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Alpha Group

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Spetsgruppa A
ActiveSince July 28, 1974
CountrySoviet Union (1974-1991)
Russian Federation (1991-present)
AllegianceRussian Federation
BranchSpetsnaz
Federal Security Service
TypeSpecial Forces
RoleCounter-terrorism, Special Operations
Sizeconsidered about 1000
Part ofFederal Security Service (Russia)
Garrison/HQMainly, different Moscow Districts.
Nickname(s)"Spetsgruppa A", "Alfa", "Spetsgruppa Alfa"
ColorsBlue
Mascot(s)Letter A
EngagementsSoviet War in Afghanistan
First Chechen War
Second Chechen War
2008 South Ossetia War
Civil War in Tajikistan
East Prigorodny conflict
War in Abkhazia
1993 Russian constitutional crisis
Invasion of Dagestan
Russo-Georgian War
Insurgency in the North Caucasus
DecorationsHero of the Russian Federation

Alpha Group (also called the Alfa Group or Spetsgruppa A) is an elite, stand-alone component of Russia's special forces and the dedicated counter-terrorism task-force of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB). Alpha Group is organized under the "A" Directorate of the FSB Special Operations Center (TsSN FSB), and specifically given the task of responding, preventing, and thwarting acts of terrorism. Regional deployments to conflict-prone areas (such as Chechnya) are common. Although little is known about the exact nature of its primary directives, it is speculated that the unit is authorized to act under the direct control and sanction of Russia's top political leadership, similar in practice to the "B" Directorate's secretive Vympel unit, making it at once available for expanded police duties, essentially paramilitary applications, and/or additional covert operations.

History

Soviet Union

On the orders of Yuri Andropov, then Chairman of the KGB, Group A, or "Alfa Group," was created on 28 July 1974 in the aftermath of the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics. By attaching a Spetsnaz unit to the office of the First Chief Directorate, it was hoped that the Soviet Union's defensive capacity against terrorist attack would increase significantly. Initially, this special-purposed counter-terrorism unit was involved in delicate operations that necessitated its members' unique skill set, such as the 1983 hijacking of Aeroflot Flight 6833. Soon, however, this newly constituted task force was assigned missions that far exceeded its traditional scope,[1] including the 1985 arrest of the CIA spy Adolf Tolkachev.

Arguably, the group's most notable mission during the Soviet period occurred on 27 December 1979, when Soviet forces launched a surprise attack on the home of Hafizullah Amin, President of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, at Tajbeg Palace. Given the operational name Storm-333 and involving a combination of Spetsnaz, GRU, KGB, and Soviet paratroopers were a total of 24 men from the «Гром» ("Thunder") detachment of Alpha Group.[2] According to Russian sources the members of this special-purposed and highly-trained unit performed remarkably well and lost only two men; the lightest casualties of all forces involved in the raid.[3] The operation itself was also a decisive strategic victory, as Soviet forces were able to secure important governmental institutions such as Ministry of the Interior, the headquarters of the Government Information Agency (KHAD), Darul Aman Palace, and successfully eliminated President Amin. However, the success of Storm-333 also marked the beginning of the Soviet War in Afghanistan, and subsequently, Alpha Group's extensive involvement throughout it.

Tajbeg Palace, where Operation Storm-333 took place.

Almost six years later, in October 1985, Alpha Group would be dispatched to Beirut, Lebanon after the Kremlin was informed that four Soviet diplomats had been taken hostage by a Sunni extremist group. By the time Alpha was on-site, word had spread that one of the hostages had already been killed. Through a network of supporting KGB operatives, members of the task-force were able to successfully identify each of the perpetrators involved in the crisis, and once discovered, began to take the individual relatives of the extremists hostage. Following the standard Soviet policy of "no negotiation with terrorists," the hostages belonging to Alpha Group had some of their body parts cut off and sent directly to the Sunni militants. The warning was quite clear: more would follow unless the remaining hostages were released immediately. The show of force worked, and for a period of 20 years[4] no Soviet or Russian officials were taken captive until the 2006 abduction and murder of four Russian embassy staff members in Iraq. However, the veracity of this story is open to debate. Russian journalist Vyzcheslav Lashkul has denied Alpha Group's involvement in the practice of torture, and instead claims that the release of the Soviet hostages was the result of extensive diplomatic negotiations with the alleged backer of the hostage-takers, Hezbollah spiritual leader Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah.[5]

On March 11, 1990, the Supreme Council of the Lithuanian SSR made public its intent to secede from the Soviet Union and re-establish the independent Republic of Lithuania. As a result of this pronouncement, on 9 January 1991, the Soviet Union dispatched the Alpha Group to quell the nationalist uprising and maintain Lithuania's status as a satellite state. However, this attempt to re-establish Soviet dominance culminated in the bloody seizure of the State Radio and Television Building as well as the Vilnius TV Tower on 13 January 1991. The resulting violence injured an estimated 1,000 Lithuanian civilians, killing at least fourteen of them, and also caused the death of one operative from Alpha Group.

