Special forces orspecial operations forces (SOF) aremilitary units trained to conductspecial operations.[1][2][3]NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment".[1][4][5]
Special forces emerged in the early 20th century, with a significant growth in the field duringWorld War II, when "every major army involved in the fighting" created formations devoted to special operations behind enemy lines.[6] Depending on the country, special forces may perform functions includingairborne operations,counter-insurgency,counter-terrorism,foreign internal defense,covert ops,direct action,hostage rescue,high-value targets/manhunt,intelligence operations,mobility operations, andunconventional warfare.[7]
In Russian-speaking countries, special forces of any country are typically calledspetsnaz, an acronym for "special purpose". In theUnited States, the termspecial forces often refers specifically to theU.S. Army Special Forces, while the termspecial operations forces is used more broadly for these types of units.
Special forces capabilities include the following:
Other capabilities can includeclose personal protection; waterborne operations involvingcombat diving/combat swimming,maritime boarding and amphibious missions; as well assupport of air force operations.
Special forces have played an important role throughout the history of warfare, whenever the aim was to achieve disruption by "hit and run" andsabotage, rather than more traditional conventional combat. Other significant roles lay inreconnaissance, providing essential intelligence from near or among the enemy and increasingly in combating irregular forces, their infrastructure and activities.
Chinese strategistJiang Ziya, in hisSix Secret Teachings, described recruiting talented and motivated men into specialized elite units with functions such as commanding heights and making rapid long-distance advances.[8]Hamilcar Barca in Sicily (249 BC) had specialized troops trained to launch several offensives per day.[citation needed] In the late Roman or early Byzantine period, Roman fleets used small, fast, camouflaged ships crewed by selected men for scouting and commando missions. In theMiddle Ages, special forces trained to conduct special operations were employed in several occasions.[9] An example of this were the special forces ofGerald the Fearless, a Portuguese warrior and folk hero of theReconquista.[10][11][12][13] Muslim forces also had naval special operations units, including one that used camouflaged ships to gather intelligence and launch raids and another of soldiers who could pass for Crusaders who would use ruses to board enemy ships and then capture and destroy them.[14] InJapan,ninjas were used forreconnaissance,espionage and asassassins,bodyguards or fortress guards, or otherwise fought alongside conventional soldiers.[15] During theNapoleonic wars,rifle regiments andsapper units were formed that held specialised roles in reconnaissance and skirmishing and were not committed to the formal battle lines.
Between the 17th and 18th centuries, there were wars between American colonists and Native American tribes. InColonial America specializedRangers formed and first mentioned byCapt. John Smith, in 1622. Learning frontier skills from friendly Native Americans the Rangers helped carry out offensive strikes "frontier combat" against hostile Natives. Thus Ranger companies were formed to provide reconnaissance, intelligence, light infantry, and scouting.Colonel Benjamin Church (c. 1639–1718) was the captain of the first Ranger force in America (1676).[16] Many Colonial officers would take the philosophies of Benjamin Church's ranging and form their own Ranger units.
Several Ranger companies were established in the American colonies, includingKnowlton's Rangers, an elite corps of Rangers who supplied reconnaissance and espionage forGeorge Washington's Continental Army.[17]Daniel Morgan, was known as leader of The Corps of Rangers for theContinental Army.Rogers' Rangers on Roger's Island, in modern-day Fort Edward, New York, is regarded as the "spiritual home" of theUnited States Special Operations Forces, specifically the United States Army Rangers. These early American light infantry battalions were trained underRobert Rogers' 28 "Rules of Ranging", which is considered the first known manual of modernasymmetric warfare tactics used in modern special operations.
