During the Opening Ceremony at the 10th Annual Warrior Competition at KASOTC (King Abdullah II Special Operations Training Center), Jordan’s elite Special Operations Forces undertook a series of dynamic demonstrations with the third of these being by the Gendarmerie.
Jordan’s fourth armed force, the Gendarmerie has existed since the formation of the nation following World War II and in 2008 it was expanded by Royal Decree into the General Directorate of Gendarmerie; the 10th Anniversary of the GDG, known as Darak in Arabic, is 10th July 2018. Part of the Jordanian Security Forces but under command of the Ministry of the Interior rather than the Ministry of Defence, the Gendarmerie mission is to “perform a major role in maintaining security and order through applying the best practices utilising human recourse and comprehensive knowledge which provide high degree of security and assurance for both citizens and residents” in a generally tranquil nation which lies in one of the most volatile regions of the world.
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A Gendarmerie SpecOps platoon in three Al-Jawad APCs speeds forward to engage insurgents [© Bob Morrison]
Both the Gendarmerie and the SOFG Special Units entered teams into the week-long competition that followed the dynamic displays… but that is a story for another day.
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The Al-Jawad is built by Jordan Light Vehicle Manufacturing and can transport up to ten including driver and commander [© Bob Morrison]
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The 4×4 Al-Jawad has a combat weight of 8.5 tonnes and a top road speed of 130km/hr [© Bob Morrison]
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The vehicle has running boards and roof bars to allow assault teams to travel externally – note also vision blocks and firing ports [© Bob Morrison]
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A 5.56mm or 7.62mm machine gun can be mounted in front of the rotating roof hatch – an armoured cupola can also be fitted [© Bob Morrison]
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Photographed after the display, these are believed to be the latest Mk.4 version of Al-Jawad offering B6 level armoured protection [© Bob Morrison]
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Gendarmerie SpecOps platoon commander with 5.56mm retractable stock PARA model Minimi [© Bob Morrison]
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The Gendarmerie wear KAII Urban Digital camo pattern uniforms, black plate carriers and black ballistic helmets [© Bob Morrison]
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A second Gendermerie platoon commander – KAII Urban Digital camo is four-colour with near black and two greys on a light stone grey base [© Bob Morrison]