Special Service Group
Active	23 March 1956; 69 years ago (1956-03-23)
Country	Pakistan
Branch	Pakistan Army
Type	Special forces
Role	Special operations Unconventional warfare Foreign internal defence Special reconnaissance Direct action
Headquarters	Ghazi Airbase,Tarbela,Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Nicknames	Maroon Berets, Black Storks,SSG
Mottos	Urdu:من جاں بازم,lit. 'I am valiant'
Colours	Maroon,sky blue
Engagements	See list Indo-Pakistani wars and conflicts Kashmir conflict (1947–present) Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Siachen conflict (1984–2003) Conflicts in the Arab World Grand mosque seizure Omani Civil War Afghanistan Conflict (1978–present) Soviet Afghan war Operation Cyclone Battle for Hill 3234 Operation Magistral Raids inside Soviet Union during Soviet Afghan War Sri Lankan Civil War Military assistance to Sri Lanka U.S.−led War on Terror War in Afghanistan (2001–present) Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Operation al-Mizan Operation Rah-e-Rast Operation Silence Operation Rah-e-Nijat Operation Janbaz Operation Black Thunderstorm 2014 Peshawar school massacre Operation Zarb-e-Azb Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad 2022 Bannu counterterrorism centre attack and siege Operation Azm-e-Istehkam United Nations Missions Bosnian War UN Protection Force—Pakistan Internal Conflicts Insurgency in Balochistan (1948–present) Dir campaign Sectarian conflicts in Pakistan Indian Airlines Flight 423
Website	Official Website
Commanders
Commander	Major General Ahmad Jawad
Notable commanders	A.O. Mitha Tariq Mehmood Ameer Faisal Alavi

TheSpecial Service Group (SSG) are thespecial forces of thePakistan Army.^[1][2] They are also known by their nickname of "Maroon Berets" due to the colour of their headgear.^[3]

The SSG is responsible to deploy and execute five doctrinal missions:foreign internal defence,reconnaissance,direct action,counter-terrorism operations, andunconventional warfare.^[1]

Other operational roles and responsibilities attributed to the SSG include:search and rescue,counter-proliferation,search and destroy,hostage rescue,information operations,peacekeeping missions,psychological operations, security assistance, andHVT manhunts.^[4]

Thechain of command and control of the SSG falls within the domain of the Pakistan Army'sStrategic Forces Command (ASFC), and many of its personnel are directly recruited into theInter-Services Intelligence (ISI)'s counter-terrorism division or SS directorate upon their retirement.^[4] Much of the SSG's activities and operations are shrouded insecrecy and public knowledge of their work is heavily controlled through selective declassified documents and published literary works by retired militaryveterans or authorizedmedia.^[4]

In 1950, the Pakistan Army established the school, Close Quarter Battle School, dedicated for teaching the methods ofclose quarters combat underColonel Grant Taylor of theBritish Army inQuetta,Balochistan in Pakistan– the school was later moved toAttock under Colonel Kahoon, also an officer in the British Army.^[5] Citing unknown and unspecified reasons, the Close Quarter Battle School under Col. Kahoon was permanently closed and itspassed out personnel who had earlier formed the 312th GarrisonCompany (312 Gar Coy (FF)), alight infantry, initially attached themilitary unit to theFrontier Force Regiment (FF Regiment) in 1952— the 312 Gar Coy (FF) still remains a part of theFrontier Force Regiment.^[5]

In 1953–54, theUnited States Army raised aspecial forces unit within thePakistan Army to provide intelligence and combat defense againstSoviet Union's expandingsphere of influence inCentral Asia.^{: contents [6]} The U.S. assistance helped raise the special forces unit from the simple infantry regiment, the19th Baloch, that provided an ideal cover from its covert nature of works.^{: contents [6]} In 1955, the17th Baloch infantry was incorporated with the 19th Baloch, followed by the special forces training began to conduct underLt Col. Donald W. Bunte^[7] from theSpecial Forces of theUnited States Army.^[5]

