The 2nd Battalion (; abbreviated as 2BN) is an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

unit of the

Norwegian Army The Norwegian Army () is the land warfare service branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Army is the oldest of the Norwegian service branches, established as a modern military organization under the command of the King of Norway in 1628. The ...

, based at camp Skjold in

Troms Troms (; ; ; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. It borders Finnmark county to the northeast and Nordland county in the southwest. Norrbotten Län in Sweden is located to the south and further southeast is a shorter border with ...

county in

Northern Norway Northern Norway (, , ; ) is a geographical region of Norway, consisting of the three northernmost counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the largest towns in Northern Norway (from south to no ...

. It serves in the

light infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...

role specialized in Arctic warfare as part of

Brigade Nord Brigade Nord (Brig. N.; Northern Brigade) is the major combat formation and only brigade of the Norwegian Army, consisting of eight battalions and one military police company. It is mostly based in Troms (Bardu Municipality and Målselv Municipalit ...

; the battalion is one of three manoeuvre battalions within the brigade, along with

Telemark Battalion The Telemark Battalion (, abbreviated as TMBN) is a mechanised infantry battalion of the Norwegian Army. It was established in 1993, and is a part of Brigade Nord and stationed at Rena, Hedmark. The battalion consists of five companies/squadrons. ...

and

Panserbataljonen The Armoured Battalion () is the first battalion and an infantry unit of the Norwegian Army. Although it is categorised as an Armoured cavalry, armoured unit, the battalion (strictly a battlegroup (army), battlegroup) primarily serves in the mecha ...

. The 2nd Battalion serves two roles, primarily being organised for domestic defence; however, during Norway's contribution to the

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

forces in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, the 2nd Battalion played a vital role. The 2nd Battalion also contributed consistently to the

ISAF The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386 according to the Bonn Agreement, which outlined t ...

forces in northern Afghanistan, supporting an elite trained light infantry, organized as a Quick Reaction Force (QRF). The battalion uses a khaki

beret A beret ( , ; ; ; ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre. Mass production of berets began in the 19th century in Southern France and the north of History of Spain (1808 ...

, as opposed to the traditional black beret worn by cavalry units throughout the world, which symbolizes the battalion's history. The motto of the battalion is ''

In hoc Signo Vinces "" is a Latin phrase conventionally translated into English as "In this sign thou shalt conquer", often also being translated as "By and/or in this sign, conquer". The Latin phrase itself renders, rather loosely, the Greek phrase "", translit ...

'' (Latin for "In this sign, thou shalt conquer."). Translated in Norwegian to "Under dette tegnet, skal vi seire.", it refers to the

griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...

seen on the coat of arms.

History

In November 2007, during

Operation Harekate Yolo Operation Harekate Yolo ( Persian for ''front straightening'') was a two-part military operation involving NATO, ISAF and Afghanistan government forces against the Taliban as part of the War in Afghanistan. In late October 2007, Regional Comm ...

, soldiers from the 2nd Battalion and the Coastal Ranger Command

Kystjegerkommandoen ''Kystjegerkommandoen'' (, or ''KJK'') is a unit in the Royal Norwegian Navy. KJK is a marine commando unit trained to operate in littoral combat theatres, filling the role of marines and coastal artillery. The unit consists of coastal rangers an ...

stationed in

Mazar-e-Sharif Mazar-i-Sharīf ( ; Dari and ), also known as Mazar-e Sharīf or simply Mazar, is the fifth-largest city in Afghanistan by population, with the estimates varying from 500,000-680,000. It is the capital of Balkh province and is linked by highway ...

were involved in what has been referred to as some of the heaviest combat operations involving

troops since

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After an

Afghan National Army The Islamic National Army (, ), also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Army and the Afghan Army, is the army, land force branch of the Afghan Armed Forces. The roots of an army in Afghanistan can be traced back to the early 18th century when th ...

(ANA) unit was attacked by

Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...

forces in the

Ghowrmach Ghormach () or Ghowrmach is a town in Badghis Province in northwestern Afghanistan. It serves as the center of Ghormach District. Climate With a mild and generally warm and temperate climate, Ghormach features a hot-summer Mediterranean climat ...

district in the province of Baghdis, soldiers from 2nd Battalion and Kystjegerkommandoen responded. Outnumbered and facing heavy Taliban resistance, machine guns, mortar teams, snipers and CV9030s were used to attack the enemy combatants. Air strikes were eventually called in to drive off the remaining Taliban fighters. While no NATO casualties were reported, the exact Taliban death toll had not yet been disclosed as of 9 November 2007. However, according to Norwegian news reports, "between 45 and 65 insurgents" were killed in action. This was the first known uses of the Swedish-made CV9030 in live combat.

Organization

The battalion is divided into four companies: Bravo company, Charlie company, the cavalry squadron and the support company. Bravo company and Charlie company serves as specialized light infantry, focusing on Arctic warfare and urban warfare. The cavalry squadron is the battalion's internal intelligence unit as well as consisting of one platoon of marksmen. The support company is the largest of the four, and primarily consists of medics, anti-tank personnel, combat, service and support.

References

External links

Norwegian Army page on 2nd Battalion (in Norwegian)forsvaret.no/om-forsvaret/organisasjon/haren/avdelinger/brigadenord/Sider/2bataljon.aspx
*https://www.forsvaret.no/om-forsvaret/organisasjon/haeren/brigade-nord?q=brigade%20nord Infantry battalions of Norway Military units and formations established in 2003 {{mil-unit-stub