The Tajik Alpha Group ( Russian: Альфа) is an elite unit of the State Committee for National Security of Tajikistan, tasked to conduct counter-terrorism operations in

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

. The unit is modeled after the Soviet

KGB The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...

Alpha Group Spetsgruppa "A", also known as Alpha Group (a popular English name), or Alfa, whose official name is Directorate "A" of the FSB Special Purpose Center (TsSN FSB) (Russian: Спецназ ФСБ "Альфа"), is an elite stand-alone sub-unit o ...

History

During the Tajik civil war, special forces units were formed to support the

Tajik National Army tg, Қувваҳои Мусаллаҳи Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, italics=off , image=File:Tajik Armed Forces Shoulder Patch.jpg , image_size= , image2 = , alt2 = Roundel , caption=The shoulder patch o ...

, with the first of these units forming in 1991. The unit's first operators were drawn from the former Special Forces of the

of the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic. This laid the groundwork for the Alpha Group. Many members would later split off and form the 7th Airborne Assault Battalion in 1997.

Post-USSR breakup

The elimination of the dissident warlord Rahmon Sanginov (also known as Rahmon Hitler) and his fighters in the summer 2001 is often described as the Tajik Alphas' first major successful operation. In October 2010, during the government military operation against several renegade warlords in the Rasht Valley, a military helicopter carrying Alpha troops crashed near the village of

Tavildara Tavildara is a village and jamoat in Tajikistan. It is located in Sangvor District tg, Ноҳияи Сангвор , image_map = Location of Tavildara District in Tajikistan.png , mapsize = , map_caption = Location of the district i ...

. At least 19 members of the unit died as the result of the crash, leaving the SCNS with only 32 Alphas on duty. In September 2015, the Alphas' commander, Colonel Rustam Amakiev, along with another member of the unit were killed during clashes with the mutinous former Deputy Defense Minister

Abduhalim Nazarzoda Abduhalim Mirzo Nazarzoda was a military leader in the Tajik National Army and the former Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Tajikistan. Early life He was born in the Guliston village of the Rudaki District of the Tajik SSR on January ...

and his supporters.

Role

Although little is known about the current size of the unit and the nature of its primary directives, the unit is formally designed for counter-terrorism tasks. The 2011

International Crisis Group The International Crisis Group (ICG; also known as the Crisis Group) is a transnational non-profit, non-governmental organisation founded in 1995. It is a think tank, used by policymakers and academics, performing research and analysis on global ...

report described the Alphas as "the only Tajik military unit with serious counter-insurgency expertise". The Alphas are often dispatched to the different areas of Tajikistan ahead of visits by the country's president. They are also the first to be dispatched during the sporadic outbreaks of violence throughout the country. It also has operated in the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) to hunt wolves that attacked villagers in the mountainous regions.

Commanders

* Colonel Rustam Amakiev (until September 2015) * Colonel Nazar Naimov (since 2015)

References

{{reflist Non-military counterterrorist organizations Special forces of Tajikistan State Committee for National Security (Tajikistan)