Special police units: the ‘men of the first hour’

(KEYSTONE/Marcel Bieri)

Swiss special units were established 50 years ago, thanks to the initiative of a police commander from canton Aargau.

The participants of Switzerland’s first anti-terrorism courses, held half a century ago, call themselves “the men of the first hour”. These pioneers laid the groundwork for special units such as Argus in canton Aargau, Barracuda in Basel Country, and Enzian in canton Bern – units deployed when situations become critical.

“In the past, we had police officers in many places, but coordination was poor,” says Leon Borer, a former police commander in Aargau. “Often, we were deployed alone or in pairs. When a major operation arose, we had to round up officers who weren’t coordinated at all. That posed a significant risk for everyone.”

The Munich attack prompted a rethink

The dangers of inadequate preparation were starkly illustrated during the 1972 Munich Olympics. Palestinian terrorists attacked the Israeli team, turning a hostage situation into a tragedy that ended with the murder of 11 Israeli team members. A police officer and five of the hostage-takers also died.

The Bavarian police were overwhelmed, and media coverage revealed to the world just how badly things had gone wrong.

“It became clear that the police were not prepared for such an attack,” recalls Borer. In response, Swiss authorities sent the young officer to Germany, where he trained for three months with the GSG9 counter-terrorism unit.

Switzerland establishes special units

When Borer presented his report to the Swiss government, it was evident that the country needed its own specialised units. At that time, only Bern had one – the Enzian special unit.

Borer developed a training programme, bringing together hand-picked instructors from police forces across Switzerland. Fifty years ago, they convened in Isone, Ticino, for foundational training – the first nationwide initiative of its kind. “This was crucial for large-scale operations,” says Borer. “Everyone involved was trained in the same tactics and spoke the same language.”

(KEYSTONE/Str)

Special units become standard practice

The value of special units was proven in 1982 during a hostage situation at the Polish embassy in Bern. “The police concealed a small explosive charge with tear gas inside a meal delivery. The element of surprise allowed the unit to storm the building immediately,” explains Borer. “Special units are trained for these kinds of tactical approaches.”

Today, Switzerland has 28 active special units. While their operations are sometimes criticised for being overly aggressive – with detractors dubbing them “Rambo troops” – Borer defends them. “Yes, the units may appear militarised due to their uniforms, but they are trained to act proportionately. The priority is always to prevent harm to anyone.”

Though counter-terrorism missions are rare in Switzerland, these units are frequently called upon for challenging arrests or personal protection, such as at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

What began 50 years ago in response to the Munich attack has become an indispensable part of Swiss policing.

Criticism of special units

The Argus special unit in canton Aargau has already been on trial several times. In September 2023, two police officers were charged with abuse of authority and assault. This was because they allegedly roughly handled an innocent man during an operation in Hunzenschwil.

Five Enzian special unit police officers from canton Bern also have to stand trial. The case concerns a police operation in May 2020 in which the man was allegedly standing in the room with his weapon raised when the special unit stormed in. One of the police officers fired shots killing the 44-year-old Swiss man.

In 2021, the deployment of a special unit of the Zurich city police sparked a lot of criticism. The police officers in full riot gear were deployed at a women’s demonstration and arrested several female demonstrators. They were accused of using pepper spray at close range and behaving aggressively.

Translated from German using DeepL/amva