The Special Forces Regiment (SF) ( Sinhala: විශේෂ බලකාය ''Visēsha Balakāya'';) is a

special forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

unit of the

Sri Lanka Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; ...

. Founded in 1986 as a combat tracker team, it was established as a

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

in 1988, and later expanded into a

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

. The unit specialises in a number of roles including

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

direct action Direct action is a term for economic and political behavior in which participants use agency—for example economic or physical power—to achieve their goals. The aim of direct action is to either obstruct a certain practice (such as a governm ...

and

covert Secrecy is the practice of hiding information from certain individuals or groups who do not have the "need to know", perhaps while sharing it with other individuals. That which is kept hidden is known as the secret. Secrecy is often controver ...

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 ...

. Much like the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...

, much of the information about the SF is highly

classified Classified may refer to: General *Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive *Classified advertising or "classifieds" Music *Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper * The Classified, a 1980s American ro ...

due to the secrecy and sensitivity of its operations. The Sri Lanka Army Special Forces Regiment is considered one of the best Special Forces divisions in the world, ranked as the third most dangerous Special Forces Unit in the world. The Special Forces Regiment currently consists of four regular battalions organized into the Special Forces Brigade, under the operational command of I Corps forming its Special Operations Force along with the Commando Brigade.

History

With the escalation of the Sri Lankan Civil War in the mid 1980's the Sri Lanka Army formed a "Combat Tracker Team" in 1985 to conduct

and

against

LTTE The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; , ; also known as the Tamil Tigers) was a Tamil militant organization, that was based in the northern and eastern Sri Lanka. The LTTE fought to create an independent Tamil state called Tamil Eelam ...

units operating in the thick jungles in the northern part of the island in small groups. At its inception this unit was made up of two officers and 38 men under the command of Major

Gamini Hettiarachchi Gamini Chandrakirthi Hettiarachchi (24 July 1950 – 27 May 2019) () was an actor in Sri Lankan cinema, stage drama and television. Personal life Hettiarachchi was born on 24 July 1950 as the sixth of the family with ten siblings for Stanley A ...

from the

Sri Lanka Armoured Corps The Sri Lanka Armoured Corps (SLAC) provides the armour capability of the Sri Lanka Army, with vehicles such as the T-55#Modernization, T-55AM2 main battle tank; the BMP development, BMP infantry fighting vehicle; and the BTR-80 and WZ551 armoured ...

. The Combat Tracker Team became the reconnaissance element of the short lived Special Service Group (SSG) and was renamed as the Rapid Deployment Force (RDF) (Special Force) in 1985 which operated independently, during which time Lieutenant (later Colonel) A. F. Lafir joined the RDF from the

Gajaba Regiment The Gajaba Regiment (GR) is an elite infantry regiment of the Sri Lankan Army. Formed on 14 October 1983 at the Saliyapura Camp in Anuradhapura, it is named after the famous Sinhalese King Gajabahu the First. It consists of 14 regular battali ...

. Following several successful operations, the RDF was gradually expanded to four squadrons. On 10 December 1988, the RDF (SF) was officially designated as the 1 Special Forces Regiment (1 SF) Naula in the Central province under the command of Major G. Hettiarachchi. With the view of increasing its mobility and stroke capacity 1 SF formed Combat Rider Team with assistance from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. The 2 Special Forces Regiment (2 SF) was formed on 18 February 1994 at Monkey Bridge Camp in

Trincomalee Trincomalee (; , ; , ), historically known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee District and major resort port city of Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. Located on the east coast o ...

with detached B, D, and E squadrons of 1 SF under the command of Major Raj Wijesiri. 2 SF soon raised a Combat Diver Team to specializing in

amphibious warfare Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conduc ...

and later moved to Nayaru on the eastern seaboard. On 18 July 1996 the 25 Brigade HQ of the Sri Lanka Army at its base at Mullaitivu came under attack in what is known as the Battle of Mullaitivu. 1SF and 2SF were dropped by helicopter to spearhead in the rescue operation which reached the base on 23 July. Both units suffered heavy casualties including the commanding officer of 1SF, Lieutenant Colonel A. F. Lafir who was posthumously awarded the

Parama Weera Vibhushanaya __NOTOC__ The Parama Weera Vibhushanaya (PWV) ( Sinhala: පරම වීර වීභූෂණය ''parama vīra vibhūṣaṇaya''; Tamil: பரம வீர விபுஷனைய) is Sri Lanka's highest military decoration, awarded for ac ...