Various military Ranger units such as theUnited States Mounted Rangers,United States Rangers,Loudoun Rangers,43rd Virginia Rangers, andTexas Military Rangers continued throughout the 19th-20th century until the modern formation of theArmy Ranger Battalions in WWII.[18]
TheBritish Indian Army deployed two special forces during their border wars: theCorps of Guides formed in 1846 and theGurkha Scouts (a force that was formed in the 1890s and was first used as a detached unit during the 1897–1898Tirah Campaign).[19]
During theSecond Boer War (1899–1902) the British Army felt the need for more specialised units. Scouting units such as theLovat Scouts, a Scottish Highland regiment made up of exceptionalwoodsmen outfitted inghillie suits and well practised in the arts ofmarksmanship,field craft, andmilitary tactics filled this role. This unit was formed in 1900 byLord Lovat and early on reported to an American, MajorFrederick Russell Burnham, the Chief of Scouts underLord Roberts. After the war, Lovat's Scouts went on to formally become the British Army's first sniper unit.[20] Additionally, theBushveldt Carbineers, formed in 1901, can be seen as an earlyunconventional warfare unit.
TheLuna Sharpshooters, also known as the "Marksmen of Death" (Spanish:Tiradores de la Muerte), was an elite unit formed on 1899 byGeneralAntonio Luna to serve under thePhilippine Revolutionary Army. They became famous for fighting fiercer than the regular Filipino army soldiers. Most of the members of this unit came from the oldSpanish Army filipino members which fought during thePhilippine Revolution.[21]
The sharpshooters became famous for their fierce fighting and proved their worth by being the usual spearheading unit in every major battle in thePhilippine–American War. In theBattle of Paye on December 19, 1899, Bonifacio Mariano, a sharpshooter under the command of GeneralLicerio Gerónimo, killed GeneralHenry Ware Lawton of theUnited States Army, making the latter the highest ranking casualty during the course of the war.[22]
The GermanStormtroopers and the ItalianArditi were the first modern shock troops. They were both elite assault units trained to a much higher level than that of average troops and tasked to carry out daring attacks and bold raids against enemy defenses. Unlike Stormtroopers, Arditi were not units within infantry divisions, but were considered a separate combat arm.[23]
TheMacheteros de Jara was an auxiliary cavalry regiment that was organized since August 15, 1932, before the Battle of Boquerón began. The regiment was recruited from former outlaws from Paraguay who fought against Bolivian officers and soldiers.
The50th Infantry Regiment (Cuchilleros de la Muerte) was a Bolivian infantry regiment that fought in the Chaco War. Nicknamed the Knives of Death (Spanish: Cuchillos de la Muerte), the regiment relied almost exclusively on the use of blade weapons, particularly bayonets.
Modern special forces emerged during theSecond World War. In 1940, theBritish Commandos were formed followingWinston Churchill's call for "specially trained troops of the hunter class, who can develop a reign of terror down the enemy coast."[24] Astaff officer,Lieutenant ColonelDudley Clarke, had already submitted such a proposal toGeneral SirJohn Dill, theChief of the Imperial General Staff. Dill, aware of Churchill's intentions, approved Clarke's proposal[25] and on 23 June 1940, the first Commando raid took place.[25]
By the autumn of 1940 more than 2,000 men had volunteered and in November 1940 these new units were organised into aSpecial Service Brigade consisting of four battalions under the command ofBrigadier J. C. Haydon.[26] The Special Service Brigade was quickly expanded to 12 units which became known as Commandos.[25] Each Commando had a lieutenant colonel as thecommanding officer and numbered around 450 men (divided into 75-mantroops that were further divided into 15-mansections).
In December 1940 a Middle East Commando depot was formed with the responsibility of training and supplying reinforcements for the Commando units in that theatre.[27] In February 1942 the Commando training depot atAchnacarry in theScottish Highlands was established by Brigadier Charles Haydon. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Vaughan, the Commando depot was responsible for training complete units and individual replacements.[27] The training regime was for the time innovative and physically demanding, and far in advance of normal British Army training.[27] The depot staff were all hand picked, with the ability to outperform any of the volunteers.