On 23 March 1956, the Special Service Group (SSG) was established as aBattalion under the command of its firstcommanding officer,Lieutenant-ColonelA. O. Mitha, after founding theSchool of Special Operations^{[permanent dead link]} (SSO) under the advisement of army officers from theU.S. Army'sSpecial Forces.^{: contents [6][8][9][2][10]} The Special Service Group's institution and the physical training remained under the command ofLt-Col. Mitha until 1961–62.^[11] The headquarter of the Army Special Service Group was then based out inCherat,Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan.^[5]

Initially, the SSG were popular as theGreen Berets with Baloch insignia in the 1950s, but SSG dropped their green berets in favor of adopting the Baloch Regiment's maroon berets– hence giving them the nickname theMaroon Berets.^{[citation needed]}In 1964, theParachute Training School (PTS) was established under the watchful guidance of101st Airborne Division of theU.S. Army, and training on thedesert warfare with U.S. Special Forces' Mobile Training Team begin, followed by theNavy SSG established by theU.S. Navy SEALs as a deep diving team, which was known for its physical training in Karachi in 1966–70.^{: 70 [12]}

In 1970, the Musa Company was established that solely specialized inanti-terrorist operations, receiving training from theBritish Special Air Service advisers after U.S. had suspended theInternational Military Education and Training program with Pakistan in 1981.^: 70

The SSG initially had six battalions and each battalion had specialization units, specialized in the different war spectrum:desert,mountain,long-distance ranger, anddeep divingwarfare.^[10] In August 1965, the operational scope of the Army SSG was expanded from a battalion-size to larger special operation outfit.^[10] In 1968–70, the Pakistan Army integrated the Chinese introducedphysical training, tactics, weapons, and equipments.^[10]

The first war time deployment of the Army Special Service Group took place in 1960 with their firstspecial reconnaissance mission in theformer tribal belt near the porousDurand Line– theAfghanistan-Pakistan's line of international border.^[11] In 1960–61, the Army Special Forces team under MajorMirza Aslam Beg had successfullyinserted inDir andtook control of the law and order situation by removing the instigatingNawab of Dir inChitral inNorth-West Frontier Province.^[14]

In 1964–65, the teams of Special Service Group that enteredIndian-administered Kashmir failed in executingOperation Gibraltar due to lack of understanding of the local culture and language and was eventually met with hostility from the locals who alerted the Indian government authorities.^{: 53 [13][15]}

Thesecond war with India saw the testing and shaping of the Army Special Service Group when theIndian Army charged and invaded thePakistan-side of Punjab in response to thecovert actions took place inIndian Administered Kashmir. The airborne missions of the Army Special Service Group included performing the combat parachuting at the Indian airbases with an intention of launching a ground assaults in theIndian Air Force's air stations inPathankot,Adampur, and theHalwara.^{: contents [16]} 180 SSG commandos boarded^[17] aPakistan Air Force'sC-130 Hercules, the three airborne formations were flown detected on the night of 7 September 1965, first performing combat jumping atPathankot at 02:30 hours but the wind velocity led to the scattering of the teams, due to the difficult terrain and poor visibility, none of the teams were able to re-group after the drop. Of the 180 commandos dropped, 138, including all officers but one, were captured and safely taken to prisoner of war (POW) camps. Twenty-two were lynched by villagers armed with sticks, police and even bands of muleteers released by the Indian Army, from the animal transport battalion of the nearby Corps headquarters.^[18]

Only 20 commandos were unaccounted for and most escaped back to Pakistan under the fog. Most of these were from the Pathankot group, dropped less than 10 km from the border in an area that had plenty of ravines, riverine tracks to navigate back along. One notable, commando-style escape was of Major Hazur Hasnain, the Halwara group commander who, along with his friend, hijacked a jeep and somehow managed to return safe.^[17]

