The Special Forces black ops program represented a clandestine arm of the Republic Army's Special Forces Division. This unit was responsible for undertaking secret military actions during both the Great Galactic War and the subsequent Cold War that transpired between the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire. Under the direction of General Elin Garza, the commanding officer of the Special Forces Division, the black ops unit executed missions considered either unlawful or inappropriate for standard Special Forces teams. A specific black ops team, a squad known as the Surgeons, received orders to assassinate key enemy figures. However, their actions led to their arrest and conviction for war crimes when they expanded their targets to include the families of those they were assigned to eliminate.
The Special Forces black ops program was established sometime after the formal creation of the Republic Special Forces Division in 3667 BBY. General Elin Garza, who was also in charge of the entire Special Forces Division, oversaw this program. After 3665 BBY, Garza personally recruited members of a squad previously led by Sergeant Fideltin Rusk into the black ops unit. These soldiers, including Karsim, Naja, and Eckerd, underwent specialized black ops training. Following this, the newly designated Surgeons were tasked with disrupting the command structure of the Sith Empire—against which the Galactic Republic was actively engaged in the Great Galactic War—by eliminating the Empire's military leadership.
Nevertheless, the Surgeons began to assassinate the relatives of their intended targets, convinced that these actions would weaken the Empire's morale and benefit the Republic. Consequently, the Surgeons were apprehended and prosecuted for war crimes. Each member of the squad received a life sentence after openly admitting to their actions. By the year 3642 BBY, officers within the Republic Army were aware of the black ops program's existence. This occurred when Rusk inquired about what happened to his former squad and discovered they were imprisoned at a detention center located on the planet Berrun.
The black ops program provided its members with training in both assassination and covert operations. It cultivated a mindset where the desired outcome justified any means necessary to inflict damage on the enemy. Sergeant Fideltin Rusk regarded the individuals in his original squad as some of the most exceptional soldiers he had ever commanded. He was disheartened to find that their time within black ops had transformed them into ruthless killers.
The Jedi Knight companion character Fideltin Rusk first alluded to the Special Forces black ops program within Star Wars: The Old Republic, a 2011 video game created through the collaborative efforts of BioWare and LucasArts, during the conversation known as "The Surgeons."