Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant documents that answer the question.
Query: Why do the Special Forces wear green berets?
U.S. Special Forces wear the green beret as a distinction of excellence and uniqueness within the Army.
Only members of Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM) wear the tan beret, regardless of whether they are Army, Navy or Air Force. This includes members of Joint Task Force 2 (JTF2), the Canadian Special Operations Regiment (CSOR), the Canadian Joint Incident Response Unit (CJIRU) and 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron. The standard berets of the Canadian Navy, Army, and Air Force are black, green, and blue, respectively. The Canadian Forces search and rescue technicians wear the distinctive orange beret. Canadian Forces Military Police wear a scarlet beret, all personnel part of an airborne unit wear maroon and those members attached to an armoured regiment are issued black berets as part of their uniform.
When the unit was established in 1955, approval was given for members to wear a maroon beret. The maroon beret was chosen as it was the then colour of the British Special Air Service beret. However, the British changed their beret colour to ecru (sandy-coloured) in late 1957, the same colour as had been worn by the SAS during the early stages of World . On 19 December 1985, approval was granted by the (then) New Zealand chief of general staff, Major General John Mace, who had previously deployed to Malaya with the original NZSAS Squadron, for the NZSAS to switch from maroon to the sandy-coloured beret worn by other Commonwealth Special Air Service units. A parade was held on 21 March 1986 to formally hand the new beret over to the unit.
Because the belts are worn with the Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform, the complete range of belt colors such as red, yellow, or purple are excluded as a practical consideration. Once Marines obtain their green belt, they can attend an additional training course (such as those at the two Schools of Infantry) to become a martial arts instructor (secondary Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) 0916, formerly 8551).
The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. The SAS was founded in 1941 as a regiment, and later reconstituted as a corps in 1950. The unit undertakes a number of roles including covert reconnaissance, counter-terrorism, direct action and hostage rescue. Much of the information and actions regarding the SAS is highly classified, and is not commented on by the British government or the Ministry of Defence due to the sensitivity of their operations.
When American advisors were sent to Laos and South Vietnam in the fifties and early sixties, the major problem was not to create guerrilla units, but to fight existing Laotian and Vietnamese guerrilla forces. To them it seemed logical that soldiers trained to "be" guerrillas would have a deep understanding of how to "fight" guerrillas, so Special Forces was given that mission. The White Star mission in Laos was initially covert, and used Special Forces and other personnel under Central Intelligence Agency control. Whether the mission is called counterguerrilla, counterinsurgency, or foreign internal defense, it involves assisting a friendly government—the "foreign" in FID—to defend against guerrillas acting inside its borders. FID can also involve training a foreign government to deal with a future internal guerrilla threat.
Green cartridge belts and/or brassards can be worn by personnel in an authoritative or ceremonial duty status (such as drill instructors or fire watch sentries), wearing such items regards the individuals as "under arms" whether they are actually carrying a weapon or not. As such, they do not uncover indoors. During ceremonies, officers have the option of wearing a Sam Browne belt and the Mameluke sword, and Noncommissioned Officers may wear the NCO sword. The current Mameluke sword is modeled on the sword presented to First Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon by the Ottoman Empire viceroy, Prince Hamet, in 1804, during the First Barbary War, as a gesture of respect and praise for the Marines' actions at the Battle of Derne.
The Australian Special Air Service Regiment (SASR) did not take part in the war. In 1993, a book was published on a British SAS patrol Bravo Two Zero with an Australian member using the pseudonym of Stan. Subsequent media reports stated that SASR soldiers on exchange took part in the war, however, in 2005 it was disclosed that Stan was a former Army Reserve Commando who had joined the British Army. As the SASR had long established exchange programmes, a soldier may have served with British or United States special forces units. The total number of personnel deployed between August 1990 and September 1991 was 1,800. In the aftermath of the conflict, Royal Australian Navy warships continued to be deployed to the Persian Gulf periodically to enforce sanctions against Iraq until the 2003 Invasion of Iraq.
Before any other sentient beings existed in the universe, a race of beings calling themselves the Guardians of the Universe harnessed the power of the "green element", the greatest power in the universe, to create the Green Lantern battery. However, the battery was vulnerable to the color yellow, the one part of the light spectrum that could resist green. The Guardians hid the most concentrated source of yellow energy, the "yellow element", to prevent others from using it against them.