The Pakistani accounts, the latest of which comes now from several participants in the wake of the 1965 at 50 commemorations, acknowledged the SSG-commando disaster but blamed it on poor briefing, planning and callous arrogance of the commanders. Some of these former Pakistani soldiers even write about having met some of these paratroopers and exchanged notes with them on how badly planned the operation was. Here is theaccount of Col SG Mehdi, himself a commando officer then. The fortified forces ’ conditioning in no way undermines its  elevation, but by blocking free speech, the government has politicized the issue and brought the military leadership into the global  spotlight.^[19] By 1970–71, the Pakistan Army had permanently posted one Army Special Service Group 3rd Commando Battalion inEast-Pakistan underLt-Col.Tariq Mehmood, begin working with local authorities in maintaining security situation in theEast-Pakistan, near the border of Eastern India.^{: 244 [20]} The performance of the Army Special Service Group was reported to be much better than their performance in 1965, with 1st Command Battalion (Yaldram) and 2nd Commando Battalion (Rahber) engaged in several of their successful sabotage missions against the Indian Army's artillery and infantry regiments, while the 3rd Command Battalion in East oriented towards successfully engaging in the seek and destroy missions.^{: contentes [6][10]} Their final mission included the mounting of the successful defense of theShahjalal International Airport against theIndian Army-backedMukti Bahini, and were the last army special forces formation that had departed from the airport before theDacca fall to India on 16 December 1971.^{: 78:130 [21]}

From 1972 to 1977, the Pakistan Army went into reorganization and major restructuring of its combat services but the Army Special Service Group remained active in successfully tackling thearmed insurgency inBalochistan inPakistan.^{: 10 [22]}

According to the Indian media, Hashim Musa, one of the terrorists involved in the 22 April,Pahalgam attack, was a former commando in Pakistan Army’s elite Special Service Group (SSG), trained in covert operations and unconventional warfare. After being dismissed from the army, he joined the banned terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba and infiltrated into Kashmir in September 2023. His SSG background was revealed during the interrogation of Kashmiri Over Ground Workers (OGWs) who had supported the attackers and disclosed Musa’s elite military training and role in organizing multiple attacks in the Valley.^[23]

In 1979–89, the Army Special Service Group had been seconded in covert actions inAfghanistan against theSoviet Union'sarmed intervention.^{[citation needed]} There have been unconfirmed reports of the Army Special Service Group engaging in armed battles with theSoviet paratroopers in incidents including theBattle for Hill 3234 and theOperation Magistral.^[24][25]

When theBattle for Hill 3234 concluded, theSoviet paratroopers found that theAfghan mujahideen actually wore the black uniforms with rectangular black-yellow-red stripes, and suspected to be Army Special Service Group personnel; Pakistan's government has officially denied their involvement. The American author,Aukai Collins, identified the elements as "Black Storks" who crossed the border to join the Afghan mujahideen – a claim also backed by American author, David Campbell.^{: 60–61 [26]} Another battle was taken place between the Soviet paratroopers and theAfghan mujahideen inKunar in 1986 that suspected the Army Special Service Group's involvement but the Russians dismissed the claim and noted that the battle was fought between theGRU's 15th Spetsnaz Brigade andAbdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf's group.^[27]

When theIndian Army's conducted an expedition to take control of theSiachen Glacier fromPakistan, the ISI'sCovert Action Division (CAD) inserted in the region, confirming the intrusion and movement of Indian Army soldiers in 1983.^{: 75 [29]} The Army Special Service Group was immediately deployed to engage in the armed battle with theIndian Army at 20,000 feet (6,100 m)above sea level.^[30] Led byCaptain Muhammad Iqbal, the only 12-men Army Special Service team had tohiked at the 19,000 feet (5,800 m) to reach the Indian Army's resting camp.^{: 83 [31]} The battle with the Indian Army ensued and Special Service Group commandos but they did not gain much due to adverse weather conditions and enormous heights^{: 85 [32]}

Over the years, the Army Special Service Group have developed expertise in high altitude warfare, and are regularly deployed in Siachen.^{: 18 [33]}

Since 2001, the Army Special Forces have been engaged in counterinsurgency and counter-terrorism operations inAfghanistan and remote areas in areas adjacent to Afghanistan—their notable operation inPakistan included the successfulclearance of theRed Mosque fromAl-Qaeda andTaliban sympathizers inIslamabad.^[34] The Army Special Forces teams also taken parts in raiding and attacking the terrorists elements innear border with Afghanistan, working often withU.S. Army's Special Forces in Afghanistan.^[35]

