Military Police

SPRING 2015

Military Police contains information about military police functions in maneuver and mobility support, area security, law and order, internment/resettlement, and police intelligence operations.

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MILITARY POLICE . 19-15-1 38 For the unit to be truly expeditionary, it must shed its re- liance on the ease and convenience provided by a forward operating base and begin living and operating with organic equipment only. The unit embarked on a back-to-the-basics strategy, which began with several weeks of training on the unit modifed table of organization and equipment and es- sential individual tasks for leaders and Soldiers. Each pla- toon was required to establish its own command post (with the ability to track individual squads and missions) and to communicate with the company command post. Soldiers be- came profcient at setting up unit tents, radios, antennas, and netting. Leaders from the squad level and above honed their skills in writing and briefng operation orders and fragmentary orders, performing land navigation, and planning missions. Task Selection T he next challenge faced by the leaders of the 988th Mili- tary Police Company was the selection of key collective tasks to support the wet gap crossing and prepare the unit for unifed land operations on a broader scale. The com- bined arms training strategies unit task list for a military police company lists 112 collective tasks, each with support- ing individual and collective tasks representing hundreds of potential training opportunities. Leaders narrowed the training focus by selecting tasks that supported the wet gap crossing and the three military police disciplines. Security and mobility support is the most straight- forward military police discipline related to gap-crossing operations. As part of their operational area security mis- sion, military police at all levels train to secure critical sites and convoys and to move toward, and react to, contact. Route reconnais- sance and surveil- lance, traffc control posts, checkpoints, and route signing ensure that there are safe and secure routes for follow-on forces. In addition, the strategic use of staging areas, defles, and hold- ing areas enhances movement and ma- neuver by provid- ing a smooth of traffc into and out of the objective area. Another key component of the security and mobil- ity support disci- pline that is directly related to gap-crossing operations is the handling of dislo- cated civilians on and around the objective. In the context of a gap-crossing operation, the detention operations discipline is closely linked to mobility support. The rapid, precise, and humane processing of detainees from the point of capture forward enables the maneuver force commander to press the attack without dedicating forces for the purpose of guarding detainees. As the decisive op- eration advances across the objective, military police forces continue to enhance movement and maneuver by relieving the maneuver forces of detainees. During a training period, squads learned to establish hasty collection points for enemy prisoners of war and platoons learned to establish detainee holding areas. The police operations discipline does not apply only to the garrison environment. The management and enforce- ment of traffc during a gap-crossing operation are in direct synchronization with the enhancement of movement and maneuver. After an initial reconnaissance of the routes, mil- itary police leaders must develop a solid traffc control plan that includes primary and alternate routes and dislocated- civilian routes. In addition, forensics and biometrics can be integrated into detention operations to further enhance the effective processing of detainees. Although the need for host nation police support depends on the specifc circumstances of a mission, the requirement to train and work with host nation police is a constant possibility. Host nation police forces could be especially useful when integrated into a traf- fc control plan to handle dislocated civilians on and around the objective. A military police armored security vehicle crosses the wet gap.

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