French special forces : new update - afghanistan ops

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Thu May 04, 2006 2:45 pm

COS (Special Operations Command) is joint service unit headquartered at Taverny, and operates under the command of a Major General, or an officer of equivalent rank. COS has no organic units under its direct command, but instead draws on the special operations forces of the three armed services.

Once more, french tv is broadcasting a documentary about french special forces, this one tonight is specially dull and interesting at the same time :

- dull because it shows the COS as one big unit without distinguishing the several units
- interesting though because it's got never seen footages and some insights about recent operation (côte d'ivoire, congo, afghanistan...)

steelbonnet · Post by **steelbonnet** » Thu May 11, 2006 9:58 am

That sounds really Great mate

fat chance they`d ever let the BBC or whoever have a trip round Stirling lanes or the New SAS HQ base.

Must admit be nice if these US unit & French unit programmes became more accessible for the rest of us

Ja
Steel Bonnet

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Fri May 12, 2006 1:32 am

gotta work on some translations if you like (nothing close to a actual film though)

it's odd we got so many shows about special forces even if they were sometimes inaccurate, it gave a nice feeling of seeing them in training or in action.

i thinks it's not good for a country to be so "obsessed" with its elite, we must going through a really big crisis, if networks feel the need to produce such documentaries

steelbonnet · Post by **steelbonnet** » Fri May 12, 2006 1:59 am

Love that if you could sort out some translations mate

As for a Nation being obsessed with Special Forces. Well that comes to the Individual Nation in that respect.

You look at the UK. Apart from the Former members of "The Regiment" little is told of them & there`s an outcry to stop former members writting about it.
The NZ SAS is another Little is known about.
Though look at Germany`s KSK thier were documentries & even books for the German people to see this "new" (well been around since the late 90s) Military Special Forces group.

The US has found a Great New interest thank`s in part of How effective the Afghanistan campaign went using Mainly Special Forces. Hell look at the amount of PR the Navy SEAL has been on over the last couple of years.

A documenty is never going to give 100% true facts of mission profiles,The men etc as that`s like leaving a TOP SECRET Dossier open in the Media lounge.
I think it`s Good though to have seen something of the caliber of personel who ARE apart of your Nations Special Forces & know "In them We Trust" our Nations security.

That`s how I see it anyway.

Ja
Steel Bonnet

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Fri May 12, 2006 5:33 am

i agree about the secrecy thing : here is a short text about the COS, then i'll try to focus on several units

Commandement des Opérations spéciales - COS

The idea of organizing special forces in France came during the Gulf War. French general Lepage was chosen to conduct a survey of French special forces units and the SF organizations in other nations (mainly the US and the UK). In June 1992, the 24th, the COS was born.

Special operations

A special operation is one with high strategic value for the government or a command. It is expected to last several days or weeks far behind ennmy lines with few troopers involved and with maximum secrecy. It has to be noted that french special operations are supposed to be publiclly aknowledge once they are over.
Le Commandement des opérations spéciales (COS – Special ops Command) manages all special units from the 3 French armies and promotes their use. It plans, prepares and runs special ops. The units dedicated to the COS are thought as highly competent and always available.

Organization

Several changes occured since 1992. Most notably among the Navy commandos which were restructurated in 2001 according to the « Commando 2001 » plan.

The current organisation is based upon the use of units from differents amry components : the Army (Armée de terre), the Navy (Marine nationale), the Air Force (armée de l’air) and the military police (Gendarmerie nationale especially the GISGN).

These units share sea, air, land capabilities.

Every unit is made of highly selected and trained personal. Their missions range from support, assist, assault, neutralization, influence. They can also be used to train foreign units (mostly in Africa).
The most proeminent missions are : infiltration, counter-terror, peace keeping or civilian exfil. Some missions are dedicated to commandos : arrest of war criminals for instance in former Yugoslavia.

COS units also collect intel for the Chief of Staff before further military intervention.
Small groups can be sent in avant-garde and pass ennemy lines by their own means. They are then to inform their command of ennemy troop movements or state of readiness. Stealth is their main asset here. The 13ème Régiment dragon parachutiste (13ème RDP) is a specialist of this kind of missions. Combat swimmers from Commando Hubert can for example land by night on a beach and prepare an invasion by trnamitting intel or neutralizing mines or patrols.

