Special Branch: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article

All Topics

Special Branch

	Email		Print
	Bookmark		Link

	Special Branch
	Home Discussion Definition
	Topics Special Branch Topic Home Special Branch is an investigative unit of the BritishPolicing in the United Kingdom Overview The United Kingdom is a unitary state, and police forces, generally speaking, are organised at the level of administrative distric... , IrishRepublic of Ireland Overview The Republic of Ireland is the official description of the sovereign state which covers approximately five-sixths the islan... and many CommonwealthCommonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, usually known as the Commonwealth, is a voluntary association of 53 independent sovereign... police services. The unit deals with national securityNational security National security refers to the public policy of maintaining the integrity and survival of the nation-state through the use ... matters. They acquire and develop intelligenceIntelligence Intelligence is a property of mind that encompasses many related mental abilities, such as the capacities to reason, plan, s... to help protect the public (and the state) from national securityNational security National security refers to the public policy of maintaining the integrity and survival of the nation-state through the use ... threats, including terrorismTerrorism Terrorism is the systematic use, or threatened use, of violence to intimidate a population or government and thereby effect ... , separatismSeparatism Separatism is a term usually applied to describe the attitudes or motivations of those seeking independence or "separation" ... , subversionSubversion (politics) Subversion refers to an attempt to overthrow structures of authority, including the state.... and other extremist activity. The original unit was named the Special Irish Branch, part of LondonLondon London is the capital city of England and of the United Kingdom.... 's Metropolitan Police ServiceMetropolitan Police Service The Metropolitan Police Service is the Home Office police force responsible for Greater London, with the exception of the sq... , and was formed in March 1883 to counter the Irish Republican BrotherhoodIrish Republican Brotherhood The Irish Republican Brotherhood played an important role in the history of Ireland.... . The "IrishIreland Ireland is the third largest island in Europe.... " soubriquet was later dropped as the department remit was extended to cover other threats. United Kingdom Each BritishUnited Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country and sovereign state that lies off the northwest coast... police force has its own Special Branch (not to be confused with its Special ConstabularySpecial Constabulary The Special Constabulary is a volunteer section of the British police.... ), the largest by far being that of the Specialist OperationsSpecialist Operations Specialist Operations was a group of twenty specialist Metropolitan Police units which were set up in 1986 as part of Sir Ke... department of the Metropolitan Police. These departments work closely with one another and with MI5MI5 The Security Service, commonly called MI5 by the British media, is the United Kingdoms counterintelligence and securit... , the Security Service. The officers work in plain clothes and are occasionally armed. Although they are not part of the Criminal Investigation DepartmentCriminal Investigation Department The Criminal Investigation Department is the branch of all British Police and many other Commonwealth police forces to which... (CID), they are entitled to use the prefix 'Detective' in front of their ranks. Special Branch has responsibility for, amongst other things, personal protection of (non-royal) VIPs and performing the role of examining officer at designated portPort Overview A port is a facility for receiving ships and transferring cargo to and from them.... s and airportAirport An airport is a facility where aircraft such as airplanes and helicopters can take off and land.... s, as prescribed by the Terrorism Act 2000Terrorism Act 2000 The Terrorism Act 2000 is a current United Kingdom Act of Parliament, described as "an Act to make provision about terrorism... . The intelligence work of Special Branch is overlooked in some circles. This is because its role sits somewhere between that of the Security ServiceMI5 The Security Service, commonly called MI5 by the British media, is the United Kingdoms counterintelligence and securit... and that of the Metropolitan Police Anti-Terrorist BranchMetropolitan Police Anti-Terrorist Branch Overview The Anti-Terrorist Branch is a branch of the London Metropolitan Police established to respond to terrorism.... (SO13). Special Branch officers are usually the ones to perform arrests of suspected spies, since MI5 officers are not authorized to take such actions; an example being the Portland Spy RingPortland Spy Ring The Portland Spy Ring operated in Britain from the late 1950s till 1961 when the hard core of the network was arrested by Br... . It was announced, in September 2005, that the Metropolitan Police Special Branch would be merging with the Anti-Terrorism BranchMetropolitan Police Anti-Terrorist Branch The Anti-Terrorist Branch is a branch of the London Metropolitan Police established to respond to terrorism.... of the Metropolitan Police to form a new department called Counter Terrorism CommandCounter Terrorism Command Counter Terrorism Command is a Specialist Operations branch within the British Metropolitan Police Service, established as ... with the new department coming into being on 2 October 2006 thus completing a process begun when the investigative wing of the Special Branch, X Squad, became The Anti-Terrorist Branch in 1972. Republic of Ireland The Special Branch of the Garda SíochánaGarda Síochána *Garda Sochna na hireann, commonly known as An Garda Sochna* in full collective noun form or, simply, Garda in... is called the Special Detective UnitSpecial Detective Unit The Special Detective Unit is a unit of an Garda S?och?na, the police force of the Republic of Ireland.... (SDU), or in IrishIrish language Irish , a language spoken in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, is constitutionally recognised as the first offic... , *Aonad Speisialta Bleachtaireachta. The unit is responsible for: State protection. Monitoring the activities of subversive and extremist groups. Investigation