Special forces
(Redirected from Special operations)
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 Garud Commandos of the Indian Air Force.[1] | |
| Abbreviation | SOF |
| Interest of | SOFREP |
| Military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces. | |
Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct covert operations, which may include: assassinations, sabotage or hostage rescue, among other things. During the Second World War every major army involved in the fighting created formations devoted to special operations behind enemy lines. In Russian-speaking countries, special forces of any country are typically called spetsnaz, an acronym for "special purpose".
Capabilities
Special forces capabilities include the following:
- Special reconnaissance and surveillance in hostile environments
- Foreign internal defense: Training and development of other states' military and security forces
- Offensive action (like controlled demolition and sniper tactics)
- Support to counter-insurgency through population engagement and support
- Counter-terrorism operations
- Sabotage and demolition
- Hostage rescue
- Protection
- Naval boarding
- underwater operations [2][3]
In general a country will train it's special forces for any terrain that they can encounter, which may include alpine regions, desert, urban environment, jungle, or underwater missions.
Examples
| Page name | Description |
|---|---|
| Paul Barril | French spook |
| Four Reconnaissance Regiment | Apartheid-era special forces unit of the South African Defence Force, specialising in amphibious operations. |
| French Foreign Legion | The Foreign Legion is what France uses to project power overseas |
| SBS | A UK Special Forces Unit |
| UK Special Forces | |
| US/Army/Special Forces | Unconventional warfare US Army forces, used in peacetime as well as in times of war. Including Gladio-like secret domestic army. |
| Orde Wingate |
Related Quotation
| Page | Quote | Author | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| US/Army/Special Forces | “"The Deltas are psychos...You have to be a certified psychopath to join the Delta Force", a US Army colonel from Fort Bragg once told me back in the 1980s.” | James Petras | 2009 |
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References
This page imported content from Wikipedia on 21 January 2021.Wikipedia is not affiliated with Wikispooks. Original page source here
