believe or to know that they did anything other than operate within the orders that they were given," Dunford said.

"That's what the investigation's all about. So I think anyone that speculates about what special operations forces did or didn't do is doing exactly that, they're speculating."

NBC added that one official "with direct knowledge of the military's investigation" into the ambush said the Green Berets were gathering information about terrorist suspect and might have been betrayed by villagers sympathetic to Islamic militants linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State.

About 1,000 American soldiers are in the West African nation to provide support for Niger troops.