Yamam - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Yamam is an elite Border police, not civilian Police

Police

The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...

counter-terrorism

Counter-terrorism

Counter-terrorism is the practices, tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, militaries, police departments and corporations adopt to prevent or in response to terrorist threats and/or acts, both real and imputed.The tactic of terrorism is available to insurgents and governments...

unit in Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. The Yamam is capable of both hostage-rescue operations and offensive take-over raids against targets in civilian areas. Besides military duties, it also performs SWAT

SWAT

A SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. They are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers...

duties and undercover

Undercover

Being undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...

police work.

History

The Yamam was established in late 1974 after the Ma'alot massacre

Ma'alot massacre

The Ma'alot massacre was a terrorist attack which included a two-day hostage-taking of 115 people which ended in the deaths of over 25 hostages. It began when three armed Palestinian terrorists of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine entered Israel from Lebanon...

, where a failed operation by military special forces units resulted in the 21 children being murdered before the hostage takers were killed. Since hostage rescue in friendly territory is different from that in hostile areas, it was decided to establish an elite civilian force, which develops and practices a special CQB (Close Quarters Battles) doctrine for "counter-terrorism" operations in friendly territory and hostage rescue.

Operational record 1974 – September 2000

Some of the missions known to the public prior to the al-Aqsa Intifada

Al-Aqsa Intifada

The Second Intifada, also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada and the Oslo War, was the second Palestinian uprising, a period of intensified Palestinian-Israeli violence, which began in late September 2000...

are listed below:

March 1978, a Yamam force engaged the terrorists who took over a bus in an event known as the "Coastal Road Massacre
Coastal Road massacre
The Coastal Road massacre of 1978 was an attack involving the hijacking of a bus on Israel's Coastal Highway in which 38 Israeli civilians, including 13 children, were killed, and 71 were wounded. The attack was planned by Abu Jihad and carried out by the PLO faction Fatah...

".
In March 1988, the Yamam was called into action after a group of three Palestinians hijacked a bus full of women returning from work at the Negev Nuclear Research Center
Negev Nuclear Research Center
The Negev Nuclear Research Center is an Israeli nuclear installation located in the Negev desert, about thirteen kilometers to the south-east of the city of Dimona. The purpose of Dimona is widely assumed to be the manufacturing of nuclear weapons, and the majority of defense experts have...

near Dimona
Dimona
Dimona is an Israeli city in the Negev desert, to the south of Beersheba and west of the Dead Sea above the Arava valley in the Southern District of Israel. Its population at the end of 2007 was 33,600.-History:...

, in an incident known as the "Mothers Bus". The Yamam struck, killing all three hijackers, but not managing to prevent three Israeli passengers from being killed.
September 8 1992: Yamam sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....

s shot and killed Eithan more, who killed 4 women in Mental Health clinic
Clinic
A clinic is a health care facility that is primarily devoted to the care of outpatients...

in Jerusalem.
May 3, 1994: Yamam sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....

s shot and killed armed man in Uzi Meshoolam's compound after he shot at a police helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...

.
On 3 March 2000, the Yamam captured an armed group hidden in the Israeli–Arab town of Tayibe
Tayibe
Tayibe is an Israeli Arab city in central Israel, 12 kilometers east of Kfar Saba. In 2007, it had a population of 36,800. Tayibe is part of the Triangle.-History:...

with the aid of Sayeret Duvdevan and an IDF Caterpillar D9
IDF Caterpillar D9
The Israeli Armored CAT D9 — nicknamed Doobi — is a Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer that was modified by the Israel Defence Forces, Israeli Military Industries and Israel Aerospace Industries to increase the survivability of the armored bulldozer in hostile environments and enable it...

bulldozer
Bulldozer
A bulldozer is a crawler equipped with a substantial metal plate used to push large quantities of soil, sand, rubble, etc., during construction work and typically equipped at the rear with a claw-like device to loosen densely-compacted materials.Bulldozers can be found on a wide range of sites,...

. In the end of the raid, one man was arrested and four were killed.

Operational record during the Second Intifada

During the Second Intifada, under the Shin Bet's command, Yamam forces intercepted many terrorists, either by arresting them or killing them. Several high profile terrorists were killed by Yamam operators. Often, when the wanted Palestinian militants barricaded inside a building, Yamam force put a siege on it while IDF Caterpillar D9

IDF Caterpillar D9

The Israeli Armored CAT D9 — nicknamed Doobi — is a Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer that was modified by the Israel Defence Forces, Israeli Military Industries and Israel Aerospace Industries to increase the survivability of the armored bulldozer in hostile environments and enable it...

armored bulldozer

Armored bulldozer

The armored bulldozer is a basic tool of combat engineering. These combat engineering vehicles combine the earth moving capabilities of the bulldozer with armor which protects the vehicle and its operator in or near combat. Most are civilian bulldozers modified by addition of vehicle armor/military...

s forced them out by razing the structure.