Training and assessment started immediately on arrival, with the volunteers having to complete an 8-mile (13 km) march with all their equipment from theSpean Bridge railway station to the commando depot.[27] Exercises were conducted using live ammunition and explosives to make training as realistic as possible. Physical fitness was a prerequisite, with cross country runs andboxing matches to improve fitness. Speed and endurance marches were conducted up and down the nearby mountain ranges and overassault courses that included azip-line overLoch Arkaig, all while carrying arms and full equipment. Training continued by day and night with river crossings, mountain climbing,weapons training, unarmed combat, map reading, and small boat operations on the syllabus.
Reaching a wartime strength of over 30 individual units and four assaultbrigades, the Commandos served in all theatres of war from theArctic Circle toEurope and from theMediterranean and Middle East toSouth-East Asia. Their operations ranged from small groups of men landing from the sea or by parachute to a brigade of assault troops spearheading the Allied invasions of Europe and Asia. The first modern special forces units were established by men who had served with the Commandos, including theParachute Regiment,Special Air Service, andSpecial Boat Service. TheNo. 10 (Inter-Allied) Commando organised by British of volunteers from occupied Europe led to FrenchCommandos Marine, DutchKorps Commandotroepen, BelgianParacommando Brigade.[28][29][30]
The first modern special forces unit was theSpecial Air Service (SAS), formed in July 1941 from an unorthodox idea and plan byLieutenantDavid Stirling.[31] In June 1940 he volunteered for theNo. 8 (Guards) Commando (later named "Layforce"). After Layforce was disbanded, Stirling remained convinced that due to the mechanized nature of war a small team of highly trained soldiers with the advantage of surprise could exact greater damage to the enemy's ability to fight than an entire platoon. His idea was for small teams of parachute trained soldiers to operate behind enemy lines to gain intelligence, destroy enemy aircraft, and attack their supply and reinforcement routes. Following a meeting with the C-in-C Middle East,GeneralClaude Auchinleck, his plan was endorsed by the Army High Command.
The force initially consisted of five officers and 60other ranks.[32] Following extensive training atKabrit camp, by theRiver Nile, L Detachment, SAS Brigade, undertook its first operations in theWestern Desert. Stirling's vision was eventually vindicated after a series of successful operations. In 1942, the SAS attacked Bouerat. Transported by theLong Range Desert Group (which carried out deep penetration, covert reconnaissance patrols, intelligence missions and attacks behind the enemy lines from 1940), they caused severe damage to the harbour, petrol tanks and storage facilities.[33] This was followed up in March by a raid onBenghazi harbour with limited success but they did damage to 15 aircraft atAl-Berka.[33] TheJune 1942 Crete airfield raids atHeraklion,Kasteli,Tympaki andMaleme significant damage was caused, and raids at Fuka andMersa Matruh airfields destroyed 30 aircraft.[34]
In theBurma Campaign, theChindits, whose long-range penetration groups were trained to operate from bases deep behindJapanese lines, contained commandos (King's Regiment (Liverpool), 142 Commando Company) andGurkhas. Their jungle expertise, which would play an important part in many British special forces operations post-war, was learned at a great cost in lives in the jungles ofBurma fighting the Japanese.[citation needed]
Immediately after theGerman occupation of Greece in April–May 1941, theGreek government fled toEgypt and started to form military units in exile.Air Force Lt. Colonel G. Alexandris suggested the creation of an Army unit along the lines of the British SAS. In August 1942 the Company of Chosen Immortals (Greek:Λόχος Επιλέκτων Αθανάτων) was formed under Cavalry Major Antonios Stefanakis in Palestine, with 200 men. In 1942, the unit was renamedSacred Band. In close cooperation with the commander of the BritishSAS Regiment, Lt. ColonelDavid Stirling, the company moved to the SAS base at Qabrit in Egypt to begin its training in its new role. The special forces unit fought alongside the SAS in the Western Desert and theAegean.[35][36]
During the start ofWorld War II “September campaign,” the Polish Government did not sign the capitulation, but moved to Paris and then to London.[37] In an attempt to achieve its aims the government in exile gave orders to the Polish resistance and formed a special military unit in Britain with the soldiers calledCichociemni (“silent and unseen”) paratroopers to be deployed into Poland.[37] The Cichociemni were trained similar to the British Special Forces, with the curricula differing according to each soldier's specialization.[37] Their task, on deployment to Poland, was to sustain the structures of the Polish state, training the members of the Resistance in fighting the German occupant.[37] This included taking part in theWarsaw Uprising.
