Hostage Rescue Force

Hostage Rescue Force is the elite Egyptian police unit responsible for both hostage rescue situations & counter-terrorism operations within the Egyptian territory.

The HRF was established in 1978 with help from William Francis Buckley (May 30, 1928 - June 3, 1985) after the failed raid by Egyptian military commandos' Green Berets on Cyprus' Larnaca International Airport. The failure was due to the lack of coordination with Cypriot authorities, and the unsuitable gear the commandos used, who were not properly trained for specific counter-terrorism operations at that time.

A board of inquiry concluded that there was a need for a professional, specialized force for such operations. Therefore, Egypt established two elite units: Unit 777 an army unit commanded by the Ministry of Defense (Egypt) for international operations; and HRF a police unit commanded by the Ministry of Interior for domestic operations.

The HRF operated – successfully – throughout most of its urban & rural operations since the early Eighties, and its role was nationally recognized during the black era of Terrorism which struck the country during the Nineties of the last century.

The first international appearance of the Unit 777 was the rescue operation in Malta 1985, when an Egypt Air Boeing 737-200 flight no. 648 with 98 passengers and crew on board was hijacked. Landing in Luqa airport for refueling, the Maltese government refused the hijackers' request and went through negotiations. After (13) persons being released and (5) hostages were executed by the (4) terrorists, Unit 777 was cleared to storm the plane. Dramatically, (3) terrorists, (56) passengers and crew members were killed due to a series of fatal mistakes. For the truth, Unit 777 was not to be blamed alone for such severe loss.

Some reports mentioned that Unit 777 Task Force took part – in cooperation with both the German & Italian counterparts - in the operation in Chad desert to rescue the (19) Egyptian and European hostages kidnapped from the Egyptian South-western Desert, during a Safari trip in September 2008.

It is reported that both the HRF and Unit 777 cooperates and conducts regular joint training with international equivalent elite counterpart units such as the German GSG 9, the French GIGN, and the British SAS.