The 1st Commando Brigade () is a brigade of the

Turkish Army The Turkish Land Forces () is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for Army, land-based military operations. The army was formed on November 8, 1920, after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Significant campaigns since the ...

, based in

Kayseri Kayseri () is a large List of cities in Turkey, city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri Province, Kayseri province. Historically known as Caesarea (Mazaca), Caesarea, it has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since anc ...

History

Founded as a paratrooper brigade, later it was restructured as a ground force. A battalion from the brigade was detached and expanded which became the 5th Hakkari Mountain and Commando Brigade. Although formally being a paratrooper brigade, parachuting and para-warfare training is still given in this brigade to every one of its troops, including the special forces Gendarmerie Special Operations Command team within its brigade. The Brigade was involved in the

Turkish invasion of Cyprus The Turkish invasion of Cyprus began on 20 July 1974 and progressed in two phases over the following month. Taking place upon a background of Cypriot intercommunal violence, intercommunal violence between Greek Cypriots, Greek and Turkish Cy ...

, and fought beside airborne commandos (Bolu) and Naval Infantry Brigade (Izmir). It served as a fighting force against the

Cypriot National Guard The National Guard of Cyprus (), also known as the Greek Cypriot National Guard or simply the National Guard, is the military force of the Republic of Cyprus. It consists of air, land, sea and special forces elements, and is highly integrated wit ...

. Furthermore, the 1st Commando Brigade also acted as a peacekeeping force in the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

and the

War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC), the conquest of Afghanistan by the Macedonian Empire * Muslim conquests of Afghanistan, a series of campaigns in ...

. It has engaged Kurdish separatists in platoon size forces alongside the

Hakkari Mountain and Commando Brigade The 5th Commando Brigade, more commonly known as the Hakkari Mountain and Commando Brigade ( Turkish: ''Hakkâri Dağ ve Komando Tugayı''), stationed in Hakkâri Province in southeastern Turkey, founded as a battalion of the 1st Commando Brigad ...

in operations within and across Turkey's borders into Iraq in the anti Insurgency campaign launched by the PKK from Iraq into Turkey. In its latest engagement, the 1st Commando Brigade along with other Brigades across Turkey deployed troops along the Syrian border. In which causing it to Part in the Syrian–Turkish border incidents during the Syrian Civil War.

Training

Training is given to officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers. Military parachute training at all levels is provided to the military personnel of all rank in the

Turkish Armed Forces The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF; , TSK) are the armed forces, military forces of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey. The TAF consist of the Turkish Army, Land Forces, the Turkish Navy, Naval Forces and the Turkish Air Force, Air Forces. The Chief of ...

only by this brigade. In addition, contract soldiers and conscripts receive basic military and commando basic training. Training periods vary between 3 weeks for basic military training, 5 weeks for commando basic training and 3 to 9 weeks for military parachute training.

Structure

The composition and size of this brigade is different from other commando formation of the Turkish Army. There are: * 4 Commando Battalions * 1 Airborne Battalion * 1 Artillery Battalion * 1 Logistics Support Battalion * 1 Training Battalion * 1 Training Support Battalion

Losses

As of 10 June 2015, the 1st Commando Brigade has a total of 342 killed in action, of which 76 are in the Cyprus Peace Operation and 235 in the Homeland Security Operation.

Gallery

File:Turkish soldiers repel from helicopter 5392555.jpg, Two Turkish commandos propel from an S-70 utility helicopter in support of ground combat operations during the culminating event of Exercise Erciyes

References