. In August 1996, the 3 Special Forces Regiment (3 SF) was formed with personal from the other two SF regiments to develop amphibious warfare capability to counter activity of the

Sea Tigers The Sea Tigers (Tamil: கடற்புலிகள் ''Kaţaṛpulikaḷ'') was the naval wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the Sri Lankan Civil War. It was founded in 1984. The Sea Tigers had a number of small but ...

, it was soon re-tasked to carryout

long-range penetration A long-range penetration patrol, group, or force is a special operations unit capable of operating long distances behind enemy lines far away from direct contact with friendly forces as opposed to a Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol, a small group ...

missions in deep into LTTE controlled areas. This resulted in the start of

Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol A long-range reconnaissance patrol, or LRRP, is a small, well-armed reconnaissance team that patrols deep into enemy-held territory.Ankony, Robert C., ''Lurps: A Ranger's Diary of Tet, Khe Sanh, A Shau, and Quang Tri,'' revised ed., Rowman & Li ...

(LRRP) concept in September 1996 with 3 SF based at

Vavuniya Vavuniya (, ) is a city in Vavuniya District in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. The municipality is administered by an Municipal Council. The town has been known since ancient times, but being a heavily forested area, less than 100,000 people ...

under the command of Major

Mahesh Senanayake General N.U.M. Mahesh W. Senanayke, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP is a retired Sri Lankan Army senior officer who served as the Commander of the Sri Lanka Army from 2017 to 2019. Senanayake had previously been the Commander, Security Forces Headquarte ...

. 3 SF rescinded J and K Squadrons and created M Squadron. In December 1996, the Special Forces Brigade was formed bringing 1SF, 2SF and 3SF under its operational command. On 15 June 2008, 4 Special Forces Regiment (4 SF) was raised at SF Training School in

Maduru Oya The Maduru Oya is a major stream in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka. It is approximately in length. Its catchment area receives approximately 3,060 million cubic metres of rain per year, and approximately 26 percent of the water reaches ...

under the command of Major J.P.C. Peiris support the demands of the new northern offensive.

Organisation

The Special Forces Regiment consists of four regular battalions. The Regimental Headquarter which includes the Regimental Centre and the Regimental Headquarter Battalion handles administration while the four regular battalions are organised into the Special Forces Brigade (SF BDE) which comes under the operational command of I Corps.

Formations

* Special Forces Brigade (SF BDE) ** 1st Special Forces Regiment (1 SF) - specialists in high mobility direct action *** C Squadron *** F Squadron *** G Squadron *** J Squadron *** Combat Rider Squadron *** Support Squadron *** Administrative Squadron ** 2nd Special Forces Regiment (2 SF) - specialists in

amphibious Amphibious means able to use either land or water. In particular it may refer to: Animals * Amphibian, a vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia (many of which live on land and breed in water) * Amphibious caterpillar * Amphibious fish, a fish ...

, small boat and

underwater demolition Underwater demolition is the deliberate destruction or neutralization of man-made or natural underwater obstacles, both for military and civilian purposes. History Charles Pasley In 1839 Charles Pasley, at the time a colonel of the Royal Engine ...

. *** B Squadron *** D Squadron *** E Squadron *** H Squadron *** Combat Diving Squadron *** Support Squadron *** Administrative Squadron ** 3rd Special Forces Regiment (3 SF) - specialists in

long range reconnaissance A long-range reconnaissance patrol, or LRRP, is a small, well-armed reconnaissance team that patrols deep into enemy-held territory.Ankony, Robert C., ''Lurps: A Ranger's Diary of Tet, Khe Sanh, A Shau, and Quang Tri,'' revised ed., Rowman & Lit ...

(LRP) *** M Squadron *** I Squadron *** Support Squadron *** Administrative Squadron ** 4th Special Forces Regiment (4 SF) - specialists in

counter terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to com ...

and

urban warfare Urban warfare is warfare in urban areas such as towns and cities. Urban combat differs from combat in the open at both Military operation, operational and the Military tactics, tactical levels. Complicating factors in urban warfare include the p ...