Composition

The COS has not been created to replace existing units but to make sure of the cooperation of the different army branches.

Main Units (1st circle)

- 1er RPIMA (régiment parachutiste d’infanterie de marine) – Marine paratroopers
- Commandos Marine (Navy commandos) : Jaubert, Trepel, Hubert, de Monfort, de penfentenyo
- CPA n°10 (commandos parachutistes de l’armée de l’air) : Air Force parajumpers
- 13ème RDP (régiment dragon parachutiste) : Airborne intel gathering
- DAOS (Détachement ALAT – aviation légère de l’Armée de terre – des opérations spéciales) : SO helicopter detachment

Secondary units :
- GCP (groupement des commandos parachutistes) : Airborne commandos
- URH de la 27°BIM (unité de recherche humaine de la brigade d’infanterie de montagne) : Humint
- GSIGN (Groupement de sécurité et d’intervention de la Gendarmerie nationale) – military police special unit among which is found the French equivalent of the Secret Service and the famous GIGN

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Sun May 21, 2006 8:46 am

French command in afghanistan announced that two COS soldiers (apparently from the 1er RPIMA) were killed fighting taleban this week-end

steelbonnet · Post by **steelbonnet** » Sun May 21, 2006 10:24 am

I`m sorry to hear that Julien

May they find peace know they were doing the Right thing in Afghanistan.

Ja
Steel Bonnet

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 2:55 am

Fresh news from Afghanistan :

French special forces (around 200 troopers) are going to move from spin bolak (south east) to Jalalabad (500 km northward). They will follow the US troops as NATO is going to take command over the coalition.

The COS soldiers are currently hunting taleban and Al Qaeda fighters and they will be transfered during summer near the Pakistan border where bin laden is believed to be hidden.
They are also to receive new equipment and better armored vehicles.

Some pics from a French magazine (the ministry of Defense is currently invistigating on how the pics where sold to the press)

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 3:05 pm

more pics of French SF (official pics this time) in Afghanistan

Operation Enduring Freedom :

Operation Epidote :

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Fri Jun 30, 2006 12:11 am

Here is a report of the ambush which lead last month to the death of two French special forces soldiers in Afghanistan.

It was revealed by Defense News and confirmed by French officials to the Daily Newspaper "Liberation".

20th may 2006
The scene takes place in the Helmand province northwest of Kandahar in the middle of the Taleban controled zone. A Afghan national army batallion of 176 soldiers had set up a camp in a valley around the Kajaki village. This batallion (Kandak) is managed by around 10 french troopers form the 1er RPIMa (Régiment parachutiste d'infanterie de marine-Marine paratroopers). Among them is a lieutenant colonel. They work with 2 US advisers. It's the only trainig unit from the COS (French SOCOM) as the other 200 soldiers are engaged in Spin Bolak).

May the 17th : a taleban group attacks a police station in Moussa Qala, a nearby valley, killing 16 Afghani policemen.
The day after the taleban are heading to Kajaki through the mountain.
The locals are fleeing and the Batallion decides to break off in order to reach the Robinson operational forward base (50 km from there). A truck convoy is sent to get them but it is aambushed on its way.

May the 20th :
at 5:45 am the batallion leaves Kajaki. Seven French commandos hop in three pick ups provided bu the US Army. These vehicles are not armored and the soldiers set up their body armor on the pick ups. 5 minutes later, the convoy comes under fire from machine guns and RPGs. At a crossroad, the confusion is blatent, a part of the convoy heads to Road 611. This road was to be avoided : "there are few villages on the road but each time we drove through one we were shot at" says US sergent Kramlich.

According to Defense News, the taleban were 200-300 which is considerable in regard of Afghanistan former confrontations.

at 6:30 am the French vehicles are under ennemy fire. A bullet enters the chest of the driver and ends up in the leg of his passenger. In another pick up the driver is killed. Six Afghani troopers die in this confrontation.
Stuck, the convoy won't be able to reach the safety of the hills before 8am leaving its deads behind. Air support weren't able to strike because of a sandstorm and the fact that fighters on both sides were to close of each other.

At noon, the survivors reach Robinson base. 10 Afghani soldiers were left behind, they fought until they ran out of ammo and made prisoners at around 4 pm.
They will be found the day after : beheaded.
The intact bodies of Adjudant Joël Gazeau and lance corporal David Poulain will be recovered the same day and brought back to France.