In 2014, the Army Special Service Group were reportedly successful in theirmanhunt operation aftertargeting and killing ofAdnan Gulshair, a Saudi citizen known as the Global Operations Chief ofal-Qaeda.^{[citation needed]}

In January 2013, India accused Pakistan that the Army Special Service Group led an attack across theLine of Control in which Indian soldiers were killed.^[36][37]

Due to their selection competitiveness, demandingmilitary physicals, and commitment required per standard of the Army's Special Forces, the Special Service Group was restricted to theBrigade level until June 2003.^[1] On 14 June 2003, the major reorganization in the structure of the Army Special Service Group took place when the special forces were moved as amilitary division withMajor-GeneralA. F. Alvi becoming the firstgeneral officer commanding (GOC).^[1]

In an official documentary recognized and known structure of the Army Special Service Group given inYouTube is given below:

Notes: Source of officially recognized and known structure of the Army Special Service Group given inYouTube.^[1]

The early organizational structure of the Army's Special Service Group was initially based on theregimental system, with three battalions specialized in themilitary diving,airborne,mountain warfare techniques.^{: 100 : 100 [1][38]} After the third war with India in 1971, the Army Special Service Group was expanded with the eight battalions that specialized in their own set ofwar course of actions–each battalions is specialized in their criterion of war and are considered specialists in their fields.^[1]

The headquarter of the Army Special Service Group was based inCherat where the special forces schools are located but this changed with thebrigade combat teams (BCTs) being deployed in different parts of the country.^[39] The operational responsibility of the special operations conducted by the Army Special Service Group, nonetheless, falls under the command of theArmy Strategic Forces Command (ASFC) operating from theArmy GHQ in Rawalpindi, along with theRangers andStrategic Plans Division Force–theCBRN defense team.^[1]

The Special Service Group is organized into eight battalions and three companies – all trained and specialists in the specific type of war operations.^[1] However, the Army has never issued an actual strength number for the special forces.^[16] The official strength of each battalion is treated asclassified information.^[40]

The SSG battalions are each typically commanded by alieutenant colonel (varies, and depends on availability), and the battalions are organized into groups under the command ofcolonels.^{[citation needed]}The overall commander of the Special Service Group is amajor general whose identity is also kept secret.^[40]

Sources:Sharma, Rajeev (1999). Pakistan's Proxy War: A Story of ISI, Bin Laden and Kargil. New Delhi, India: Kaveri Book Service. p. 223.ISBN 9788174790354..For a description of the modern special forces, see:global context of the Special forces.

The Army specialist recruiter teams usually visit the different headquarters of the army's formation, distributing the pamphlets to the officers atOF-1 rank and enlisted personnel.^[5] The military physical standards, examinations, and criteria are same for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines' special forces selections and training, often training in close coordination.^[42]

TheNavy Special Service Group (SSGN) plays an important role in the overall architecture of the special operations forces, their qualification standards, fitness at all levels, and eligibility required for the security clearances.^{: 100 [38]}

There are three schools that the overall basic eligibility requirements to be considered for entry into the schools of the Special Forces are:

• Special Operations School (Spec Ops.)
  • Be age of≥ 25–39.^[5]
  • Be a citizen of Pakistan.^[5]
  • Must be Volunteered, not coerced.^[42]
  • Minimum of 5 Years of military service.^[42]
  • Must pass the Physical Fitness Assessment with at least 40 push-ups in one minute, 40 sit-ups in one minute, 15pull-ups, and be able to run 1.6 kilometers in a maximum of 7:30.^[42]
  • Meet medical fitness standards as outlined in Medical Category TV.^[42]
  • Eligible for a secret security clearance.^[42]
  • Must have 20/20 or corrected to 20/20 in both near and distant vision in both eyes.^[5]
  • Should be able to swim 30 meters in fullservice uniform with weapon, thestandard rifle,Koch G3A3.^[42]
• Sniper School
  • Must have 20/20 or corrected to 20/20 in both near and distant vision in both eyes.^[5]
  • Medical Category "A".^[42]
• Frogman School
  • Medical Category "A".^[42]
  • Must have qualification in Chamber test up to 180 feetsea water.^[42]
• Swimming Standards
  • Should be able to swim 200 meters in 7 minutes (breast stroke).^[42]
  • Should be able to swim 25 meters Underwater.^[42]

