Police Special Operation Department

Police Special Operations Department (Turkish: Polis Özel Harekât Dairesi) or Police Special Action[1] (Turkish: Polis Özel Harekât) shortly as PÖH is the police tactical unit of the General Directorate of Security in Turkey. It is also deployed as part of the Turkish occupation of northern Syria.[2]

Polis Özel Harekât Dairesi
Active1974-Present
Country Turkey
BranchGeneral Directorate of Security
TypePolice tactical unit
RoleCounter-terrorism
Law enforcement
SizeClassified
Part ofRespective municipality-level police departments
Garrison/HQAnkara, Türkiye
Nickname(s)PÖH
Mascot(s)Eagle
Commanders
Current
commander
Selami Türker
Notable
commanders
Behçet Oktay
Turkish special forces police in Afghanistan. (2008)

History

Founded in 1982 as "Special Action Office" (Turkish: Özel Harekat Şube Müdürlüğü), under the command of Department of Public Security, to prevent armed acts of terrorist organizations residential area or in rural areas, to rescue hostages in places like aircraft, land vehicles, ships, subways, trains, and in enclosed spaces like buildings, to ensure the safety in cities and in civil aviation airports with special skills, modern weapons, ammunition, vehicles, equipment, tactics and techniques. In bigger cities like Ankara, İstanbul and İzmir "Special Operations Group Authorities "(Turkish: Özel Harekat Grup Amirlikleri) are organized in the same year. As a result of changing conditions, in 1987, office transrred to Anti-Terrorism and Operations Department under the name of "Special Action Branch" (Turkish: Özel Harekat Şubesi). In 1993, branch promoted to a department, and got its current structuring.[3]

İbrahim Şahin was head of the Department until forced to resign in 1996 over the Susurluk scandal. Ayhan Çarkın was a notable member of the department in the 1990s.

Training

To qualify for PÖH, an applicant must:

  • Run the 2500m designated area with a backpack weighing 10 kg, under 15 minutes
  • Have 50% minimum accuracy in pistol and rifle shooting
  • Swim 150 m without stopping
  • Be between ages 18 and 32
  • Be graduated from police high school or university

After 16 weeks of training, the applicant will get a certificate which officially names him as an operative of PÖH.[4]

Also there is a training simulation called TAKSİS being conducted by TÜBİTAK.[5]

Tactics

Unit uses automatic and special weapons and rapid deployment tactics for exceptional circumstances, such as bank robberies, kidnappings, hostage rescues, etc. The nature of the unit is quite like the American SWAT or the German GSG 9, mostly specialises in counter-terrorism (CT) operations against forces and able to take operations on many environments including buses and planes.

Police Special Operation Department is one of a handful of security forces in the world which employs active front line female squad members in combat operations.

Equipment

Handguns

Shotguns

Submachine guns

Sniper rifles

Assault rifles

Machine guns

Vehicles

Sources

  1. Joost Jongerden, The Settlement Issue in Turkey and the Kurds: An Analysis of Spatial Policies, Modernity and War, Brill, 2007, p. 70.
  2. https://ahvalnews.com/military/turkish-police-special-forces-put-media-display
  3. "EGM - Özel Harekat Daire Başkanlığı". Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  4. "Polis Özel Harekat Temel Eğitim Paketi". Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  5. "TAKSİS - Taktik Eğitim Sistemi". Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  6. "American Rifleman - Akdal MKA 1919 Shotgun". Archived from the original on 3 February 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  7. POLiS Özel Harekat Timi. YouTube. 11 April 2007. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  8. http://img264.imageshack.us/img264/7451/85925487ae5.jpg
  9. "Steyr SSG 08". Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  10. "Accuracy International AX50 in use with Turkish Law Enforcement". Archived from the original on 3 April 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  11. "Özel harekâta özel silah - Şanliurfa Haberleri". Şanliurfa Haberleri. Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  12. http://docplayer.biz.tr/11762626-Suriye-deki-muhalif-orgutlerin-askeri-kapasitesi-silah-turleri-ve-silahlanma.html
  13. http://www.camoluk.gov.tr/ortak_icerik/camoluk/DSCF4053.JPG

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