Following advice from the British, Australia began raising special forces.[38] The first units to be formed wereindependent companies, which began training atWilson's Promontory in Victoria in early 1941 under the tutelage of British instructors. With an establishment of 17 officers and 256 men, the independent companies were trained as "stay behind" forces, a role that they were later employed in against the Japanese in theSouth West Pacific Area during 1942–43, most notably fighting a guerrilla campaign inTimor, as well as actions inNew Guinea.[39] In all, a total of eight independent companies were raised before they were re-organised in mid-1943 into commando squadrons and placed under the command of the divisional cavalry regiments that were re-designated as cavalry commando regiments. As a part of this structure, a total of 11 commando squadrons were raised.
They continued to act independently and were often assigned at brigade level during the later stages of the war, taking part in the fighting in New Guinea,Bougainville andBorneo, where they were employed largely in long-range reconnaissance and flank protection roles.[40] In addition to these units, the Australians also raised theZ Special Unit andM Special Unit. M Special Unit was largely employed in an intelligence-gathering role, while Z Special Force undertook direct action missions. One of its most notable actions came as part ofOperation Jaywick, in which several Japanese ships were sunk inSingapore Harbour in 1943. A second raid on Singapore in 1944, known asOperation Rimau, was unsuccessful.[41]
The United States formed theOffice of Strategic Services (OSS) duringWorld War II under theMedal of Honor recipientWilliam J. Donovan. This organization was the predecessor of theCentral Intelligence Agency (CIA) and was responsible for both intelligence and special forces missions. The CIA's eliteSpecial Activities Division is the direct descendant of the OSS.[42]
On February 16, 1942, theU.S. Marine Corps activated a battalion of Marines with the specific purpose of securing beach heads, and other special operations. The battalion became the first modern special operations force of the U.S. The battalion became known asMarine Raiders due to AdmiralChester Nimitz's request for "raiders" in the Pacific front of the war.[citation needed]
The history of theUnited States Army Rangers specialist soldier dates back to the 17th through 19th century from military units such asUnited States Mounted Rangers,United States Rangers andTexas Rangers. In WWII mid-1942, Major-General Lucian Truscott of the U.S. Army, a General Staff submitted a proposal toGeneral George Marshall conceived under the guidance of then Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, that selectively trained Ranger soldiers were recruited for the newly established special operations ArmyRanger Battalion.[16]
The United States andCanada formed the1st Special Service Force as a sabotageski brigade for operations in Norway. Later known as the "Devil's Brigade" (and called "The Black Devils" by mystified German soldiers), the First Special Service Force was dispatched to the occupied Aleutian Islands, Italy and Southern France.[citation needed]
Merrill's Marauders were modeled on the Chindits and took part in similar operations in Burma. In late November 1943, theAlamo Scouts (Sixth Army Special Reconnaissance Unit) were formed to conduct reconnaissance and raider work in the Southwest Pacific Theater under the personal command of then Lt. GeneralWalter Krueger, Commanding General, Sixth U.S. Army. Krueger envisioned that the Alamo Scouts, consisting of small teams of highly trained volunteers, would operate deep behind enemy lines to provide intelligence-gathering and tactical reconnaissance in advance of Sixth U.S. Army landing operations.[citation needed]
In 1983, nearly 40 years after the end of World War II, the US Army created theSpecial Forces Tab. It was later decided that personnel with at least 120 days' wartime service prior to 1955 in certain units, including the Devil's Brigade, the Alamo Scouts and the OSS Operational Groups, would receive the Tab for their services in World War II, placing them all in the lineage of today's U.S. and Canadian (via Devil's Brigade) Special Forces.[citation needed]
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TheAxis powers did not adopt the use of special forces on the same scale as the British.