The medical standards in various physical courses into the entrance in theSpecial Forces in Pakistan are maintained to be very high and extremely competitive, resulting in a high dropout rate even at the very early stage of selection, according to the Pakistan Army's official report in 2013.^{: 85 [42][43]} The Pakistan Army'sMedical Corps keeps the qualification and selections standards difficult and competitive in thePakistani military to only ensure that the suitable and qualified intakes in the Special Forces in thePakistan military as the special forces cannot be mass-produced nor it can arise in the extenuating situations.^[42]

Prior to joining the Special Service Group, the interested juniorarmy officers (usually atOF-1 andOF-2) and enlisted personnel must have spent their committed military careers for at least five years and must be volunteered to join the Special Service Group.^[42] Once selected through successfully undergoing through the medical evaluation, the interested personnel must report to theParachute Training School inPeshawar to volunteer for the airborne training, and must get the airborne qualification badge from the airborne training school.^[5] The airborne training course held for four weeks where the interested personnel must excelled theHALO/HAHO methods with five-day jumps and three-night military free fall.^{[citation needed]}

After gaining their airborne qualification badge, the army personnel then reports to Cherat from Peshawar– a nominal distance between two cities is approximated between 62.9 kilometres (39.1 mi)^[44]– engage through thisjourney by the foot while wearing their full military gear (30 kilograms).^[5] The interested individual must undergoes a 24-week of military training and training process once reported toCherat.^{: 85–86 [43]}

The training courses in the Special Service Group emphasis strongphysical conditioning and mental fitness, including the everyday basedsurprisedstrategic thinking quiz^[5] and a 36-mile march in 12 hours.^[45] Violation of the military code and ethics by the trainee soldier resulted in including the 9.3 kilometres (5.8 mi) march from Cherat toChapri with full 36 pounds (16 kg) military gear.^[5]

The curriculum of the basicmilitary training course included the mastery inJudo andKarateka, special weapons training, military navigation, and handling and disarming of the chemical explosives, survival skill training.^[5] There are schools of special warfare that the trainee soldier chooses: Snow and High Altitude School, Mountain Warfare School, Airborne Warfare School, Desert Warfare School, Sniper School, and Frogman School.^{[citation needed]} These schools offers the advanced training courses which runs for additional 25–30 weeks (depending on student's choosing of his career), and only successfullypassed out personnel are awarded with badges of their specialized fields by their specialized school faculty.^[5] The dropout rates of Special Service Group(Army) is 85 to 90 Percent because of extremely tough training process. Every year, thousands of Applicants apply to join the SSG but at the end, maximum of 100 to 120 cadets get their recommendation letter for Special Service Group. The army personnel interested in theunderwater demolition must be trained with their Navy counterparts inManora Island in theKarachi coast including being qualified to get theirlong-range swimming qualification badge from the Naval authorities.^[46]

The Special Service Group criteria meetspecial forces training and selection criteria of the United States Army^{[citation needed]}

Since its establishment in 1956, the Army Special Service Group have been regularly interacted and trained together with theUnited States Army Special Forces–though the Pakistan Army'sinfantry branch had first participated inExercise Vulcan andExercise Handicap in 1954.^{[5]: 14 [47]} Besides training and the interaction with theUnited States Army, Pakistan Army Special Service Group have held joint special warfare training exercises with theSpecial Air Service (SAS) of theBritish Army,Special Forces Command of theTurkish Land Forces,Special Operation Forces of theRoyal Jordanian Army, theSpecial Operation Forces of the ChinesePeople's Liberation Army Ground Forces, and theSpetsnaz of theRussian Ground Forces.^[46]

For their overseas deployment for the purpose of the education and training, the Special Service Group have been deployed inBangladesh,Saudi Arabia,Sri Lanka,Bahrain,Maldives,United Arab Emirates,Turkmenistan,Egypt,Japan, andIraq where its operatives have overseen the friendly nations special forces programs.^[46]