of subversion and terrorism. Protection of VIPs. Protection of cash in transit. Provision of armed response. Operation of the Witness Security Programme. The Emergency Response UnitEmergency Response Unit (Garda) The Emergency Response Unit* of An Garda Síochána is a specialist unit, formed to deal with situations that cannot be handled... , the Garda's equivalent of United StatesUnited States The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., and America, is... SWATSWAT SWAT is a specialized unit in many United States police departments, which is trained to perform dangerous operations.... units, is also part of the SDU. Hong Kong The Special Branch of the Royal Hong Kong Police Force (now Hong Kong Police ForceHong Kong Police Force The Hong Kong Police Force is the police force of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of Ch... ) was disbanded in 1995, prior to the transfer of sovereigntyTransfer of the sovereignty of Hong Kong The transfer of the sovereignty of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China, often referred to as... of Hong KongHong Kong The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China is one of the two special administrative regi... from the United KingdomUnited Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country and sovereign state that lies off the northwest coast... to the People's Republic of ChinaPeople's Republic of China The People's Republic of China , is a country in East Asia.... in 1997. India The Special Branch is a separate wing in the state policeState police United StatesIn the United States, state police are a police body unique to each U.S.... forces in India. Like their counterparts in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country and sovereign state that lies off the northwest coast... , they deal with matters of state security. However more serious espionage detection etc, are done by the Intelligence BureauIntelligence Bureau (India) Overview The Intelligence Bureau is India's internal intelligence agency. ... (IB), India's internal security agency. There have been many allegations that the Special Branch is used by the ruling government (and the political party) for setting up surveillance on their political opponents. The special branch wing is exactly in the hierarchy as that of the lawLaw Law is the set of rules or norms of conduct which forbid, permit or mandate specified actions and relationships among people... and order policePolice Police forces are government organizations charged with the responsibility of maintaining law and order , and protecting the ... . The special branch has its own DetectiveDetective A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person.... ConstableConstable Summary A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement.... s, Head Constables, InspectorInspector Inspector is both a police rank and an administrative position, both used in a number of contexts.... rankings and superior police officerPolice officer A police officer is a person who works for a police force.... rankings. Every police stationPolice station A police station is a building which serves as the headquarters of a police force or unit which serves a specific district.... is to have a special branch head constable or Assistant Sub-InspectorSub-Inspector Sub-Inspector is a rank used extensively in the Indian Police, which is primarily based on the British model.... (ASI) (working plain clothes or MuftiMufti (dress) *Mufti* refers to ordinary clothes, especially when worn by one who normally wears, or has long worn, a military or other ... ), he would be observing the societySociety A society is a grouping of individuals, which is characterised by common interest and may have distinctive culture and inst... in general, and also taking reports from the uniformed police constables on general patrol. South Africa During Apartheid, the South African Police ServiceSouth African Police Service The South African Police Service is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa.... s Special Branch was a much feared police unit often used to attack movements resisting apartheid. It is now the Crime Intelligence Unit which investigates crime but which continues to investigate groups perceived to be enemies of the stateEnemy of the state An enemy of the state is a person accused of certain crimes against the state, such as treason.... such as social movements. Malaysia The Malaysian Special BranchMalaysian Special Branch The Malaysian Special Branch is the Malaysian government intelligence agency.... (Malay: Cawangan Khas) is an intelligence agency attached to the Royal Malaysian PoliceRoyal Malaysian Police The Royal Malaysian Police or Polis DiRaja Malaysia in Malay is a main branch of security forces in Malaysia.... (RMP). The SB is empowered to acquire and develop intelligence on internal and external threats to the nation, subversive activities, extremist activities and activities of sabotage and spying. It is also empowered to analyse and advise on the necessary course of action to the various departments and agencies both within the Police Department and other related agencies. Developed and modelled after the Special Branch of the United Kingdom, this unit has been divided to eight departments, each of which is lead by an Assistance Commissioner. Special Branch in Malaysia is very good in intelligence and have deployed their operatives inside many organizations in Malaysia, either political or non-government. See also EspionageEspionage Espionage is the practice of obtaining information about an organization or a society that is considered secret or confident... Forward Intelligence TeamForward Intelligence Team Forward Intelligence Teams are units in UK Police forces that use high-visibility police officers - in full uniform - using camera... List of intelligence agenciesList of intelligence agencies The following is a partial list of current intelligence agencies. ... Special Investigation BranchSpecial Investigation Branch The Special Investigation Branch is the name given to the detective branches of all four British military police arms: the R... (military police, though they are equivalent of the CIDCID As an acronym CID can refer to :* Caller ID in telephone systems... ) Office of Special InvestigationsOffice of Special Investigations There are a number of organizations known as the Office of Special Investigations:... External links