If you're confused about why spec ops are doing dirt in Niger you should check out the book Dirty Wars.
Basically, the Bush administration gave the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) the freedom to conduct their own intelligence operations wherever they want (free from the CIA and congressional oversight) and act on that intelligence, mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Obama administration then gave JSOC even greater freedom, allowing them to conduct operations globally, mostly in Yemen, Pakistan, and Somalia at the time.
Now they running wild.