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The White House took serious heat on social media Thursday for posting an image of President Biden meeting with U.S. troops in Israel without obscuring their identities.
Though the White House account deleted the photo soon after sharing it on Instagram, X users ripped Biden’s team for the dangerous mistake, accusing the administration of "compromising" the troops’ identities while they were in Israel defending U.S. interests in wake of Hamas’ terrorist attack on the U.S. allied country.
Journalist Sam Shoemate shared an edited image of the post X, claiming that the White House shared it without obscuring the faces of what appeared to be special forces on Wednesday night.
He wrote, "The Whitehouse media team shared this picture last night (I added the black boxes) without blurring or censoring the faces of the ‘Delta Force’ (CAG) operator’s faces. They deleted it an hour later after hundreds of thousands had already viewed it. This is a massive failure on the Biden admin."
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Social media users trashed the Biden administration on Thursday after it shared an image of President Biden greeting U.S. troops in Israel without hiding the soldiers' identities. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / Contributor)
The caption on the original White House post stated, "In Israel, President Biden met with first responders to thank them for their bravery and the work they’re doing in response to the Hamas terrorist attacks."
During a U.S. Department of Defense briefing Thursday, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder was asked to confirm if the soldiers depicted were in fact U.S. special operators and if there was a policy against taking photos of special forces.
Ryder punted to the White House, stating, "I'd have to refer you to the White House on that. I just don't have any to provide. Thank you."
Fox News national correspondent Bill Melugin confirmed the White House’s blunder on Thursday afternoon, posting, "NEW: The White House admits they accidentally doxxed US Special Forces by posting an uncensored photo of them w/ Biden in Israel."
He added the White House’s statement, which said, "As soon as this was brought to our attention, we immediately deleted the photo. We regret the error and any issues this may have caused."
X users berated the White House for this potentially disastrous error.
U.S. military veteran and author Sean Parnell appeared shocked by the post, writing, "Holy God. Biden doxed Delta. This without question puts a target on them & their families."
Fox News contributor Sara Carter wrote, "Is the White House really this stupid or are they just trying to get people targeted? This is totally unacceptable…These operators are required to maintain a level of discretion that this administration has completely disregarded. I would know, my husband is a retired operator."
She added, "They are elite trained fighters and something as simple as facial ID recognition is putting them in direct threat by adversaries. How did this happen White House?
President Biden delivers remarks on the war between Israel and Hamas after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Wednesday. (AP/Evan Vucci)
Pro-Trump influencer account Brick Suit lamented the post, writing, "The absolute incompetence of the Biden administration is once again on display. They doxxed our own special forces that are on the ground in Israel. Shameful."
Republican U.S. Congressional candidate in Washington Joe Kent slammed the Biden administration, posting, "The Biden Admin operates at the confluence of hubris, malice & incompetence. Nothing says thank you for doing our nation’s most dangerous missions like showing every terrorist in the world the identities of our warriors. Democrats can’t be trusted w/our national security."
CPAC senior fellow and former White House adviser Mercedes Schlapp declared, "This is the most INCOMPETENT White House. The Biden administration is putting in military danger."
Conservative commentator Ian Miles Cheong wrote, "The identities of Delta Force operators are supposed to be highly confidential because of the nature of their work. Biden just blew their cover."
And Washington Times columnist Charles Hurt condemned White House staff, saying "the fires of hell are not hot enough for these people."
White House officials did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for further comment.
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Gabriel Hays is an associate editor for Fox News Digital.
