Diensteinheit IX

Diensteinheit IX
Diensteinheit IX
Active	1973 (Provisional basis)/1974 (Full establishment) – 1990
Country	East Germany
Branch	Ministry for State Security
Type	Special forces
Role	Close protection; Close-quarters combat; Counter-terrorism; Hostage rescue; Law enforcement; Special operation
Size	111 operators
Part of	Under the Ministry for State Security
Garrison/HQ	East Berlin, Germany
Commanders
Notable; commanders	Ernst Fabian

The Diensteinheit IX (English: Service Unit 9) was a special and covert counter-terrorism unit of the German Democratic Republic Volkspolizei. It was not the same as the 9. Volkspolizei-Kompanie (English: 9th People's Police Company).^[1]

History[]

The Munich massacre in 1972 and the increasing crime in East German cities led to initial attempts to create specialized police units in East Germany. With the establishment of the GSG 9 and Spezialeinsatzkommandos (SEK) in the early 1970s in West Germany, the Government of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) initiated the creation of a similar unit. Since no comparable force existed in East Germany at that time, it had to be created from scratch, i.e. from intelligence reports about Western and Soviet special forces units.^[2] The unit had been created in 1973 with provisional units before it was fully established in 1974 by Ernst Fabian with 30 men initially under the unit,^[2] being involved in the security of the Leipzig Fair. The unit was also armed with West German-made small arms and equipment.^[3]

Upon German reunion in 1990, some members of the Diensteinheit IX were merged into the Spezialeinsatzkommandos of West Germany after thorough political evaluation procedures, such as with SEK units in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern^[4] and in Sachsen-Anhalt.^[5]

Mandate[]

The unit was tasked with counter-terrorism operations including:

Hostage rescue
VIP protection
Law enforcement in high-risk situations
Physical security for large events, i.e. the World Festival of Youth and Students
Manhunt of deserted Soviet Soldiers^[2]

Organization[]

The unit answered directly to the Head of the Ministry for State Security.^{[citation needed]}

Recruitment[]

Members of the Diensteinheit IX were recruited from the East German Volkspolizei. Prospective members had to be between 25 and 39 years old. Furthermore, they had to fulfill stringent physical and psychological requirements. Also, they had to be graduates from an officer's school.

Equipment[]

AKM
PM-63 RAK^[1]
PSM pistol
SSG 82 sniper rifle
SVD Dragunov
Heckler & Koch HK33^[6]
Heckler & Koch MP5

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b "DDR - Volkspolizei" (in German). Archived from the original on 2013-12-07. Retrieved 2014-04-28.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c "Nie einen verloren" (in German). Archived from the original on 2014-04-29. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
^ "Kleiner Beitrag". Spiegel Online (in German). Archived from the original on 2010-01-12. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
^ "Spezialeinheiten der Polizei - Mecklenburg-Vorpommern" (in German). SEK Einsatz. Archived from the original on 2012-03-19. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
^ "Spezialeinheiten der Polizei Sachsen-Anhalt" (in German). SEK Team. Archived from the original on 2012-03-30. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
^ "Diensteinheit IX (9. Volkspolizei-Kompanie) - спецназ полиции ГДР. - все про оружие человечества".