A group of Navy SEALs secretly entered North Korea in early 2019 to plant a device to intercept the communications of dictator Kim Jong Un — but ended up firing on unarmed civilians diving for shellfish, puncturing their lungs to conceal their bodies and aborting the mission, according to a report.

The top-secret mission, reportedly authorized by President Trump during his first term, was carried out by SEAL Team 6’s Red Squadron — the same unit that killed Osama Bin Laden , the New York Times reported Friday.

If successful, the mission could have delivered critical intelligence amid delicate nuclear negotiations between Kim and Trump, the outlet reported based on interviews with two dozen people, including civilian government officials, members of the first Trump administration, and

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