1991 Soviet Coup Attempt

On 20 August, during the events of the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, Major General Viktor Karpukhin, Alpha Group's commanding officer and decorated Hero of the Soviet Union was, by the oral command of KGB Chairman Vladimir Kryuchkov, tasked with forcibly entering the White House, Russia's acting parliament at the time, after a planned assault on the entrance by paratroopers, in order to kill Boris Yeltsin and various other leaders assembled there. In addition to Alpha Group, General Karpukhin was also given authority of Vega Group (Vympel), elements of the Soviet Airborne, internal security units of the Dzerzhinsky Division (OMSDON), mobilized units of the Moscow OMON, three tank companies, and a squadron of helicopters. On-site analysis of the area was conducted by General Karapuhkin, Airborne deputy commander General Alexander Lebed, and other senior officers who mingled with the crowds nearest to the White House. There seems to be a general consensus among the military officials who gathered that day, as evidenced by their statements some months after the botched coup attempt, that had they followed through on their endeavor it would have succeeded. The stated mission objectives could have been reached in no more than half-an-hour, but it would have come at a terrible human cost.[6] Shortly after their assessment was made, General Viktor Karpukhin and Colonel Boris Beskov, the commanders of Alpha and Vega Groups respectively, tried to convince KGB General Gennady Ageyev that such a massive undertaking should be cancelled, as it would result in unnecessary loss-of-life.[7][8][9][10]

Russian Federation

According to some Russian security sources, Alpha Group was "degraded" and demoralized by the political manipulation it suffered in the vicious political battles that surrounded the eventual dissolution and collapse of the Soviet Union. The KGB wished to use the organization in its hardline campaign against Mikhail Gorbachev in 1991, and the first elected President of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin, was also guilty of using it to shell the White House in Moscow during the constitutional crisis of 1993.[11] Following the crisis, both Alpha Group and Vega Group (Vympel) were briefly put under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD).[12]

Today, Alpha Group is still an elite faction utilized by the government of the Russian Federation in its official capacity as a dedicated counter-terrorism unit. However, several actions in the recent past, considered as highly controversial by the western public, have somewhat tarnished Alpha Group's image abroad, making the organization especially susceptible to criticism when the issue revolves around hostages lives. Examples of this include the employment of an unknown chemical agent to assist Alpha Group operators end the Moscow Theater Hostage Crisis in 2002, resulting in elimination of the hostage takers and the deaths of an additional 129 hostages due to badly organized medical treatment afterwards,[13] yet was hailed by members of the organization as "our first successful operation for years."[14] Since 1995, Alpha Group has also been involved in both the First Chechen War between 1994–96, as well as the Second Chechen War between 1999-2009. Many say however, that Alpha Group's reputation was restored after their performance in the Beslan school hostage crisis. In which many survivors, and relatives of, were grateful that the men of Alpha Group were there to save the hostages. Though many media and other political allegations arose, most have been dubbed filled with "western bias".

Reputation

Alpha Groups reputation has been somewhat mixed. Though they have been under scrutiny before due to brutality, they are also marked with one of the highest hostage rescue counts of a special unit in the world. The Moscow theater hostage crisis has marked Alpha as capable of putting hostages in danger to complete a mission. However, many accusations against Alpha Group on this matter are heavily misguided as it is unknown as to whether or not Alpha activated any poison gases as this could have been done by other government units.

Commanders of Alpha Group

File:Beslan-spetznaz.jpg
Alpha Group soldiers during the Beslan school hostage crisis

Special Purpose Service

The SPS is an elite spetsnaz unit under command of the FSB. They remain possibly the most secretive special operations force in the world. Though not much is known about them, it is known that they are elite bodyguards for government officials, and are used frequently in battle. Similar units include Cascade, Omega, and Zenith. All of which answer to the FSB.

The SPS generally pick their members from the Spetsnaz GRU, Vympel, and Alpha Group.

Training

Alpha units train similar to that of British SAS, the French GIGN, and other counter-terrorism forces across the world, but the Soviet KGB wanted them to be different from western units. Their training involves characteristics of the Spetsnaz GRU, including trying to teach the operatives to "absorb" pain.

Nowadays, it is about the same, except for the less brutality in their units. In Soviet times, they were trained to put the mission before their comrades. Today, it is the opposite.

