Special Service Group

This article is about the Pakistan Army's special operations force. For the Pakistan Navy's special force of the same name, see Special Service Group (Navy). For other similarly named organizations, see Special service (disambiguation).

Special Service Group
ActiveMarch 23, 1956; 68 years ago (1956-03-23)
Country Pakistan
Branch Pakistan Army
TypeSpecial forces
Role
Part ofPakistan Army Strategic Forces Command
HeadquartersGhazi Airbase, Tarbela, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Nickname(s)Maroon Berets, Black Storks, SSG
Motto(s)Urdu: من جاں بازم, lit. 'I am valiant'
ColoursMaroon, sky blue
  
Engagements
See list
Websitewww.pakistanarmy.gov.pk
Commanders
CommanderMaj-Gen. Ahmad Jawad
The Army Service Group member performing combat airborne landing in Northern Pakistan.

The Pakistan Army Special Service Group (reporting name: Army SSG[1][2]) is the special operations forces of the Pakistan Army. They are also known by their nickname of "Maroon Berets" due to their headgear.[3]

The SSG is responsible to deploy and execute five doctrinal missions: foreign internal defence, reconnaissance, direct action, counter-terrorism operations, and unconventional 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, and HVT manhunts.[4]

Chain of command and control of the SSG falls within the domain of the Pakistan Army's Strategic Forces Command (ASFC), and its personnel are directly recruited into the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)'s counter-terrorism division upon their retirements.[4] Much of the SSG's activities and operations are shrouded in secrecy and public knowledge of their work is heavily controlled through selective declassified documents and published literary works by retired military veterans or authorized media.[4]

  1. ^ a b "Intro to Pakistani Commandos - Special Service Group | SSG". Army ISPR. Archived from the original on 4 March 2020. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Pakistan Military, Maj-Gen. Alvi, 2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Ryan, Mike; Mann, Chris; Stilwell, Alexander (2014). "(§Special Forces: Pakistan)". The Encyclopedia of the World's Special Forces: Tactics, History, Strategy, Weapons (google books). Amber Books Ltd. ISBN 9781907446894. Archived from the original on 14 February 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Ahmad, Javid (7 May 2018). "Pakistan's Secret War Machine". www.nationalinterest.org. The National Interest. Archived from the original on 23 January 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2019.