UNIPATH STAFF
Arabian Gulf states conducted joint security drills in February 2020 meant to foil terrorist attacks, rescue hostages and deactivate bombs.
The police-focused exercise — called Arab Gulf Security 2 — occurred over three weeks at the Dubai Police Academy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Special police units from the Emirates trained with their counterparts from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia.
The goal of the exercise was to raise the level of readiness and standardize procedures among elite units within the interior ministries of Gulf Cooperation Council member states.
Simulations allowed units to show off their skills: a VIP convoy under attack by terrorists, civilians taken hostage on a public bus, a raid on terrorists occupying a hotel and shopping center, and the use of dogs to sniff out explosives.
UAE Brig. Gen. Dr. Ali Salem Al Tunaiji, director general of the Federal Central Operations at the Ministry of the Interior, emphasized the need for regional security professionals to work for the common good of the region.
Saudi Special Security Force Commander Brig. Gen. Awad Mashouh Al-Anizi agreed. “The purpose of such tactical exercises is to demonstrate practical cooperation and coordination and to assess the response of the security forces and their preparedness to carry out joint operations,” he said.
Arab Gulf Security 2 was the second in what GCC countries intend to be a series of recurring exercises. The first Arab Gulf Security was held in Bahrain in November 2016.
Sources: Al Bayan, UAE Ministry of Interior