The German army'sBrandenburger Regiment was founded as a special forces unit used by theAbwehr for infiltration and long distance reconnaissance inFall Weiss of 1939 and theFall Gelb andBarbarossa campaigns of 1940 and 1941.[citation needed]
Later during the war the502nd SS Jäger Battalion, commanded byOtto Skorzeny, sowed disorder behind the Allied lines by mis-directing convoys away from the front lines. A handful of his men were captured by the Americans and spread a rumor that Skorzeny was leading a raid onParis to kill or capture GeneralDwight Eisenhower. Although this was untrue, Eisenhower was confined to his headquarters for several days and Skorzeny was labelled "the most dangerous man in Europe".[This quote needs a citation]
InItaly, theDecima Flottiglia MAS was responsible for the sinking and damage of considerable British tonnage in theMediterranean. Also there were other Italian special forces like A.D.R.A. (Arditi Distruttori Regia Aeronautica). This regiment was used in raids on Allied airbases and railways in North Africa in 1943. In one mission they destroyed 25B-17 Flying Fortress bombers.[citation needed]
TheImperial Japanese Army first deployed army paratroops in combat during theBattle of Palembang, onSumatra in theNetherlands East Indies, on 14 February 1942. The operation was well-planned, with 425 men of the 1st Parachute Raiding Regiment seizingPalembang airfield, while the paratroopers of the 2nd Parachute Raiding Regiment seized the town and its important oil refinery. Paratroops were subsequently deployed in theBurma campaign. The 1st Glider Tank Troop was formed in 1943, with fourType 95 Ha-Go light tanks. The paratroop brigades were organized into theTeishin Shudan as the first division-level raiding unit, at the main Japanese airborne base, Karasehara Airfield,Kyūshū, Japan.[citation needed]
However, as with similar airborne units created by theAllies and otherAxis powers, the Japanese paratroops suffered from a disproportionately high casualty rate, and the loss of men who required such extensive and expensive training limited their operations to only the most critical ones. Two regiments ofTeishin Shudan were formed into the 1st Raiding Group, commanded by Major GeneralRikichi Tsukada under the control of theSouthern Expeditionary Army Group, during thePhilippines campaign. Although structured as a division, its capabilities were much lower, as its sixregiments had manpower equivalent to a standard infantrybattalion, and it lacked any form ofartillery, and had to rely on other units for logistical support. Its men were no longer parachute-trained, but relied on aircraft for transport.[citation needed]
Some 750 men from the2nd Raiding Brigade, of this group were assigned to attack American air bases onLuzon andLeyte on the night of 6 December 1944. They were flown inKi-57 transports, but most of the aircraft were shot down. Some 300 commandos managed to land in theBurauen area on Leyte. The force destroyed some planes and inflicted numerous casualties, before they were annihilated.[citation needed]
During World War II, the Finnish Army and Border Guard organizedsissi forces into along-range reconnaissance patrol (kaukopartio) units. These were open only to volunteers and operated far behind enemy lines in small teams. They conducted both intelligence-gathering missions and raids on e.g. enemy supply depots or other strategic targets. They were generally highly effective. For example, during theBattle of Ilomantsi, Soviet supply lines were harassed to the point that the Soviet artillery was unable to exploit its massive numerical advantage over Finnish artillery. Their operations were also classified as secret because of the political sensitivity of such operations. Only authorized military historians could publish on their operations; individual soldiers were required to take the secrets to the grave. A famous LRRP commander wasLauri Törni, who later joined the U.S. Army to train U.S. personnel in special operations.[citation needed]
