Operational Response Group
Encyclopedia
The Operational Response Group is a police tactical group
of the Australian Federal Police
and part of the AFP's International Deployment Group (IDG) able to support the AFP in both National and International tactical operations..
, Honiara
. The ORT was soon renamed the Operational Response Group and expanded to fulfill further operations and roles to support the AFP in 2006.
and international crisis, both nationally and internationally within 24 to 48 hours.
The Operational Response Group is defined as a police tactical group
within the National Counter-Terrorism Committee arrangements providing the Australian Federal Government an offshore specialist and tactical policing response capability. The unit provides similar capabilities to the AFP's Specialist Response and Security Team but focused on national and international deployments outside of the Australian Capital Territory for which the SRS has primary responsibility. The ORG was created to enhance the operational policing capabilities of the AFP's International Deployment Group (IDG) operating in the Pacific region.
Within Australia
Police Tactical Group
Police tactical groups , formerly known as "police assault groups", are part of the Australian government's National Anti-Terrorism Plan which, since 1978, has required each state and territory police force to maintain a specialised counter-terrorist and hostage rescue unit jointly funded by the...
of the Australian Federal Police
Australian Federal Police
The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...
and part of the AFP's International Deployment Group (IDG) able to support the AFP in both National and International tactical operations..
History
In January 2005 the Australian Federal Police created what was then known as the Operational Response Team (ORT), a unit of specialist tactical police able to response and assist AFP officers engaged in overseas deployments as part of the International Deployment Groups response to the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon IslandsRegional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands
The Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands , also known as Operation Helpem Fren, was created in 2003 in response to a request for international aid by the Governor-General of the Solomon Islands...
, Honiara
Honiara
Honiara, population 49,107 , 78,190 , is the capital of the Solomon Islands and of Guadalcanal Province, although it is a separately administered town...
. The ORT was soon renamed the Operational Response Group and expanded to fulfill further operations and roles to support the AFP in 2006.
Mission
The Operational Response Group is the Australian Federal Police permanent specialist tactical and stability policing capability able to rapidly respond to civil disorderCivil disorder
Civil disorder, also known as civil unrest or civil strife, is a broad term that is typically used by law enforcement to describe one or more forms of disturbance caused by a group of people. Civil disturbance is typically a symptom of, and a form of protest against, major socio-political problems;...
and international crisis, both nationally and internationally within 24 to 48 hours.
The Operational Response Group is defined as a police tactical group
Police Tactical Group
Police tactical groups , formerly known as "police assault groups", are part of the Australian government's National Anti-Terrorism Plan which, since 1978, has required each state and territory police force to maintain a specialised counter-terrorist and hostage rescue unit jointly funded by the...
within the National Counter-Terrorism Committee arrangements providing the Australian Federal Government an offshore specialist and tactical policing response capability. The unit provides similar capabilities to the AFP's Specialist Response and Security Team but focused on national and international deployments outside of the Australian Capital Territory for which the SRS has primary responsibility. The ORG was created to enhance the operational policing capabilities of the AFP's International Deployment Group (IDG) operating in the Pacific region.
Organisation
The ORG consists of a number of specialist sub-units including:- Tactical response teams,
- Stability response teams,
- Operational Support Unit (which includes)
- Maritime Unit,
- Marksman Reconnaissance Team,
- Tactical Intelligence Unit,
- Communications Response Team,
- Air Support Unit.
Principal role
The ORG provides the AFP with a specialist tactical policing capability which includes the following roles , :- effect high risk searches, search warrants and arrests,
- support to public order policing,
- remote rural patrols,
- protection of people in high risk situations,
- support to the security of members deployed to mission (such as RAMSI),
- advanced training in specialist weaponry and less lethal capabilities,
- rapid response for containment and restoration of civil disorder,
- tactical negotiations, communications and marine operations support,
- remote and covert surveillance,
- prison-riot response and
- major civil-disorder interventions.
Deployments
Overseas- Since 2005 the Operational Response Group has provided tactical police to assist the Australian Federal Police contingent with the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI).
- In 2006 ORG deployed to TongaTongaTonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
in response to rioting and civil disorder.
- In 2008 the ORG deployed to East TimorEast TimorThe Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, commonly known as East Timor , is a state in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island, within Indonesian West Timor...
, in response to a request for assistance from the Government of East Timor after the assassination attempts on the President and Prime Minister.
Within Australia
- February 2009 the AFP deployed 60 members of the Operational Response Group to assist the Victoria PoliceVictoria PoliceVictoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of Victoria, Australia. , the Victoria Police has over 12,190 sworn members, along with over 400 recruits, reservists and Protective Service Officers, and over 2,900 civilian staff across 393 police stations.-Early history:The Victoria Police...
in the aftermath of the Black Saturday bushfires , .