Maduro was captured by Delta special forces. What is known about the special forces of the US Army

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was captured by the Delta special forces of the US Army, CBS reported on January 3, citing a source. Details about the history and purpose of the elite special forces of the United States Army can be found in the Izvestia article.

History of the Delta Division

Delta is stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina and has, according to unofficial data, about 2 thousand military personnel. It is divided into seven groups, including assault and aviation. Delta was established in the late 1970s and participated in most major U.S. military operations, including the operation in Panama in 1989.

The creation of the squad was prompted by the terrorist threats of the 1970s, including the terrorist attack on the Munich Olympics in 1972. In response, the US government decided to create a counter-terrorism unit. Colonel Charles Alvin Beckwith, working with the British Special Air Service, played a key role in the organization of Delta.

On November 4, 1979, almost immediately after the creation of Delta, 53 Americans were taken hostage at the American Embassy in Tehran. The group was assigned Operation Eagle Claw, which aimed to enter the country undetected and free prisoners between April 24 and April 26, 1980. The operation ultimately failed due to an overly complicated plan, an insufficiently trained special aviation team to escort the crew, and a collision between a rescue helicopter and an air tanker with fuel, which reduced the number of active helicopters from eight to five before the participants in the operation could leave the helicopter crash site to attack.

After this operation, the US government reviewed its counterterrorism capabilities and eventually created new associations, including the US Navy SEAL Team 6 and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (160 Special Operation Air Regiment), also known as the Night Stalkers, whose goals and objectives They are focused on operations such as Eagle Claw.

The Joint Special Operations Command was also established to oversee the joint training of counterterrorism units and various US troops.

Division structure

The total number of personnel of the unit, according to open data, reaches from 1 thousand to 2 thousand people.

Delta cooperates with such foreign military units as the Australian SASR, the British SAS, the Canadian JTF-2, the French GIGN, the German GSG 9, the Israeli Sayeret Matkal. At the same time, the unit's training is often combined with the training of other American counterterrorism formations, such as the FBI HRT and DEVGRU, known as Navy SEAL Team Six (the team has been disbanded and SEAL Team Six employees are currently at the disposal of USSOCOM).

Special forces soldiers pay great attention to fire training and spend eight hours a day at specially equipped shooting ranges. Soldiers hone their shooting skills from any position.