Soldiers have the authority to act in the field independently, so if they didn't in this case it means orders came down from the ranks beforehand explicitly restricting them from acting. Meaning, planners knew shit would go sideways and thought the potential of dozens of American deaths was an acceptable trade.
I recommend reading Joseph Heller's comedy/anti-war book Catch 22 (from whence the term came) which is a Kafkaesque take on the military. It's also pretty damned funny.
Soldiers have the authority to act in the field independently, so if they didn't in this case it means orders came down from the ranks beforehand explicitly restricting them from acting. Meaning, planners knew shit would go sideways and thought the potential of dozens of American deaths was an acceptable trade.
There are ROEs and SOP.
I recommend reading Joseph Heller's comedy/anti-war book Catch 22 (from whence the term came) which is a Kafkaesque take on the military. It's also pretty damned funny.