Since 1998, the Army Special Service Group biannually conducts the military exercise with theTurkish Land Forces'sSpecial Forces, which have been designated as the "Jinnah–Atatürk Series."^[48] The military exercise held in Pakistan is known as "Atatürk Exercise" while in Turkey, it is known as "Jinnah Exercise."^[48] The first of these series of exercise were held in Pakistan, with twenty-oneTurkish Land Forces officers and fourteen enlists coming to Pakistan for the exercise– Pakistan reciprocated the visit in 2000.^[48] TheJinnah-Atatürk Series are oriented and focused towards the snow, high-altitude, and mountain warfare."^[48]

With renewedmilitary relations with theUnited States Army in the 1990s, the Army Special Service Group conducted several military exercises with theUnited States Army Special Forces (SF), known as the "Exercise Inspired Venture/Gambit", with first being held in 1993.^[49] TheExercise Inspired Venture/Gambit is oriented and directed towards focusing on special weapon familiarization, mountain warfare, night time assaults, air assault techniques in counter-terrorism measures.^[49]

Since 2006, the Army Special Service Group also conducts training with thePeople's Liberation Army Ground ForcesSpecial Operation Forces, which is known as thePakistan-China Joint Exercise Friendship– this exercise is oriented towards tackling insurgencies and improving methods incounterterrorism.^[50] In 2008–09, the Army Special Service Group, together with theUnited States Army Special Forces, participated in the multinational security exercise, theOperation Bright Star, held inAlexandria inEgypt in 2009 to train with theThunderbolt Forces of theEgyptian Army.^[5]

In 2016, the Army Special Service Group conducted the annual military exercise with theRussian Ground Forces'Spetsnaz–the Russo-Pakistani military exercise is known asDruzhba (lit. Friendship).^[51] TheDruzhba with RussianSpetsnaz are oriented and focused towards mountain warfare and tactics in counterterrorism in taking out and eliminating the terrorist organizations with first being held in 2016 and the recent being held in 2018.^[52]

• On5September 1986,Pan Am Flight 73 was hijacked by terrorists while it was refueling in Karachi. In the chaos, the pilots had managed to escape causing the hijackers to begin negotiations with the authorities. As negotiations stalled and the terrorists began to kill the passengers forced towards the back of the plane. Plane doors were opened allowing passengers to jump. The SSG was forced storm the plane, killing one hijacker and capturing the rest.
• On20February 1994,some terrorists of Afghanistan hijacked a school bus with 74 children and 8 teachers. They drove to the Afghan mission in Islamabad where they released 57 students but kept 16 boys and the teachers. The negotiations led nowhere and it was decided to free the hostages by force.^[53] The SSG commandos used a secondary explosion as a distraction and entered the room at the Afghan embassy where the hostages were being held, killing the three hijackers.^{[citation needed]} The operation lasted about 20 seconds.^[54]
• On25May 1998, three terrorists took over a PIA Fokker plane,Flight 544, who wanted it to fly to Bhuj in Gujrat India. As negotiations dragged, SSG commandos rushed the plane and apprehended all 3 hijackers. None of the passengers were harmed during the assault.^[55]
• OnSept 2007, At least 15 soldiers from SSG commando unit were killed and 27 commandos were wounded in a blast, apparently set off by a suicide bomber. The attack took place about 50 miles outside the capital, Islamabad, in the cantonment area of Tarbela Ghazi at the brigade headquarters of the Special Operation Task Force.^[56][57]
• On10 October 2009,militants attacked the Pakistan Military Headquarters, taking hostage 42 civil and military officials. SSG commandos rescued 39 hostages and killed 4 militants, capturing one. The militants have been linked to Ilyas Kashmiri being a leading Al Qaeda commander operating alongside Tehrik-e-Taliban. A total of six SSG commandos and three hostages were killed in the operation. As reported by ISPR (Inter Services Public Relations)Welcome to ISPR.^[58] Three more SSG commandos, injured during the operation, died in the hospital on 12 October.^[59]
• On16 December 2014, SSG Commandos from the Zarrar Company were tasked with clearing anArmy Public School which was raided by seven Tahreek-e-Taliban (TTP) terrorists in Peshawar. All the terrorists were eliminated and the school was cleared. Around 149 people, mostly students aged between 12 and 16 were killed by the Terrorists. The school had about 1,000 students, they were able to rescue about 840 people.^[60]
• On24 October 2016, During the2016 attack on the Quetta Police Training Center, SSG commandos carried out a counterterrorism operation to neutralize the militants who had stormed the hostel and taken cadets hostage. The operation was led byCaptain Roohullah Mohmand and Major Asfandyar. Both officers played a key role in clearing the building under heavy fire. Captain Roohullah was killed during the rescue effort, while over 250 cadets were safely recovered and all attackers were eliminated.^[61]
• On12 March 2025, SSG Commandos from the Zarrar Company were tasked with rescueing hostages taken byBalochistan Liberation Army militants whohijacked a train.^[62]