They are trained in climbing and rappelling, marksmanship, hostage rescue, demolition, biological, radiological and chemical warfare, parachuting, underwater tactics being able to operate any vehicle that can be used, door-to-door combat, breach and clear room tactics, operating in any environment, and negotiating. Alpha tends to have a "we don't negotiate with terrorists" approach with their missions. But in cases such as the Beslan school hostage crisis, the negotiating was not mainly involving Alpha.

Uniforms

Alpha Group wears usually black clothing with modern day technology attachments on them, including night vision goggles, weapons packs, grenade holsters, ballistic knives, saperka shovels, etc. Alpha can also wear uniforms similar to that of common ground forces, matching any environment that they are in. Uniforms that they wear when off the battlefield would be similar to that of Russian Airborne Troops.

Alpha units can also use face masks to avoid identification, and large helmets that usually have face protection. They use Sfera helmets and modernized SSh-68s, which are being replaced by the new Borit-M helmet.

Weapons

Even though Alpha is very similar to the Spetsnaz GRU, they use more modern weaponry. However, the saperka shovel, and the ballistic knife are both still used by Alpha and most Russian special forces.

Alpha will be issued the Ak-12 once it is finished production, but currently us the Ak-74m and other Ak-74 variants. They also use the compact and bull pup A-91 and OTs-14. The AN-94 assault rifle, which is given mainly to more important parts of the Russian military, is frequently used by Alpha.

The main light machine gun used by Alpha is the PKP Pecheneg, but is used for more open areas instead of close quarters combat.

The smaller SR-3 Vikhr is used for door to door combat due to it's small stature and attachment accessibility. Other submachine guns used by Alpha and most of Russian spetsnaz are the PP-19 Bizon and the PP-2000.

The Makarov pistol is their main handgun, even though the MP-443 Grach is more modern. The MP-443 Grach does however have production problems, making it hard for Alpha to get.

Alpha's main shotgun is the Saiga-12, which is utilized to blast down doors, or as a fighting weapon.

Sniper rifles used by Alpha are the Dragunov SVU and the VSK-94

Alpha divers use the APS, which is the first and only underwater assault rifle ever made, along with the SPP-1 underwater pistol.

  • The political-simulation video game Republic: The Revolution features the Alpha Squad, first as an action taken by the corrupt President of Novistrana against the "Democracy Now" party, and then against his most dangerous enemies. Later in the game, it becomes an action that can be used by the player's character, as long as his level is high enough. Alpha Squad members dress entirely in black, and wear gas masks. They also carry weapons.
  • In the 2010 film Predators by Nimrod Antal, Oleg Taktarov portrays Nikolai, a commando from the Spetsnaz Alpha Group who was fighting in the Second Chechen War before finding himself on the alien planet.
  • The video game ALFA: Antiterror was developed by Russian game developer MiST Land South in 2005.
  • A character named Sergei was included in Andy McNab's novel Firewall, who was mentioned as being a former member of Alpha Force.
  • The video game Medal of Honor Warfighter focuses on international special mission units and includes Alpha Group as a playable faction in the game.

Notes

  1. ^ The End of the KGB by Jonathan Littell
  2. ^ Template:Ru icon Article on Storm-333 at VPK-news.ru
  3. ^ Template:Ru icon Baikal-79 by A. Lyakhovskiy
  4. ^ Davies, pg. 108.
  5. ^ A Soviet intelligence operation in Beirut (Russian)
  6. ^ Satter, David, "Age of Delirium: The Decline and Fall of the Soviet Union," pg. 18.
  7. ^ Template:Ru icon September 1991 internal KGB report on the involvement of KGB in the coup
  8. ^ Template:Ru icon "Novaya Gazeta" No. 51 of 23 July 2001 (extracts from the indictment of the conspirators)
  9. ^ Template:Ru icon Timeline of the events, by Artem Krechnikov, Moscow BBC correspondent
  10. ^ "Argumenty i Facty", 15 August 2001
  11. ^ Botched operation was a disaster waiting to happen, The Guardian, September 4, 2004
  12. ^ The Early Yeltsin Years by Jonathan Littell
  13. ^ Nord-Ost Tragedy Goes On, Moscow News 2004 N.41 – a discussion of the long-term effects of the anesthetic on the surviving hostages
  14. ^ Troops bring freedom and death to theater of blood, The Guardian, October 27, 2002

References

  • Christopher Andrew and Vasili Mitrokhin (1999). The sword and the shield: the Mitrokhin archive and the secret history of the KGB. New York: Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-00310-9., pages 389-391
  • Barry Davies, (2005). The Spycraft Manual: the insider's guide to espionage techniques. Carlton Books Ltd. ISBN 1-84442-577-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
  • David Satter (2001). Age of Delirium: the decline and fall of the Soviet Union. New Haven, Conn: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-08705-5.
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