Last updated Coat of arms of the Special Operations Command.Guidon of the Special Operations Force Command.Barracks used by the Special Operations Command for high altitude training in Sierra Nevada.
It is based in Alicante, Alférez Rojas Navarrete barracks.
It was created in 1997, following other NATO armies organization. In the 1980s the Spanish Army had created six Special Operation Groups and also had a Special Operations group in the Spanish Legion, the Bandera de Operaciones Especiales de la Legión.
Subordinate operating units are Grupos de Operaciones Especiales Valencia III, Tercio del Ampurdán IV, and Bandera de Operaciones Especiales "C. L. Maderal Oleaga" XIX de la Legión.
Organization
The three Special Operations Groups are subordinated:
The Spanish Navy or officially, the Armada, is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces and one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Spanish Navy was responsible for a number of major historic achievements in navigation, the most famous being the discovery of America and the first global circumnavigation. For several centuries, it played a crucial logistical role in the expansion and consolidation of the Spanish Empire, and defended a vast trade network across the Atlantic Ocean between the Americas and Europe, and the Manila Galleon across the Pacific Ocean between the Philippines and the Americas.
The green beret was the official headdress of the British Commandos, a special-forces unit active during World War II. It is still worn by members of the Royal Marines after passing the Commando Course, and personnel from other units of the Royal Navy, Army and RAF who serve within 3 Commando Brigade and who have passed the All Arms Commando Course.
The Grupo Especial de Operaciones, is the police tactical unit of Spain's National Police Corps. The GEO has response capabilities and is responsible for VIP protection duties, as well as countering and responding to terrorism. Organized along the lines of many other police tactical units throughout Europe, the GEOs is focused on dealing with terrorist attacks, including aircraft hijackings as well as maritime threats and hostage taking. The GEO can also be used in a support role for Spanish Police operations outside the realm of terrorism, and is active in protecting visiting heads of state and providing security for high-profile events such as the 1992 Summer Olympics held in Barcelona. The GEO is a member of the ATLAS Network, that includes all the national police tactical units of European Union countries and some countries outside the European Union.
For centuries, Spain recruited foreign soldiers to its army, forming the foreign regiments such as the Regiment of Hibernia. However, the specific unit of the Spanish Army and Spain's Rapid Reaction Force, now known as the Spanish Legion, and informally known as the Tercio or the Tercios, is a 20th-century creation. It was raised in the 1920s to serve as part of Spain's Army of Africa. The unit, which was established in January 1920 as the Spanish equivalent of the French Foreign Legion, was initially known as the Tercio de Extranjeros, the name under which it began fighting in the Rif War of 1921–1926.
The Unidad Especial de Intervención (UEI) is the only tier one police tactical unit of the Spanish Civil Guard that specialized in counterterrorism and hostage rescue crisis management, high-risk tactical special operations, quick raid to capture or kill high-value targets, and VIP protection.
The Urban Counter-Terrorism Special Forces Group - Alpha, otherwise known as AFEUR or AFEAU is the army detachment of the elite AFEAU special operations group within the Colombian Armed Forces, dedicated to performing counter-terrorism operations, HVT acquisition or elimination, and hostage rescue.
The Special Forces Corps are the special forces battalions of the Mexican Army. Formerly the Special Forces Airmobile Group (Spanish: Grupo Aeromóvil de Fuerzas Especiales) or GAFE, the SF corps has six regular battalions; plus four specialized units, one of those units is the Fuerza Especial de Reaccion, the other three remain secretive for the public; the motto of the SF Corps is Todo por México.
Special Operations Group may refer to:
The Marine Infantry is the naval infantry branch of the Spanish Navy responsible for conducting amphibious warfare. Fully integrated into the Spanish Navy's structure, the branch's history dates back to 1537 when Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor formed the Compañías Viejas del Mar de Nápoles, making it the oldest marine unit in existence.
The National Army of Colombia is the land warfare service branch of the Military Forces of Colombia. With over 361,420 active personnel as of 2020, it is the largest and oldest service branch in Colombia, and is the second largest army in the Americas after the United States and before Brazil.
In Mexico, both the army and navy have special forces groups or elite units.
The Special Operations Groups are the special operations forces of the Spanish Army.
The Special Operations Forces Grouping is a special operations unit of the Argentine Army.
Spain has a long history of combating domestic and international violence and of training units for special warfare or intervention. The following military and police units currently operate under a Special Operations mandate:
The 19th Special Operations Group "Caballero Legionario Maderal Oleaga", GOE XIX, is one of the three currently existing Special Operations Groups and so is subordinated to the Special Operations Command. It was the former Special Forces unit of the Spanish Legion and was known as Bandera de Operaciones Especiales de la Legión, BOEL.
The Special Naval Warfare Force (FGNE) is the special forces unit of the Spanish Navy. It was created on June 10, 2009 through the fusion of the Special Operations Unit (UOE) of the Spanish Navy Marines and the Special Combat Divers Unit (UEBC) of the Navy Diving Center. Before the merger, between 2004 and 2009, the two units operated under a single Special Naval Warfare Command. Between 1967 and 2009, the special operations of the Spanish Navy were conducted by the UOE, whose many traditions the FGNE adopted – including the use of the special forces "green beret", the Capacitación selection course, and the organization of operational units into Estoles. Inheriting the reputation and continuing the record of the UOE, the FGNE "has long been one of Europe's most respected special forces."
The structure of the Spanish Army as of April 2023 is as follows:
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