Feb. 12, 2026

Book Review: From OSS to Green Berets: The Birth of Special Forces by Aaron Bank, Col. USA (Ret.)

Aaron Bank is known as the father of Special Forces. He was the first Director of Special Forces and was the first Commander of 10th Special Forces Group when it was activated in 1952. Before standing up Special Forces as the Army’s premier unconventional warfare capability, Col. Bank served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) as a Jedburgh during WWII. In writing the book, Col. Bank wanted to tell the story of the OSS’s operational groups conducting unconventional warfare in WWII, and of the subsequent development of the Green Berets. His purpose in telling this story was to emphasize that the OSS and its legacy are intrinsically tied to that of the Green Berets as the “operational predecessor” of U.S. Army Special Forces.