M-Squadron

On 22 February 1973, the Dutch government officially created a specialist counter-terrorism unit in response to the Munich massacre, when 11 Israeli athletes were murdered by Palestine pro-Fatah militants. The government felt the urge of protecting the nation against such incidents in the future, and so members of the Dutch Marine Corps were selected for this special unit. Marines were chosen because, at that time, they were particularly notorious: Dutch marines are hardened, highly trained, professional soldiers. On July 1, 2006, a new government organ, Dienst Speciale Interventies (DSI) was founded. This is a joint operations centre for counter-terrorism actions in the Netherlands. Members of the UIM and special police units work together, and form a Unit Interventie, which is a joint task force of Defence and police personnel. As part of the reorganization, the BBE changed its name in 2006 to the UIM. In 2009, the UIM changed its name once again to M-Squadron. The unit was reorganized into the Maritime Special Operations Force since January 1, 2009. ==Role==

It consists of a selection of specially trained marines of the Dutch Marine Corps, and it is part of the Netherlands Maritime Special Operations Forces (NLMARSOF), which is the maritime counterpart of the Dutch Army's Korps Commandotroepen. NLMARSOF is able to operate in and outside of the Netherlands, with emphasis on maritime special operations. It currently consists of two operational SOF squadrons, one training squadron and a support group; • C Squadron (Mountain Leader Recon and Amphibian Recon) – Foreign operations • M Squadron (Counter-Terrorism) – Domestic operations • T Squadron (Training Squadron) • Special Operation Forces Support Group M-Squadron consists of teams of six operators, each team and each operator with their own specialty. Among those are diver and breach teams. Tasks are: • To conduct special operations on sea and land; • To conduct quick-reaction counter-terrorism and hostage release operations in the Netherlands; • To provide quick-reaction maritime intervention (harbours, oil platforms, ships, etc.); • To assist the Dutch police and Royal Marechaussee in domestic joint law enforcement and counter-terrorism operations; • To act as a security detachment on board Royal Netherlands Navy ships during humanitarian or peace-enforcing/-keeping missions; Within DSI The Dienst Speciale Interventies is the joint operations centre for domestic CT operations, and it combines special units from the Ministries of Defence and Justice. These units are: • Unit Arrest Teams: regional SWAT teams of the National Police Corps. • Unit Intervention: rapidly deployable counter-terrorist unit consisting of both military and law enforcement personnel. • Unit Expertise and Operational Support: support unit providing sniper fire support, crisis negotiation and technical support. ==Operations==

The UIM has seen a lot of action since its creation. The first real intervention mission was the recapture of the Scheveningen prison in October 1974. Operators used hand-to-hand combat and stun grenades against jailed terrorists, who had revolted and held the prison under siege. ==Equipment==

Weaponry Air transport M-Squadron regularly trains for aerial deployments using helicopters. NH-90 utility helicopters of the Royal Netherlands Navy helicopters provide airlift, and can be utilised for fire support. In addition, three Dienst Luchtvaart Politie (Police Aviation Service) AW139 medium-sized helicopters are available for use by the DSI as well. ==See also==