Notable members of the Army Special Service Group

Name and Members	Portrait	Notes Rank	Notes on Credentials
Pervez Musharraf		General	ThePresident of Pakistan (2001–2008), theChairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (1998–2001), theChief of Army Staff (1998–2007).
Abu Taher		Lieutenant Colonel	Awarded withBlack Cat Recognition[63] by the US Army Ranger School in 1966, Awarded withMaroon Parachute Award[64] by the US Army Ranger School, Awarded withBir Uttam : the second highest gallantry award ofBangladesh Liberation War, Sector Commander of Bangladesh Liberation War,[65] the Co-Chairman of theSocialist Party of Bangladesh
Mirza Aslam Beg		General	TheChief of Army Staff (1988–91).
Tariq Mehmood		Brigadier	Headed the Brigade Combat Team specialized in Airborne missions.
Haroon Islam		Lieutenant-Colonel	Commanding officer of theOperation Silence and lead a counterterrorism team.
Shamim Allam		General	TheChairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (1991–1994)
A. F. Alvi		Major-General	FirstGOC of the Army Special Service Group.
Julian Moazzam James		Major-General	First Christian SSG Commando to obtain rank of Major General

In the 1970s, the Army Special Service GroupBattle Dress Uniform (BDU) was standardKhaki but this was changed to British-styledDPM.^[1] In the 1990s, theBattle Dress Uniform was changed in favor of adopting theU.S. woodland (or M81) with amaroon berets, a common colour for the airborne forces, with a silver metal tab on a light bluefelt square with adagger andlightning bolts, and a wing on the right side of the chest.^{: 100 [38]}

Thecounterterrorism teams, on the other hand, include camouflage and blackdungarees (for the CT team).^[1]

TheSpecial Service Group (Navy) (SSN), is distinguished by a dark blue beret with three versions of the "fouledanchor" navy badge for officers, NCOs and enlisted men. A metal SSGN qualification badge featuring a vertical dagger superimposed over a midget submarine is worn over the left pocket on dress uniforms. Parachute wings are worn over the right pocket.

TheSpecial Services Wing (SSW), is distinguished bymaroon berets with PAF Officer, JCO or Airmen insignia on the beret, and a wing on the right side of the chest. The combat uniform of SSW is olive drab camouflage. They also wear their special service wing insignia on the left shoulder "Winged Dragons andlightning bolts".

Pistols

• GermanySIG Sauer P226/P229
• GermanyHeckler & Koch USP
• AustriaGlock 17/19
• PakistanPOF Eye

Submachine guns

• GermanyHeckler & Koch MP5
• BelgiumFN P90

Assault rifles

• USAM4A1 Carbine
• AustriaSteyr AUG
•  SwitzerlandSIG SG 550

Sniper rifles

• PakistanPSR-90
• AustriaSteyr SSG 69
• UKAccuracy International Arctic Warfare
• USABarrett M82
• UKRPA Rangemaster .50

Heavy Armament

• USAM249
• RussiaRPG-7
• USASMAW
• GermanyMILAN ATGM
• PakistanAnza MANPADS
• Source:Army Special Service Group's Weapon System by Military Factor.Inside Pakistan's Sharp Sword - The Special Service Group (SSG) by Pakistan's Premier Military Defence Forum.

