OMON (Russia)
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| State level | Federal | ||
| Supervisory body (s) | National Guard | ||
| Consist | since October 3, 1988 | ||
The OMON ( Russian ОМОН for Отряд мобильный особого назначения / Otrjad Mobilny Ossobowo Nasnatschenija - "Mobile Unit of Special Purpose ") is a unit of the Russian National Guard , which, unlike normal police units, is directly subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior . It was founded on October 3, 1988.
The abbreviation OMON originally stood for Отряд милиции особого назначения ( Otrjad Milizii Osobowo Nasnatschenija - "Unit of the militia special purpose"). It received its current importance after the police reform and the discontinuation of the militia in 2011.
history
Under the impression of the hostage-taking of Munich during the 1972 Olympic Games and with a view to its own Olympic Games in Moscow in 1980 , an anti-terrorist unit subordinated to the Ministry of the Interior was founded in 1979 , which in 1987 became part of OMON. The existence of the unit became known in 1993. Her initial uniform was simply black. By 1991, according to various sources, the strength of OMON had been increased to around 5,000 to 9,000 men in 20 departments spread across the entire Soviet Union.
Since the state was in decline at this time, the OMON's operational area initially focused on maintaining public order and suppressing the independence movements of the non-Russian Soviet republics. OMON forces were also involved in raids in the Baltic States . In the wake of Bloody Sunday in Vilnius , seven Lithuanians were killed in an attack by an OMON unit on July 31, 1991 on a newly established border post.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union , the OMON units were subordinated to the respective security authorities of the successor states.
Russian OMON units have recently been repeatedly used by the Vladimir Putin government to break up demonstrations that have resulted in arrests and attacks.
Calls
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- In Lithuania :
On the night of January 12-13, 1991 ( Vilnius Bloody Sunday ), Soviet OMON troops occupied the television tower in Vilnius, the building of the radio and television committee. 14 people were killed and over 1,000 injured during this coup attempt. - In Latvia :
On January 20, 1991, OMON units attacked the Interior Ministry. Two militia members were killed and several civilians were wounded in the defense. In addition, a student who accidentally came into the firing zone and two television reporters died. - In Russia:
- During the hostage-taking of Beslan in September 2004, in addition to the SOBR , OMON forces also provided support. The SOBR is a masked elite unit of the Ministry of the Interior specially trained for the fight against terrorism ; their area of responsibility is comparable to that of the German GSG 9 .
- In spring 2007 the OMON was mainly used against demonstrators at the March of the Dissatisfied in Saint Petersburg and Moscow . A leader of the opposition, the former world chess champion Garry Kasparov , was arrested.
- The OMON / SOBR units are currently being trained for operations in Chechnya and are also deployed there due to a lack of staff.
assignment
The OMON is primarily used for mass events and demonstrations as well as for those critical missions that overwhelm the regular police alone. These are, for example, hostage-taking , the prosecution of organized crime , deployments in the narcotic environment, the transfer of dangerous offenders to courts and prisons and the protection of sensitive facilities.
organization
OMON members wear striking blue-white-gray patterned combat suits and a black beret , they are also known as "black berets". One OMON unit is stationed in each of the sub-republics of the Russian Federation , and the largest cities usually have their own department. The OMON is currently said to have around 20,000 civil servants. The OMON officials receive low wages compared to Western officials. Most of the time, the officers are removed from the task force at the age of 45.
Recruitment and training
All men who have completed their 22nd and have not yet reached their 30th year of life and who have served at least two years in the Russian armed forces are allowed to apply to OMON. There are medical , psychological and fitness tests performed. The four-month basic training is considered particularly tough. At the end of the training there are final stress tests as well as a final exam, in which the applicant competes with boxing gloves against twelve battle-tested men and has to hold out for at least ten minutes. The failure rate until acceptance into the unit averages 80%.
equipment
A special feature of all Russian special police units is that they are equipped like military units; so they have heavy weapons, armored personnel carriers and combat helicopters :
Selection:
- Makarov ( pistol )
- AK-74 ( assault rifle )
- AKS-74 U (compact carabiner version of the AK-74)
- BTR-60 ( armored personnel carrier )
- BTR-70 ( armored personnel carrier )
criticism
OMON officials have been accused of ill-treatment and rape of civilians and extortion of protection money .
During Putin's reign , OMON repeatedly caught the attention of international observers for its rigid actions against apparently unarmed and peaceful opposition members when it violently broke up the demonstrations, some of which were illegal under Russian law.
Pictures had appeared in the local press: While the demonstrators of the pro-government parties were being supplied with tea by uniformed men in the cold, the opposition forces were harassed by OMON units.
Little is known about the attitude of the Russian population towards OMON; no social research on this topic has been published. In security circles, however, the unit has an excellent reputation as a professional anti-terrorist unit.
See also
Web links
- Russian Ministry of Interior (Russian)
- The Federation of American Scientists on the units of the Soviet / Russian Interior Ministry (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Lenta.ru, January 11, 2012
- ↑ Lithuanian Border Guard // Fight for Independence 1990–1991 (English)
- ↑ Page of the Latvian Police Union ( Memento of the original from July 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
