Germany to Send Special Ground Forces to Syria in Case of Emergency

Now the German authorities may send the Special Operations Command (KSK) to Syria in case of emergency, German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen and Bundeswehr Chief of Staff Volker Wieker said on Wednesday, German newspaper Das Bild reported.

The KSK is an elite German army unit designed to perform special military operations of strategic interest, which can’t be fulfilled by conventional units. The soldiers of the KSK are specially selected and trained.  For instance, they can be deployed to rescue endangered or captured German citizens abroad or to arrest people committing war crimes in conflict areas.

On Friday, the German Bundestag voted in favor of the deployment of 1,200 Bundeswehr soldiers in Syria to fight against the Daesh terrorists. The mission is considered controversial by large parts of the German population and some politicians amid a potential increase in the likelihood of terrorist attacks on German soil.

As part of the mission Germany is also planning to send up to six Tornado surveillance aircraft to Syria and a frigate to support the French Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier deployed in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. An emergency situation that may require the KSK participation could be the rescue of the pilots from the hands of Daesh terrorists in the event that one of the Tornado planes crashes.