Operations

Military operations[edit]

• The SSG was first used in 1965 in the State of Jammu & Kashmir. In an operation codenamed Gibraltar, their aims were continued reconnaissance, sabotage of Indian military facilities and the eventual liberation of Kashmir from Indian control, though the operation was unsuccessful.^[15]
• The SSG led the operation to end the Grand Mosque seizure in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in 1979.^[16]
• In the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 they were once again used, this time to assist regular infantry units and for non-conventional and rescue operations. Pervez Musharraf commanded a company of commandos during the war.^{[citation needed]}
• The SSG was active in Afghanistan in the 1980s during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Also believed to have fought Soviet special forces in direct combat, SSG fought in local dresses, dressed up as Jihadi conducting covert and direct action missions.
• The SSG has worked with the US CIA's Special Activities Division and has been active inside the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) targeting al-Qaeda operatives for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Predator strikes.^[17] These strikes have led to what has been described as highly successful counter-terrorism operations.^[18][19]
• In Operation Black Thunderstorm, SSG troops abseiled from helicopters into Daggar, a town north-west of Islamabad, killing up to 50 militants.^{[citation needed]}
• SSG have been used in South Waziristan Operation as well in various missions to take key positions and Peaks in 2009^{[citation needed]}.
• SSG were used extensively in various missions as clearance force in close quarter combat scenarios in Operation Zarb-e-Azb^{[citation needed]}

Counter-terrorism operations[edit]

• In September 1986, Pan Am Flight 73 was hijacked by terrorists while it was refueling in Karachi. As negotiations stalled and the terrorists started to kill passengers, SSG stormed the plane. The SSG killed one hijacker and captured the rest.^{[citation needed]}
• In February 1994, Afghan hijackers took over a school bus with 74 children and 8 teachers. They drove to the Afghan mission in Islamabad where they released 57 students but kept 16 boys and the teachers. The negotiations led nowhere and it was decided to free the hostages by force. The Pakistani authorities had somehow managed to inform the children of the impending raid.^[20] The SSG commandos used a secondary explosion as a distraction and entered the room at the Afghan embassy where the hostages were being held, killing the three hijackers.^{[citation needed]} The operation lasted about 20 seconds.^[21]
• In May 1998, three members of the Baloch terrorists took over a PIA Fokker plane because they were angry at the government for conducting nuclear tests in Balochistan. As negotiations dragged, SSG commandos rushed the plane and apprehended all 3 hijackers. None of the passengers were harmed during the assault.^[22][23]
• On 30 March 2009, SSG successfully participated in thwarting the 2009 Lahore police academy attacks.^[24][25]
• On 10 October 2009, militants attacked the Pakistan Military Headquarters, taking hostage 42 civil and military officials. SSG commandos rescued 39 hostages and killed 9 militants, capturing one. The militants have been linked to Ilyas Kashmiri being a leading Al Qaeda commander operating alongside Tehrik-e-Taliban. A total of six SSG commandos and three hostages were killed in the operation. As reported by ISPR (Inter Services Public Relations) [2]. The operation was undertaken by SSG's Counter Terrorism Force.^[26] Three more SSG commandos, injured during the operation, died in the hospital on 12 October.^[27]
• On 16 December 2014, SSG Commandos from the Zarrar Company were tasked with clearing an Army Public School which was raided by seven ^[28] Tahreek-e-Taliban (TTP) Terrorists in Peshawar. All Terrorists were eliminated and the school was cleared. Around 149 people, mostly Students aged between 12-16 were killed by the Terrorists. The school had a strength of about 1000, and due to SSG timely arrival, they were able to rescue about 840 peoples.^[29]