Gendarmerie Nationale (Algeria)

The Gendarmerie Nationale (Arabic: الدرك الوطني), is the national rural police force of Algeria. As part of the Algerian Armed Forces is commanded by a major general who reports directly to the Minister of National Defense. In 2007 the gendarmerie consists of 60,000. Although generally regarded as a versatile and competent paramilitary force, the gendarmerie has been severely tested in dealing with civil disorder since 1988. It frequently has lacked sufficient manpower at the scene of disorder and its units have been inadequately trained and equipped for riot control. The gendarmerie, however, has demonstrated the ability to root out terrorist groups operating from mountain hideouts.[1]

Gendarmerie Nationale
الدرك الوطني
Common nameGendarmerie
Agency overview
Formed1962
Jurisdictional structure
National agencyAlgeria
Operations jurisdictionAlgeria
General nature
Operational structure
HeadquartersChéraga, Algiers
Sworn members130,000
Minister responsible
Agency executive
  • Nouredine Gouasmia, Commanding General of the Gendarmerie nationale

The current commander is General Nouredine Gouasmia, who succeeded General Abderrahmane Arar in 2020.

Duties

The gendarmerie is responsible for maintaining law and order in villages, towns, and rural areas; providing security surveillance over local inhabitants; and representing government authority in remote regions, especially where tensions and conflicts have occurred in the past.

Organization

The gendarmerie is organized in battalions, whose component companies and platoons are dispersed to individual communities and desert outposts. Its regional headquarters are in the same cities as the six military regional headquarters with subdivisions in the forty-eight wilayat. It consists of a General Headquarters in Algiers and 6 subordinate Regional Commands (Divisions), plus 4 commands for Recruitment & Training, Intelligence, Administration and Detection. The 6 Regional Commands each command 3 to 4 "Brigades".

Several specialized units also exist within the gendarmerie, and were established to confront the increase in crimes and criminals:

  • Administrative Unit
  • Aerial Training Formation
  • Border Guards Unit, created on November 17, 1977
  • Cultural Heritage Protection Unit
  • Environmental Protection Unit
  • Juvenile Protection Brigade, created in 2011
  • Security and Intervention Detachment
  • Special Intervention Detachment, created on August 27, 1989[2]

Equipment

A highly mobile force, the gendarmerie possesses a modern communications system connecting its various units with one another and with the army. Equipment includes light armored weapons and transport and patrol vehicles.

The force in 1993 had 44 Panhard M3 armored personnel carriers (an APC variant of the Panhard AML.). 50 Fahd armored personnel carriers, and 28 Mi-2 light helicopters and 10 AgustaWestland AW109, In addition to AS355 Ecureuil 2 helicopters.

Training

In addition to utilizing training provided by the French since independence, the gendarmerie operates its own schools for introductory and advanced studies. The gendarmerie's main training center is at Sidi Bel Abbes, The officers school is at Isser, about 80 kilometers east of Algiers.

Commandment

The commandment of gendarmerie was successively entrusted to:

Années Commandement
1962-1977 Colonel Ahmed Bencherif
1977-1986 General Mostepha Cheloufi
1986-1987 General Zine El Abidine Hachichi
1987-1997 Army corps general Abbas Gheziel
1997-2000 Major General Tayeb Derradji
2000-2015 Army corps general Ahmed Boustila
2015-2018 Major General Menad Nouba
2018-2019 General Ghali Belakcir
2019-2020 Major General Abderrahmane Arar[3]
Since 2020 General Nouredine Gouasmia[4]

Notes

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Library of Congress Country Studies website http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/.

  1. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Algeria.pdf
  2. "Gendarmerie Nationale - Algérie". www.mdn.dz. Retrieved 2020-02-07.
  3. https://www.elwatan.com/edition/actualite/le-general-abderrahmane-arari-remplace-le-general-ghali-belakcir-a-la-tete-de-la-gendarmerie-nationale-24-07-2019
  4. http://www.aps.dz/algerie/108204-le-president-tebboune-nomme-le-general-gouasmia-commandant-de-la-gendarmerie-nationale
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