Watchdog Group Demands Audit Over Unredacted Instagram Photo of US Troops

U.S. President Joe Biden disembarks upon his arrival at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport on Oct. 18, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

A government watchdog group is demanding answers as to why an uncensored photo featuring a group of likely American special operators deployed in Israel was posted to the White House’s official Instagram account, potentially compromising their identities.

“This is just the latest incident where a government official appears to be working at cross purposes with the United States’ avowed support of its ally Israel against the terrorist group Hamas,” nonpartisan group Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) said in a complaint filed on Tuesday with the Justice Department.

The revealing photo, taken in Israel, shows President Joe Biden shaking hands with U.S. military service members flanked by American and Israeli flags. The caption on the now-deleted Oct. 19 Instagram post read that the president “met with first responders to thank them for their bravery and the work they’re doing in response to the Hamas terrorist attacks.”

Details of Image

The faces of the “first responders,” including that of the man shaking hands with President Biden, could be seen in the photo. A distinctive set of tattoos on the man’s right arm is also clearly recognizable.

The image was up for about an hour before the White House social media team was made aware of the problem. Screenshots taken by Instagram users suggest that the post garnered at least 6,000 likes and was viewed by thousands more prior to its removal.

“As soon as this was brought to our attention, we immediately deleted the photo,” a White House spokesperson said. “We regret the error and any issues this may have caused.”

The PPT, however, argued that this incident might not be a mere oversight, but could be the work of White House employees who have “strong anti-Israel views.”

“Given the recent revelations that there are federal employees who foster hostile feelings toward Israel and fervently disagree with the United States’ continued support of Israel ... there is reason for concern that the subject Instagram post may have been made with the intent of aiding Hamas or its allies to the detriment of the United States,” it wrote.

“At minimum, the post contains information relating to the national defense of the United States that could be used to injure our national security,” it continued, arguing that Hamas and its allies now possibly have the identity of those soldiers who have been sent into Israel to combat them. “The photograph puts their current mission, and any possible future missions, at risk.”

Investigation Demanded

The PPT demanded that the DOJ launch an investigation that would, at least, find out how the photo made its way to the official White House Instagram account without any effort to obscure the service members’ identities.

“Even granting that this were merely an error in judgment, which we are not conceding, an investigation must be undertaken to determine why no one in the editorial approval chain had the requisite knowledge of the security restrictions or the perceptive capability to notice the obvious implications of revealing identifying characteristics of these military personnel.”

It’s not a secret that the U.S. military has boosted its presence in Israel following the brutal killing and kidnapping spree Hamas unleashed on Israel on Oct. 7. The Pentagon has so far ordered two aircraft carrier strike groups to the eastern Mediterranean Sea, with the goal to “deter hostile actions against Israel” and prevent the war from spiraling into a wider conflict.

The Pentagon has also repeatedly stressed that it’s not planning to put American troops on the ground in Israel. Still, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has directed his department to assist the Israelis in locating and rescuing hostages still being held hostage by Hamas, some of them U.S. citizens.

“I don’t have any specifics to provide for you,” Air Force Gen. Pat Ryder, a spokesperson for the Pentagon, told a reporter at an Oct. 19 press conference.

“If your question is, ‘Do we have special operations forces conducting, you know, boots on the ground operations,’ again, you’ve heard us say that we are not going to have boots on the ground,” he continued. “We are providing planning and intelligence support to the Israelis as it pertains to the hostage recovery. That’s about the extent of what I’m able to provide right now.”