This tragic story shows how armor have been neglected by the French paratroopers who prefer to fight lightly. It's difficult to understand since even in the relatively safer city of Kabul, the French Army soldiers now only drive armored vehicles.

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Sun Jul 23, 2006 12:58 pm

some news from COS troopers : Navy commandos have been deployed to lebanon to exfil french and european citizens living in the south of the country

EDIT : acoording to an official in the minister of Defense, a dozen special forces troopers are to escort a convoy of French-Lebanese citizens form the south of Lebanon in Nabatiyé to Beyrouth.

Their presence was asked by the French Ambassador in Beyrouth; they arrived by helicopter during the night between friday (july the 21st) and saturday (july the 22nd).

ostketten · Post by **ostketten** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 5:28 am

Not surprising that French SF are deploying to Lebanon to protect/evacuate their countrymen, considering that there are significant numbers of French citizens in the war zone, they don't call Beirut the "Paris of the middle east" for nothing eh? Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought this was the job of the Legion??..... that is to say protecting French citizens abroad in times of conflict, or is that only in areas of "nominal French control" like former colonies and such??

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 6:53 am

you're right about the old links between France and Lebanon. Our troops were there when your marines got bombed in the 80s and we have been among the 1st to implement the UN FINUL in South Lebanon after the 1982 events.

the Foreign legion basically made of shocktroopers

they are the main regular army units sent abroad either for peacekeeping missions or for protecting Frech interests (i believed they are considered more expendable than units composed of 100% French citizens). They train hard to fight and do it well.

for special purpose missions like protecting or evacuating civilians, the high command relies on the COS.

Among the COS units are a main legion regiment : the 2ème REP (2nd foreign parachute regiment). This the unit that was deployed in the 70s in Kolwezi (Zaire/congo).

It's reasonable to believe the COS troopers deployed in South Lebanon for escorting the convoy i've mentioned, were made of GIGN gendarmes and troopers from other units (1er RPIMa for instance)

i must add that regular troops were deployed in Beyrouth in order to organize the evacuation by sea of the French citizens

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Tue Aug 29, 2006 8:34 am

sad update for the French special forces deployed in Afghanistan hunting the taleban along with the US troops near the Pakistan border : 2 troopers died last week in an ambush (one of these men was from the Navy, the other one from the Air Force).

2 more Navy NCOs were injured during the attack.

200 special forces troopers are currently deployed in eastern Afghanistan.

blaster_e11 · Post by **blaster_e11** » Mon Oct 30, 2006 8:20 am

WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) -

France is re-examining its deployment of around 200 special forces troops in Afghanistan, Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said on Thursday.

Alliot-Marie declined to confirm a French newspaper report that Paris planned pull the troops out of southern Afghanistan at the start of next year but she said it was time to take a fresh look at the deployment.

Afghanistan is suffering its bloodiest phase since U.S.-led troops drove Taliban Islamist militants from power after the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

Speaking after meeting U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in Washington, Alliot-Marie said the review was a logical step after NATO took responsibility for security across Afghanistan this month.

"There's a new organization on the ground in Afghanistan," Alliot-Marie told reporters.

"What we're saying is that we have to look at the consequences, including on the presence of special forces, and particularly French special forces, in Afghanistan."

The special forces form part of the U.S.-led Operation Enduring Freedom, which mounts counter-terrorism missions against Taliban and al Qaeda militants.

NATO's International Security Assistance Force, which focuses on establishing stability in Afghanistan, took control of the east of the country from the U.S.-led forces earlier this month, giving it nationwide responsibility for the first time.

"I would recall that French special forces have been in Afghanistan since 2001, since the beginning, that they are there in large number compared to the total of our special forces and that they have paid a heavy price for their presence, notably with several deaths," Alliot-Marie said.

France has a total of between 2,000 and 3,000 special forces troops.

At least nine French soldiers have died in fighting in Afghanistan and the Journal du Dimanche newspaper, which reported on Sunday that France planned to withdraw the special forces, said the death toll had played a part in the decision.

France also has around 1,000 regular troops deployed around Afghanistan's capital Kabul under NATO control.

NATO has about 30,000 troops under its command in Afghanistan