Special Ops: A Photo History

Early Days
One of the earliest U.S. special ops groups to see action on the battlefield was an Army Ranger unit known as Darby's Rangers. Consisting of 600 men serving under Maj. William Orlando Darby, the unit played a critical role in the 1942 incursion into French North Africa known as Operation Torch. The Rangers were known for their small-unit raiding style; their actions in North Africa helped to open up the Mediterranean Sea and its ports for the Allied forces.

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