Black op

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The term black op is used in two instances. Firstly, it is a "black operation" which is a covert operation. In this context, "black" is a term used in political, military, intelligence, and business circles to refer to activities that are either secret, or of questionable ethics and/or legality. Black Ops missions often fall into the deniability category, where no government will claim responsibility for the action. See also, "false flag" operation.

This type of operation is normally used by various secret services to achieve some goals while trying to operate secretly (so the connection between "black operations" and secret agents or even the country of their origin cannot be found).

The methods used in black operations are also named unconventional warfare and include some terrorist-style actions like assassinations, sabotages, supporting of resistance movements, etc.

Secondly, it may apply to person(s) who specialise or carry out this type of operation. In this case the term is "black operator" or "black operative".

In fiction

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The idea of a secret government black ops force is a popular one in science fiction, where an elite group of soldiers is formed to carry out defence against paranormal or extraterrestrial threats, for example the black ops team HECU in Half-Life the computer game, and also in F.E.A.R.. Men in Black, starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones is also a similar idea, but less serious. The Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense in Hellboy again falls into this category.

Modern-day black ops fiction also figures prominently in literature, television, and cinema. Examples include various characters in Tom Clancy's novels (in particular the "Rainbow" group in the book Rainbow Six), the Jason Bourne character in the film The Bourne Identity (loosely based on the Robert Ludlum novel of the same name), and the television drama Alias.

Sam Fisher, the protagonist in the video game Splinter Cell, is a black operative.

IMF (Impossible Mission Force) Agent Ethan Hunt from the TV show and movie series belongs to this fictitious agency, said to be a black ops division of the Unites States CIA, and is loosely tied to the British intelligence and security agency MI-5.

Black is a game about a group of soldiers who bend the rules to catch a double agent.

Anime and manga has also taken the subject of black ops squad as a popular theme. In the manga series Spriggan, COSMOS is a black ops unit consisting of heavily brainwashed child soldiers under the command of American army officers. In Full Metal Panic, MITHRIL is a anti-terrorist black ops mercenary unit that operates around the world. The counter-terrorist, anti-crime organization Public Security Section 9 plays a predominant role in the Ghost in the Shell series, often carrying out a multitude of wet works operations out of public view.

On TV, The Unit focuses on "The Unit"(Delta force), an Army Black Ops unit has a sub-theme that includes their wives and families, and inter-relationships. Although it is obvious that one wife knows what her husband does, the others clearly do not.