The Gendarmerie Special Operations () or JÖH, is the

special operations Special operations or special ops are military activities conducted, according to NATO, by "specially designated, organized, selected, trained, and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment." Special operations ma ...

unit of the Turkish

Gendarmerie General Command The Gendarmerie General Command () is the national gendarmerie force of the Republic of Turkey. It is a service branch of the Turkish Ministry of Interior responsible for the maintenance of the public order in areas that fall outside the jurisdi ...

. Its tasks include

search and destroy Seek and destroy (also known as search and destroy, or S&D) is a military strategy which consists of inserting infantry forces into hostile territory and directing them to search and then attack enemy targets before immediately withdrawing. Fi ...

, infiltration, and

reconnaissance In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...

. Members of the unit receive extensive training at the Jandarma School at

Foça Foça is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 251 km2, and its population is 34,946 (2022). The town of Foça is situated at about northwest of İzmir's city center on the Aegean Sea, Aege ...

and also from selected

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 ...

instructors. All three of its companies work under the direction of the army regions to which they are assigned, but can also receive tasking from their headquarters in

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

About

The GSO was established in 1991, at the height of the Turkish–Kurdish conflict. It has recently been involved in the

Turkish occupation of northern Syria The Turkish Armed Forces and its ally the Syrian National Army have Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War, occupied areas of northern Syria since August 2016, during the Syrian civil war. Though these areas nominally acknowledge a governm ...

. Unit members are in the 16-week training rooms at the Gendarmerie Commando Terrorist Operations School Command in

. All kinds of light weapons, mortar use, rocket launcher training, maneuvering under fire, destroying targets, mountaineering, GPS, long distance navigation, camouflage, being able to withstand fatigue and insomnia, making the right decision under stress, adaptation to different climate and geographical situations, fighting in urban areas, explosive recognition and detection, helicopter evacuation, basic helicopter steering, transition through waterways, basic diving, melee combat, survival, boat operations. A person who completes the course becomes a commando. Commando candidates run 300+ kilometers, walk more than 1100+ kilometers and stay in the field for 61 nights. Trainees are expected to complete a 10 kilometer rifle run, a 15 kilometer country run, and a 30 kilometer strength run with full equipment. After the commando training, a sniper course is followed. The Gendarmerie Special Operations course lasts 6 months. The course is organized in Ankara, İzmir and Kayseri with land, air and sea phases. Gendarmerie officers, non-commissioned officers and experts who have received basic gendarmerie commando training can attend the course. Combat training in severe cold in Kayseri or Bolu Basic diving in Ankara In İzmir Foça, the helicopter jump boat operator receives training such as close combat, forestry, airplane-bus-train operations, residential operation, frogman, special operations and Paratrooper. Special operations candidates ran a total of 675+ kilometers under running conditions. At the end of the training, the student will have the ability to plan and conduct special operations in buildings, land, air and railway vehicles in all kinds of terrain and climatic conditions at home and abroad. In Combat Physical Education classes, basic movements such as pull-ups, sit-ups and push-ups are performed. In addition, a training simulation called TAKSİS is conducted by TÜBİTAK. Has at least 20,000 active personnel. JÖHs are like the equivalent of maroon berets in the Turkish Armed Forces.

Units

References

{{TAFSF Special forces of Turkey Gendarmerie (Turkey) Gendarmerie units and formations