*** A Squadron *** K Squadron *** L Squadron *** S Squadron *** Urban Fighting Squadron - formed on 16 April 2012 *** Support Squadron *** Administrative Squadron ** 5th Special Forces Regiment (5 SF) - formed in 2009 and disbanded on 1 April 2012.

Recruitment and training

Any member of the Sri Lanka Army can apply for the Special Forces Regiment. Applicants need to pass the 28 day selection course. Candidates who successfully complete this course are then enrolled to complete the basic Special Forces course which lasts between 10–12 months. After graduating the Special Forces course, the candidates are inducted as members of the Special Forces Regiment and are offered training programs of occupational specialities offered by the Regiment.

Training Schools

Special Forces Training School was established on 15 February 1992 and it is conducting the basic and specialized training for all Special Forces personnel. It also conducts special courses to train instructors from other battalions in the Army and has also helped to train Navy Special Boat Squadron personnel and Sri Lanka Air Force Regiment Special Force. * Special Forces Training School - SFTS * Special Forces Combat Diving Training School - SFCDTS * Special Forces Jungle Warfare Training School - SFJWTS

Colors and insignia

Rana Parashuwa

Unlike other regiments in the Sri Lanka Army, the Special Forces Regiment has been awarded

Rana Parashuwa The President's Rana Parashuwa and the Regimental Rana Parashuwa are ceremonial hatchets carried by the Special Forces Regiment that serves as the equivalent of and is carried as the colours. See also * President's Truncheon The President's T ...

which are a ceremonial battle hatchets that represent President's and regimental colors in 2019.

Insignia

The Special Forces Regiment

cap badge A cap badge, also known as head badge or hat badge, is a badge worn on uniform headgear and distinguishes the wearer's nationality and/or organisation. The wearing of cap badges is a convention commonly found among military and police forces, as ...

depicts an Eagle and has been regarded as a symbol of the SF along with the black-colored beret and the

Jolly Roger Jolly Roger was the England, ensign flown by a piracy, pirate ship preceding or during an attack, during the early 18th century (the latter part of the Golden Age of Piracy). The vast majority of such flags flew the motif of a human skull, or � ...

skull-and-crossed-bones arm patch with the "Special Forces" shoulder tab.

Parama Weera Vibhushanaya recipient

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

A.F. Lafir, PWV, RWP,

RSP RSP may refer to: Music * RSP (band), a Japanese hip-hop and R&B group * Rubber Soul Project, a Serbian rock music band Business * Recognised Safety Professional, a designation awarded by the International Institute of Risk & Safety Managemen ...

– Former Commanding Officer of the 1st Regiment Special Forces * Lieutenant Colonel J.A.L Jayasinghe, PWV, WWV, RWP,

– Former Officer Commanding of M Sqn, 3rd Regiment Special Forces. *

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

Ajith Gamage, PWV, RWP,

– Former Officer Commanding of C Sqn *Sergeant

Sugath Chandrasiri Bandara Dissanayake Mudiyanselage Sugath Chandrasiri Bandara, PWV (; died 3 February 2009) was a Sri Lanka Army soldier. He served with the army's elite Special Forces Regiment during Eelam War IV, the final stage of the Sri Lankan Civil War. Chandrasir ...

, PWV - 2nd Special Forces Regiment *Corporal K. Chandana, PWV - 3rd Special Forces Regiment

Notable members

* Major General

- Father of the Special Forces Regiment *

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

- former Commander Of the Army and Special Forces Brigade Commander *Major General Prasanna De Silva - Former Special Forces Brigade Commander *Colonel Raj Vijayasiri, RWP,

- Founder of the Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) Concept for Special Forces and former Special Forces Brigade Commander *Major General Nirmal Dharmaratne -Former Special Forces Brigade Commander * Major General Harendra Ranasinghe – Former Special Forces Brigade Commander * Major General Sujeewa Senarathyapa – Special Forces Brigade Commander

Order of precedence

References

External links

Ministry of Defence Sri LankaSri Lanka Army
{{Authority control Special Forces Regiment Special forces of Sri Lanka Military units and formations established in 1986 1986 establishments in Sri Lanka