The U.S. military has been secretly providing aid to foreign security forces cited for human rights abuses

Iraqi special forces accompanied by U.S. soldiers
(Image credit: David Furst/AFP/Getty Images)

While the law technically bars the U.S. military from offering training assistance to security forces that have violated human rights, documents obtained by The Intercept reveal that Joint Combined Exchange Trainings (JCET) "have been repeatedly conducted in Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Chad, and many other nations regularly cited for abuses by the Department of State."

The JCETs, which The Intercept explains are "part of a shadowy and growing global engagement strategy involving America's most secretive and least scrutinized troops," are officially intended to offer training for the U.S., but The Intercept says there appears to be an "additional goal — transferring elite military skills from American operators to local forces."

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