Special Operations Forces of Pakistan

Badge of theSpecial Service Group (Navy)

Badge of theSpecial Services Wing

Badge of thePakistan Marines

After theIndo-Pakistani war of 1965, the Army Special Service Group had established its personnel physical fitness leading the Pakistan Navy to recognize the need of the special operation force but it had little experience and tradition in themilitaryscuba diving as well as had little understanding towards the nature of the seaborne special operations.^{: contents [3]} In 1966, the Army Special Service Group helped raise themilitary diving division within the Navy from its frogman team— theMusa Company that remains to be part the Army Special Service Group for inlandriverine operations.^{: contents [3]}

Introduction and instructions on combatscuba diving and basic training were provided by the personnel from theMusa Company before the Navy Special Service Group moved towards getting trained with theU.S. Navy'sUnited States Navy SEALs.^{: contents [3]} Over the several years, the Navy was dependent on the Army to provide training to theirNavy SEAL Teams in theNavy Special Service Group on education and training on the combat parachuting, sniper marksmanship, counterterrorism, and counterinsurgency.^{: contents [3]}

Eventually, the Navy established their own schools on combat parachuting, sniping, counterterrorism, and the counterinsurgency but these schools are influenced and modeled after the Army's Special Service Group training methods whose instructors are the alumnus of the Army schools of special operation forces who tightly followed the army's philosophy, physical standards, and education.^{: contents [3]}

The personnel of theNavy SEAL Teams in theNavy Special Service Group adopted to wear the Army Special Service GroupU.S. Woodland (M81)Battle Dress Uniform (BDU) with the distinction of the dark blue beret with three versions of the "fouled anchor" with a navy badge (as shown in the footage) and a metal SSGN qualification badge featuring a vertical dagger superimposed over a midget submarine is worn over the left pocket on dress uniforms; parachute wings are worn over the right pocket.^{: contents [3]}

In 1965, thePakistan Air Force had a special operation force established: theSpecial Service Wing underAir CommodoreMukhtar Ahmad Dogar but it was decommissioned in 1972 whose personnel went to join the Army Special Service Group. In 2003, thePakistan Air Force recommissioned theSpecial Service Wing and their headgear is distinguished bymaroon berets with the airmen wears insignia on the beret, and a wing on the right side of the chest. The combat uniform of SSW is olive drab camouflage. They also wear their special service wing insignia on the left shoulder "Winged Dragons andlightning bolts".

Books, television series, movies and video games

• 1998:Aahan, a popular television series produced byISPR and on-aired byPTV. The main characterWasi Shah and his coursemates gone through physical challenges and fitness required for becoming the Maroon Beret.^[66]
• 1998:Alpha Bravo Charlie, a popular television series produced byISPR and on-aired byPTV.
• 2003:Unlikely Beginnings: A Soldier's Life, a book byA O Mitha.^[9]
• 2006:In the Line of Fire: A Memoir, a book byPervez Musharraf.
• 2008:Crossed Swords: Pakistan, Its Army, and the Wars Within, a book by Shuja Nawaz.
• 2013:Waar, the main character Major Mujtaba Rizvi (played byShaan Shahid) is a SSG soldier and Kargil war veteran.
• 2014:Retribution, the video game featuring sniping and special operations.
• 2017:Yalghaar, the war film based on the Special Service Group's4th Command Battalion (Yalghaar)'s covert operations.^[67]

• Special Service Group (Navy) —Pakistan Navy
• Special Services Wing —Pakistan Air Force
• Pakistan Marines —Pakistan Navy

Wikimedia Commons has media related toSpecial Service Group.

• Mitha, PA, Aboobaker Osman (2003).Unlikely Beginnings: A Soldier's Life. Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan: Oxford University Press. p. 443.ISBN 9780195794137.
• Khan, PA, Ghulam Jilani (2004). اس اس جى : تاریخ کے اینے میں (English Lit: SSG: A historical past). Cherat: ISPR Publications, pp. 358.(in Urdu)

• Military special forces of Pakistan
• Airborne units and formations of Pakistan
• Military units and formations established in 1956

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