According to The Washington Post, the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), along with CIA and FBI agents, have been involved in gathering and analyzing intelligence on the Gaza Strip since the early days of the Israel-Hamas war.
One of the main tasks of the American intelligence officers was to determine the whereabouts of the hostages, including American citizens. In addition, FBI agents in Israel have been investigating Hamas attacks on US citizens and assisting in hostage recovery efforts.
Current and former US and Israeli officials say that in the first weeks of the war, Israeli officials responsible for locating hostages in Gaza requested specific information from the United States to help bridge gaps in what they knew from their own sources. This included specific pieces of information, as well as technologies and expertise for analyzing large volumes of imagery and overlaying different images to create more detailed, three-dimensional representations of the terrain in Gaza..
According to an Israeli official, the Americans provided technological solutions that the Israelis had not had before October 7. Another source mentioned that the Americans supplied "highly detailed satellite imagery" that Israel did not possess.
The Washington Post also reported that members of JSOC, the elite Special Operations force that has deep experience in hostage rescues, were prepared to operate in Gaza in October to rescue American citizens held by Hamas. However, the operation was not conducted because, as one American official admitted, "there was very little information specifically about American hostages."
