U.S. Army admits it goofed when it made wild claim Operation Rescue was ‘terrorist’

The U.S. Army has issued a letter admitting it was wildly wrong when it used an “awareness training” program that falsely labeled the pro-life Operation Rescue, the National Right to Life and other organizations as “terrorist.”

“The terror awareness training presented to soldiers at Fort Liberty on July 10, 2024, inaccurately referenced non-profit public advocacy organizations National Right to Life, Operation Rescue, Earth First, Earth Liberation Front, Animal Liberation Front and PETA as terrorist groups, which is inconsistent with the Army’s antiterrorist policy and training,” confirmed a letter to Rep. Jim Banks, chief of the subcommittee on military personnel.

The letter was on letterhead from the Department of the Army, assistant secretary.

The controversy erupted months ago when it was discovered that the military was using the false characterizations about reputable organizations to “train” soldiers regarding terrorism and terrorist actions.

The letter explained the army is going a system-wide review to ensure that “these or similar slides” no longer will be used.

According to American Center for Law and Justice, which fought the army on behalf of the organizations, “We stand with Operation Rescue and other pro-life groups that have been wrongly targeted by the U.S. Army for being ‘terrorist groups.’ Because of our legal efforts, the army has now issued a statement acknowledging that Operation Rescue is not a terrorist group and stating unequivocally that such a designation of pro-life groups was wrong and must never occur again.”

The ACLJ explained it sent a demand letter to the army over its use of the false propaganda at what used to be Fort Bragg.

In those training materials, “pro-life groups, including our client Operation Rescue and anyone with a ‘Choose Life’ license plate, as ‘terrorist groups,'” the ACLJ reported.

The ACLJ said it called for the army to apologize and acknowledge in writing that none of the pro-life organizations it named are considered domestic terrorist organizations by the army, including specifically the ACLJ client, Operation Rescue. Without this, the threat and stigma of being identified as a terrorist organization remained, the legal team said.

Banks, a Republican from Indiana, also had insisted on accountability for the claims.

“Initially, the secretary of the army released a statement that ‘National Right to Life and PETA are not terrorist groups,’ but she specifically did not mention our client (Operation Rescue) and many other pro-life groups and individuals. But after our demand letter and the work of Rep. Banks, the Army has issued a new ‘statement of U.S. Army policy’ and sent us a copy of a letter it sent to Rep. Banks specifically stating that the U.S. Army does not, in fact, consider our client a terrorist group.”

The report said the army still claims those who made the training module added the various organizations to the list.

The military has confirmed that some 9,100 soldiers were trained using the false information over the past few years.

The report said, “The Army has also acknowledged to Congress that ‘nonprofit groups such as those referenced in the training slides are not terrorist groups and should not be described as such in army documents or training materials. The slides do not represent the official policy or views of the U.S. Army.'”