US mission in Niger not what US commanders say it was: report

The military operation that left four US commandos dead in Niger was actually a mission to capture or kill a jihadist leader, not a routine reconnaissance patrol as asserted by the Pentagon, ABC News reported Thursday.The target of the October 3-4 overnight operation was a jihadist leader -- known locally as Dandou -- linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaeda, the network said, quoting senior Nigerien officials.The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joseph Dunford, told reporters last