Days before the cessation of hostilities, an SAS operator was shot in the chest and killed in an ambush. The Regiment had operated in Iraq for some 43 days, despite the poor state of mapping, reconnaissance imagery, intelligence and weather; additional problems such as the lack of essential kit such as night-vision goggles, TACBE radios and GPS units, they appear to have been instrumental in stopping the SCUDs. There were no further launches after only two days of SAS operations in their assigned "box," despite this, significant questions remain over how many SCUDs were actually destroyed either from the air or on the ground, the Iraqis had deployed large numbers of East German-manufactured decoy vehicles and apparently several oil tankers were erroneously targeted from the air. Despite a US Air Force study arguing that no actual SCUDs were destroyed, the SAS maintain that what they destroyed, often at relative close range, were not decoys and oil tankers. Undoubtedly, the Regiment succeeded in forcing SCUDs to move out of the "SCUD Box" and into north-west Iraq and the increased distances, for an inaccurate and unreliable missile system effectively eliminated the SCUD threat. General Schwarzkopf sent a personal message thanking the Regiment and Delta Force saying "You guys kept Israel out of the war." By the end of the war, four SAS men had been killed and five captured.
The Special Air Service (SAS) was a unit of the British Army, formed in July 1941 by David Stirling and originally called "L" Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade"L" being an attempt at deception implying the existence of numerous such units. In 1944 the Special Air Service Brigade was formed and consisted of the British 1st and 2nd Special Air Service, the French 3rd and 4th Special Air Service and the Belgian 5th Special Air Service. They used specially converted American made Jeeps armed with a number of Vickers K guns, and proved so successful they kept them on.
Fancy Bear (also known as APT28, Pawn Storm, Sofacy Group, Sednit and STRONTIUM) is a cyber espionage group. Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike has said with a medium level of confidence that it is associated with the Russian military intelligence agency GRU. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and security firms SecureWorks, ThreatConnect, and Fireeye's Mandiant, have also said the group is sponsored by the Russian government. In 2018, an indictment by the United States Special Counsel identified Fancy Bear as two GRU units known as Unit 26165 and Unit 74455.
In August 2014, the SAS were reported to be part of Operation Shader - the British participation in the ongoing military intervention against ISIL.They were reported to be on the ground gathering intelligence and helping with the evacuation of Yazidi refugees from the Sinjar mountains. Also they have reportedly been helping Kurdish forces in northern Iraq as well as carrying out operations in Syria. In particular on May 15, the SAS confirmed the presence in al-Amr of a senior leader, Abu Sayyaf, who was then killed in an assault by US Special Forces. In October 2016, the "Guardian" reported that the SAS along with the Australian SASR are active in northern Iraq with US forces, where they have been calling in airstrikes in support of both Kurdish and Iraqi advances against ISIL. In November 2016, the "Independent" reported that the SAS and other British special forces, as part of a multinational special forces operation, were given a list of 200 British jihadist to kill or capture before they attempt to return to the UK. The 200 jihadist are senior members of ISIL that pose a direct threat to the UK, the list of British men and women has been compiled from intelligence supplied by MI5, MI6 and GCHQ; Sources said SAS soldiers have been told that the mission could be the most important in the regiment’s 75-year history. SAS snipers targeted ISIL insurgents, employing sniper rifles such as the IWI DAN .338 and Barrett M82A1 .50 BMG.
Signals intelligence, or SIGINT, is a common tool in espionage, although it has been hard to apply to anti-terrorism activities. The National Security Agency (NSA), the organization formally responsible for SIGINT within the United States intelligence community, was used to targeting conventional military communications systems, while terrorists lacked dedicated communications systems, confronting the NSA with the prospect of "picking out the needles of terrorist transmissions in the haystack". While some information has been gained, SIGINT is only effective against cells if the group is unaware they are being monitored. Once known communication methods have been compromised, terrorists switch to other means. Terrorists may employ various countersurveillance techniques, including the use of non-electronic messengers to avoid interception, employ encrypted message systems, or exploit public Internet connections such as Internet cafes.
Following the end of Operation Crichton in Iraq in 2009, two SAS squadrons were deployed to Afghanistan, where the Regiment would focus its operations. The main objective of the SAS and other British special forces units with Afghan forces embedded was targeting Taliban leaders and drug barons using "Carrot and stick" tactics. In 2010, the SAS also took part in Operation Moshtarak, four-man SAS teams and U.S. Army Special Forces team ODA 1231 would perform "find, fix, strike" raids. These resulted in the deaths of 50 Taliban leaders in the area according to NATO, but did not seem to have any real adverse effect on the Taliban's operations. According to the "London Sunday Times", as of March 2010 the United Kingdom Special Forces have suffered 12 killed and 70 seriously injured in Afghanistan and seven killed and 30 seriously injured in Iraq.
British Army mascots are classified as either regimental pets or regimental mascots. The former are unofficial mascots since they are not recognized by the Army, while the latter are official mascots, having been recognized by the Army. Official British Army mascots are entitled to the services of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, as well as quartering and food at public expense. It costs the Army roughly £40,000 a year for the upkeep of official mascots. There are also mascots whose upkeep are borne by the regiment or unit itself. They are unofficial mascots which are properly referred to as regimental pets.
