The Ghost Initiative,[1] formerly known as Task Force X, and nicknamed the Suicide Squad,[2] was a clandestine A.R.G.U.S. strike force consisting of criminals who undertook suicidal missions in exchange for time off their prison sentences.
Requiring a strike force capable of preforming off-the-books missions for A.R.G.U.S., Amanda Waller created Task Force X. It consisted of convicted criminals who joined the team in exchange for parole, reduced prison sentences, and work release, who each had a micro-bomb implanted in their spinal vertebrae in case they betrayed the team.[2]
Waller placed Lyla Michaels in charge of the team, and it soon recruited Digger Harkness as a member. During one mission, Michaels activated the micro-bombs in the team's spinal vertebrae on the orders of Waller, and A.R.G.U.S. believed the entire team to be dead. However, the bomb in Harkness' spine malfunctioned, and he was not killed, allowing him to escape and become a mercenary.[3]