Federal Police (Germany)

Bundesgrenzschutz (German: [ˌbʊndəsˈɡʁɛnt͡sʃʊt͡s] ; abbreviation: BGS; lit. 'Federal Border Protection') is the former name of the German Bundespolizei (Federal Police). Established on 16 March 1951 as a subordinate agency of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the BGS originally was primarily focused on protecting the West German borders. During their early days, BGS units had military structures, training and equipment. The law enforcement officers legally had military combatant status until 1994.

A major part of the early BGS personnel joined the newly founded German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) in 1956 and thus significantly contributed to West Germany's rearmament. The BGS was renamed to Bundespolizei on 1 July 2005. The change of name did not have any effect on the legal status or competencies of the agency, but rather reflects its transition to a multi-faceted police agency with control over border, railway and aviation security.

A border guard of a country is a national security agency that ensures border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Germany, Italy or Ukraine) and rescue service duties.

The HK21 is a German 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun, developed in 1961 by small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch and based on the G3 battle rifle. The weapon is in use with the armed forces of several Asian, African and Latin American countries. It was also license-manufactured by Fábrica de Braço de Prata in Portugal as the m/968 and in Mexico by SEDENA as the MG21. In the German military (Bundeswehr) and the federal police (Bundespolizei) it is designated "G8".

The Federal Ministry of the Interior (German: Bundesministerium des Innern, pronounced [ˈbʊndəsminɪsˌteːʁiʊm dɛs ˈʔɪnɐn ʔʊnt fyːɐ̯ ˈhaɪmaːt] ; abbreviated BMI) is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany. Its main office is in Berlin, with a secondary seat in Bonn. The current minister is Alexander Dobrindt. It is comparable to the UK Home Office or a combination of the US Department of Homeland Security and the US Department of Justice, because both manage several law enforcement agencies. The BMI is tasked with the internal security of Germany. To fulfill this responsibility it maintains, among other agencies, the two biggest federal law enforcement agencies in Germany, the Federal Police (including the GSG 9) and the Federal Criminal Police Office. It is also responsible for the federal domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.

GSG 9 der Bundespolizei, formerly Grenzschutzgruppe 9 (German for 'Border Protection Group 9'), is the police tactical unit of the German Federal Police (Bundespolizei). The unit is responsible for combatting terrorism and violent crime, including organized crime. In addition to its headquarters location in Sankt Augustin-Hangelar near Bonn, it also has a base in Berlin. Since 1 August 2017, it has been subordinate to the Federal Police Directorate 11. The state police (Landespolizei) maintain their own regional tactical units known as the Spezialeinsatzkommando (SEK).

GSG 9 is made up of approximately 400 highly trained police officers, whose identities are classified. The specialized unit operates not only within Germany on a federal level, but also safeguards German interests located worldwide, such as embassy property and personnel. Alongside the Kommando Spezialkräfte (KSK) and Kommando Spezialkräfte der Marine (KSM) military special forces of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr), the GSG 9 can also be authorized to rescue citizens abroad in hostage situations.