The CPI (Maoist)'s General Secretary says that they keep on appealing to the "lower-level personnel" in the paramilitary and police forces not to attack them, but rather "join hands with the masses" and "consciously" point their guns towards whom the Maoists view as "real enemies." They further claims that "only when the government forces come to attack us [Maoists] carrying guns do we attack them in self-defence." In Jharkhand, the police have also clutched posters from various places which read, "Policemen keep away from the green hunt and try to be friends of poor. Police jawan, do not obey orders of the senior officials, instead join the people's army."
The men involved in Operation Houndsworth were part of the Special Air Service Brigade. The Special Air Service (SAS) was a unit of the British Army during the Second World War, formed in July 1941 by David Stirling and originally called "L" Detachment, Special Air Service Brigade"L" being an attempt at deception implying the existence of numerous such units. It was conceived as a commando type force to operate behind enemy lines in the North African Campaign In 1944 the Special Air Service Brigade was formed and consisted of the British 1st and 2nd Special Air Service, the French 3rd and 4th Special Air Service and the Belgian 5th Special Air Service. They were to undertake parachute operations behind the German lines in France, and then carry out operations supporting the Allied advance through Belgium, the Netherlands, and eventually into Germany.
In 2013, Police Scotland was formed with the inaugural Chief Constable granting a standing authority for ARV officers to overtly wear handguns, instead of being secured or concealed, and to deploy their weapons without requiring approval and also to be tasked for routine incidents (non-firearms incidents). A survey conducted by the Scottish Police Authority showed that 53% of the public supported sending ARV officers to routine calls and incidents while wearing a visible sidearm.
In May 2014, the Firearms Act 1968 was amended to recognise the British Transport Police (BTP) as a police force under the Act in order to provide BTP a firearms licensing exemption the same as other police forces. BTP had, since armed policing commenced in February 2012, required an Authorised Firearms Officer (AFO) to apply to their local police force in a private capacity for a firearms certificate to enable them to perform the AFO role.
The Cobra Organization is the fictional nemesis of the G.I. Joe Team in the Hasbro toylines and related media. This is an alphabetical listing of Cobra Command members with unique identities.
Bayonet is a Cobra Snow Serpent serving as part of the organization's elite Plague Troopers. He wears a portable life support system due to having survived injuries to his chest by the G.I. Joe team.
As a result of their role during the Battle of Britain, in April 1941 the Observer Corps was granted the title "Royal" by King George VI, and the "Royal Observer Corps" (ROC) became a uniformed civil defence organisation administered by RAF Fighter Command. Also during that same year, in a change from the policy of the Observer Corps, the ROC undertook to recruit women personnel for the first time. Initially, the only uniforms provided were RAF overalls, ("boiler suits"), with an ROC breast badge, commonly referred to as the "soup plate" because of its shape and size. Standard issue RAF No.2 Battledress uniforms were issued in a rolling programme over the next two years. For the remainder of the war, the ROC would provide an essential part of Great Britain's air defences.
Army officers, NCOs, and enlisted personnel generally wear gray service uniforms. For tropical areas they wear gray-green service uniforms. Army fatigue uniforms are olive green, and combat uniforms consist of US woodland pattern camouflage and Desert pattern camouflage. The standard headgear for enlisted personnel is the beret bearing the national colors red, yellow and green. Armored troops are distinguished by black berets, and paratroops also by black berets. Special forces wear distinctive camouflage uniforms with green berets.
Several berets in alternate colors to the Army standard black beret are also used. Personnel assigned to units trained and equipped for parachute infiltration, known as airborne forces—such as the 82nd Airborne Division—are authorized to wear the maroon beret while paratroopers assigned to the 75th Ranger Regiment wear tan berets. Soldiers who graduate from the Special Forces Qualification Course are authorized to wear the green beret. The Army's newest units, the Security Force Assistance Brigades (SFABs), are authorized to wear a dark-brown beret.
The green beret was authorized for wear by Col. William E. Ekman, the group commander, in 1954, and it became group policy. By 1955, every soldier in the unit wore a green beret as part of the uniform. However, the Department of the Army (DA) did not recognize the beret as headgear. The DA banned the wear of the beret, but it was later restored by President Kennedy, a major champion of the Special Forces.
In the United Kingdom all Royal Marines who have passed the Commando Course wear the green beret. Personnel from the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force volunteering for service with 3 Commando Brigade undertake the All Arms Commando Course, completion of which allows individuals to wear the headdress. Commando-qualified Royal Marines always wear the green beret, with the Globe and Laurel cap badge and commando-qualified personnel from other armed services wear the beret, with their own cap badge, when serving with commando units unless otherwise authorised. The Special Boat Service (SBS) also wear the green Commando beret but with their own unique cap badge consisting of a sword with two blue waved lines with the words "by strength and guile"