Honors and awards

In October 2010 the elite unit YAMAM of the Israeli Police won the "Urban Shield" SWAT competition held by the Alameda County Sheriff's Office setting a new record in the competition.

In October 2011 the elite unit YAMAM of the Israeli Police won the "Urban Shield" SWAT competition held by the Alameda County Sheriff's Office again.

Name and structure

In Israel the Yamam is also known as the "Unit for Counter-Terror Warfare" . It is subordinate to the Ministry of Internal Security central command and is part of the civilian Israel Police

Israel Police

The Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...

force, specifically the Israel Border Police

Israel Border Police

The Israel Border Police is the gendarmerie and border security branch of the Israel National Police. It is also commonly known by its Hebrew abbreviation Magav , meaning border guard, whilst its members are colloquially known as Magavnikim . Border Guard is often used as the official name of the...

. Its operators and officers are professional policemen on payroll, usually with infantry experience from their military service within the Israel Defense Forces

Israel Defense Forces

The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...

. Yamam recruits its members exclusively from Israeli units.

Responsibilities

The unit is primarily responsible for civilian hostage rescue within Israel's borders, but from about the mid-1990s it has also been used for tasks such as arresting police suspects who have barricaded themselves in structures and requiring specialized extraction methods, as well as in personal security for VIPs and in counter-terror operations within the West Bank

West Bank

The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...

and Gaza Strip

Gaza Strip

thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...

. The Yamam are schooled in basic Arabic

Arabic language

Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...

and dress to assimilate within the Arab population to avoid detection in order to carry out raids to arrest those suspected of conducting terrorist activities within Israel.

However, most of the Yamam's activity is classified, and published Yamam operations are often credited to other units.

Organisation

The Yamam has around 200 officers, and consists a headquarters element, an intelligence section and a small team responsible for the development of new operational techniques and testing new equipment. Aside from these central elements, the bulk of the unit is divided into a number of sections, each consisting of five teams, each containing operators with a particular specialization, so that the section includes within its numbers all the elements needed for a successful operation: roping team, entry team, medic team, sniping team, dog team, EOD team (demolition and bomb disposal). Thus, whereas an IDF special forces operation needs to assemble elements from different specialist units, in Yamam, they are all permanently part of the same unit, living, training and operating together.

Officers

Applicants for Yamam must be between 22 and 30 years old and must have completed their three-year infantry service in the IDF with a level 7 of IDF training or higher, although no previous police experience is required. Unlike American SWAT teams, the YAMAM is a professional unit with only combat duties and no other police type work. The selection process includes a "hell week" said to be one of the hardest in the world. This level of difficulty is achieved because all the applicants are already seasoned combat soldiers, like the US Delta force. The skills they are looking for in every candidate are: intelligence, physical fitness, motivation, trustworthiness, accountability, maturity, stability, judgment, decisiveness, teamwork, influence, and communication. Training lasts 6 months and is carried out in the unit's own training center, although some use is made of the facilities at the IDF Counter Terror Warfare School (LOTAR, Unit 707.) The course is divided into a three-month general CT training period at the end of which recruits are selected for their specialization and then concentrate for the remaining four months on that specialization. Upon graduation, individuals are posted to fill gaps in the sections. Yamam considers that it has several advantages over the IDF counter-terror units, first, because the men are more mature, most in their mid 30's and early 40's, and spend much longer in the unit than the equivalent military units, and, second, because the units contain a far broader range of ages and experience.

The Yamam is self-dependent, training its own operators in all fields, such as sniping

Sniper

A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....

, reconnaissance, dog operating, bomb disposal

Bomb disposal

Bomb disposal is the process by which hazardous explosive devices are rendered safe. Bomb disposal is an all encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functions in the following fields:*Military:...

, etc. As a result, the Yamam has a rapid deployment time and high coordination between various squads (sniping squad, entry team, engagement force, etc.).

Equipment

Glock-17 Pistol
Glock-19 Pistol
Glock-26 back-up weapon
Tavor TAR-21 Assault Rifle in all versions
Para Micro-Uzi
M4 carbine
M4 carbine
The M4 carbine is a family of firearms tracing its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 designed by Eugene Stoner and made by ArmaLite. It is a shorter and lighter variant of the M16A2 assault rifle, with 80% parts commonality.It is a gas-operated,...
Remington 870
Remington 870
The Remington Model 870 is a U.S.-made pump-action shotgun manufactured by Remington Arms Company, Inc. It is widely used by the public for sport shooting, hunting, and self-defense. It is also commonly used by law enforcement and military organizations worldwide.-Development:The Remington 870 was...

Combat Shotgun
M24 Sniper Weapon System