In June 1971, during theBangladesh Liberation War, theWorld Bank sent a mission to observe the situation inEast Pakistan. The media cell of Pakistan's government was circulating the news that the situation in East Pakistan was stable and normal.Khaled Mosharraf, a sector commander ofMukti Bahini, planned to deploy a special commando team. The task assigned to the team was to carry out commando operations and to terrorizeDhaka. The major objective of this team was to prove that the situation was not actually normal. Moreover, Pakistan, at that time, was expecting economic aid from World Bank, which was assumed[by whom?] to be spent to buy arms. The plan was to make World Bank Mission understand the true situation of East Pakistan and to stop sanctioning the aid.[43] Khaled, along withA. T. M. Haider, another sector commander, formed theCrack Platoon. Initially, the number of commandos in the platoon was 17, trained inMelaghar Camp.[44] From Melaghar, commandos of Crack Platoon headed for Dhaka on 4 June 1971 and launched a guerrilla operation on 5 June.[43] Later, the number of commandos increased, the platoon split and deployed in different areas surrounding Dhaka city.[45] The basic objectives of the Crack Platoon were to demonstrate the strength of Mukti Bahini, terrorising Pakistan Army and their collaborators. Another major objective was proving to the international community that the situation in East Pakistan was not normal. That commando team also aimed at inspiring the people of Dhaka, who were frequently victims of killing and torture. The Crack Platoon successfully fulfilled these objectives. The World Bank mission, in its report, clearly described the hazardous situation prevailing in East Pakistan and urged ending the military regime in East Pakistan.[46] The Crack Platoon carried out several successful and important operations. The power supply in Dhaka was devastated[47][48] which caused severe problems for the Pakistan Army and the military administration in Dhaka.
Stemming fromResolution 598,Operation Prime Chance was the first deployment ofU.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) troops, which were a product of theReagan administration underSecretary of DefenseCaspar Weinberger.[49] AdmiralWilliam H. McRaven, formerly the ninth commanding officer of USSOCOM (2011–2014), described two approaches to special forces operations in the 2012 posture statement to theU.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services: "the direct approach is characterized by technologically enabled small-unit precision lethality, focusedintelligence, and inter-agency cooperation integrated on a digitally-networked battlefield", whereas the "indirect approach includes empowering host nation forces, providing appropriate assistance to humanitarian agencies, and engaging key populations."[50] Elements of national power must be deployed in concert without over-reliance on a single capability, such as special forces, that leaves the entire force unprepared and hollow across the spectrum of military operations.[51]
Throughout the latter half of the 20th century and into the 21st century, special forces have come to higher prominence, as governments have found objectives can sometimes be better achieved by a small team of anonymous specialists than a larger and much more politically controversial conventional deployment. In bothKosovo andAfghanistan, special forces were used to co-ordinate activities between localguerrilla fighters andair power.
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Typically,guerrilla fighters would engage enemy soldiers and tanks causing them to move, where they could be seen and attacked from the air.
Special forces have been used in both wartime and peacetime military operations such as theLaotian Civil War,Bangladesh Liberation War-1971,Vietnam War,Portuguese Colonial War,South African Border War,Falklands War,The Troubles in Northern Ireland, theJaffna University Helidrop, thefirst andsecond Gulf Wars, Afghanistan,Croatia,Kosovo,Bosnia, thefirst andsecond Chechen Wars, theIranian Embassy siege (London), theAir France Flight 8969 (Marseille),Operation Defensive Shield,Operation Khukri, theMoscow theater hostage crisis,Operation Orchard, theJapanese Embassy hostage crisis (Lima), inSri Lanka against theLTTE, theraid on Osama Bin Laden's compound in Pakistan, the2016 Indian Line of Control strike the2015 Indian counter-insurgency operation in Myanmar and theBarisha Raid inSyria of 2019.
TheU.S. invasion of Afghanistan involved special forces from several coalition nations, who played a major role in removing theTaliban from power in 2001–2002. Special forces have continued to play a role in combating the Taliban in subsequent operations.
As gender restrictions are being removed in parts of the world, females are applying for special forces units selections and in 2014 the Norwegian Special Operation Forces established an all female unitJegertroppen (English:Hunter Troop).
In a secret report, the 10-man [World Bank] mission discreetly but unmistakably urges the military ruler of that South Asian land to remove – as a first step – some of his West Pakistani troops who stand accused of terrorizing the population. [...] Other suggested moves [...]:
– Appointment of a civilian administrator for the eastern province.
