Reports: Germany Revamping Elite Army Unit over Extremism

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Reports: Germany Revamping Elite Army Unit over Extremism
By: The Associated Press Daily News - 07-01-20
Re: https://www.military.com/daily-news/...-extremism.htm

BERLIN — Germany’s defense minister reportedly plans to restructure the country’s special forces unit after numerous allegations of far-right extremism.

Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has called a news conference for Wednesday to talk about a “structural analysis” of the Kommando Spezialkraefte, or KSK, unit, following up on an analysis she ordered in May.

Her office wouldn’t immediately provide further details, but Die Welt newspaper reported Tuesday that she plans to announce structural reforms of the unit, including the dissolution of one of its four combat companies that has been the center of extremism allegations. Die Welt and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported about 70 soldiers would be affected.

In a tweet, the Defense Ministry said the “affected unit and its personnel” had been informed and that further details would be released at Kramp—Karrenbauer's news conference.

Part of Germany’s Bundeswehr military, the KSK was formed as an army unit in 1996 with a focus on anti-terrorism operations and hostage rescues from hostile areas. It has served in Afghanistan and the Balkans and its operations are kept secret.

Military investigators have been looking into the unit since a group of public German broadcasters reported in 2017 that at a going-away party, members displayed the Hitler salute, listened to right-wing extremist music and participated in a game that involved tossing a pig’s head. In January, the military reported 20 soldiers are under suspicion of being right-wing extremists.

In May, the head of the unit, Brig. Gen. Markus Kreitmayr, told soldiers that he wouldn’t tolerate extremism in the ranks.

In a related move, Kramp-Karrenbauer has proposed legislation that would allow the military to more swiftly expel soldiers if their continued presence would “seriously threaten the military order or the reputation of the Bundeswehr.”

Note: This article was written by The Associated Press from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.
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2nd Note: What are Covert Operations: A covert operation is a military operation intended to conceal the identity of the sponsor and intended to create a political effect which can have implications in the military, intelligence or law enforcement arenas—affecting either the internal population of a country or individuals outside it. (aka Spies? Wrong Doer's?)

Or: A National Clandestine Operation: (*NCS or **CIA): The National Clandestine Service (*) NCS) is the undercover arm of the (**) Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the authority on all clandestine operations throughout the world that concerns the nation's intelligence community. The (**) CIA's elite corps of experts is called upon to conduct clandestine missions worldwide.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ditional note(s):

(**) The CIA’s elite corps of experts is called upon to conduct clandestine missions worldwide. This is accomplished by collecting human intelligence (HUMINT) that is then used by the President, senior policymakers, and the military in strategic decision-making. This supports the CIA’s mission to strengthen national security and foreign policy objectives through the collection of human intelligence and covert action.

(*) Paramilitary Operations Officers

Paramilitary operations officers work within the NCS’s Special Activities Division, which is responsible for raids, ambushes, unconventional warfare, and sabotage. It is common for the CIA’s paramilitary operations officers to be chosen from some of the U.S. military’s most respected groups, including the Naval Special Warfare Development Group and other SEAL teams, the Army special forces, the U.S. Army Rangers, and the United States Marine Corps Special Forces Special Operations battalions.

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It goes to say they both overlap and often times work together on specific assignments.

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