SEAL Team 6 Tried To Plant Spy Device In North Korea. An Unexpected Encounter Ruined The Plan

In 2019, SEAL Team 6 secretly entered North Korea to plant a spy device targeting Kim Jong Un’s communications, but the mission collapsed after an unexpected encounter with a fishing boat.

SEAL Team 6’s Secret North Korea Mission to Plant Spy Device Was Aborted

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A new report has surfaced suggesting that in 2019 a group of U.S. Navy SEAL Team 6 commandos secretly entered North Korea on a mission to plant a spy device to intercept and record Kim Jong Un’s communications. The mission ultimately failed after the team encountered an unexpected boat upon entering North Korean territory.

The group responsible for this mission was the same who was involved in the killing of Al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden, The Red Squadron of SEAL Team 6, according to a New York Times. 

As placing a human source for gathering information in North Korea is nearly impossible, the task was to take out critical intelligence during the nuclear negotiations between the President of US Donald Trump and North Korea Supreme Kim Jong Un.

High-Stakes Approval from Trump

The seriousness of this mission was very high and it needed a direct approval from the US president, and if failed it could lead towards hostage situations for the soldiers and also the ending of nuclear negotiations between the two nations. 

The mission got approval from the US President as he was expected to meet Kim Jong Un in Vietnam in February 2019. 

On Friday, when one of the reporters asked him about this mission he denied and said, “I don't know anything about it. I'd have to, I could look, but I know nothing about it. Moreover, he said he hadn't heard anything about this and got to know about this for the first time. 

The SEAL team 6 is known for their specialisation in covert operations, and practiced for months for this mission. The training for this operation involved freezing water and they planned to deploy from a nuclear-powered US submarine. And from there they had Two stealth mini-subs or "wet subs" which would take them to reach the North Korean coast. 

The plan was to ride the mini-subs for hours in the 4 degrees water with their scuba gear and heated suits, reach the North Korean shores, plant the spy device, and come back without being detected by soldiers or the drones. 

Deadly Encounter with a Fishing Boat

But that’s not how the mission ended, after reaching the North Korean coast they saw a local fishing boat appeared in the complete darkness and after knowing there is no contact to the mission commander and risk of getting caught, the SEALs started firing towards the fishing boat and the other joined him in this. They killed all of them on the boat and then punctured their lungs so that the bodies could easily sink. 

The SEALs killed 3 unarmed North Korean civilians as per the reports and no device was planted and the mission was aborted. 

US spy satellites detected increased North Korean military activity near the site of the incident, though it remains unclear whether they fully understood what had occurred. While former President Donald Trump met Kim Jong-un at the Vietnam summit, the talks ended without an agreement, and by May, North Korea had resumed missile testing.

Legal Questions and Secret Investigation

The operation may have breached federal law, as the US government did not notify congressional intelligence committees either before or after it took place.

The 2019 mission was never officially acknowledged until recently, though several participants were later promoted. In 2021, the Biden administration launched an investigation and privately briefed select lawmakers, but the findings remain classified.