Facilities Protection Service
Encyclopedia
The Facilities Protection Service is an Iraqi paramilitary
force tasked with the fixed site protection of Iraqi Government buildings, facilities, and personnel. The FPS includes Oil, Electricity Police and Port Security. It works for all Iraqi government ministries and governmental agencies, but its standards are set and enforced by the Iraqi Ministry of Interior. It can also be hired to protect private property.
As of December 2005, the Coalition no longer provides material or logistical support to the FPS.
. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some of them are unreliable and responsible for violent crimes. PM Maliki
has announced a reform to consolidate all Facilities Protection Service personnel into a unified organization responsible to the MOI
. These act in two capacities: as security guard
s at government buildings and as Personal Security Details
to protect important government officials. This number includes approximately 2,200 Diplomatic Protection Service (DPS) guards charged with protecting foreign embassies in Iraq.
There are an estimated 17,800 FPS personnel who working for the MOI. Half of them work in Baghdad. The MOI’s FPS has established better regulation, training, and discipline than have FPS staff in other ministries, and a higher proportion of them, possibly half, have completed the Facility Protection Service basic training course.
The majority of the FPS staff consists of former Iraqi military personnel and former security guards. The FPS will now secure public facilities such as hospitals, banks, and power stations within their district. Once trained, the guards work with US military and coalition forces protecting critical sites like schools, hospitals and power plants. Being part of the Baath Party is not disqualifier on joining the Facility Protection Service or working elsewhere with coalition forces.
The FPS are paid on either on a contract basis or according to a civil pay scale which is lower than that of the Police or the New Iraqi Army. The starting salary of an FPS guard is 83,000ID ($56) per month and FPS guards receive an additional 96,000ID ($64) per month in hazardous duty pay.
Eight reviewing committees were established to assess the current status of the organization and to make recommendations for future change.
They are armed with AK-47
's, PKM
s, Glock
pistols, individual body armor, high-frequency radios, small and medium pick-up trucks, and mid-sized SUVs.
The FPS' vehicles are provided by the various government agencies or private organizations.
, he also has repeatedly suggested that killings by gunmen in police uniforms were being carried out by impostors to discredit the government.
Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily allege that the
Iraqi Militias Take Refuge in Facilities Protection Service, They state that former Iraqi army General Harith al-Fahad claims that the FPS basically consists of the various militias who are padding the payroll of the FPS.
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
force tasked with the fixed site protection of Iraqi Government buildings, facilities, and personnel. The FPS includes Oil, Electricity Police and Port Security. It works for all Iraqi government ministries and governmental agencies, but its standards are set and enforced by the Iraqi Ministry of Interior. It can also be hired to protect private property.
As of December 2005, the Coalition no longer provides material or logistical support to the FPS.
Organization
The FPS consists of more than 150,000 Facility Protection Service personnel and over 26,000 contract security guards who work for 26 ministries, eight independent directorates and the Central Bank of IraqCentral Bank of Iraq
-History:The Central Bank of Iraq was established as Iraq's central bank by Central Bank of Iraq Law 2004 with authorised capital of 100 billion dinars. The current Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq is Sinan Al Shabibi.-Architecture:...
. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some of them are unreliable and responsible for violent crimes. PM Maliki
Nouri al-Maliki
Nouri Kamil Mohammed Hasan al-Maliki , also known as Jawad al-Maliki or Abu Esraa, is the Prime Minister of Iraq and the secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party. Al-Maliki and his government succeeded the Iraqi Transitional Government. He is currently in his second term as Prime Minister...
has announced a reform to consolidate all Facilities Protection Service personnel into a unified organization responsible to the MOI
Interior minister
An interior ministry is a government ministry typically responsible for policing, national security, and immigration matters. The ministry is often headed by a minister of the interior or minister of home affairs...
. These act in two capacities: as security guard
Security guard
A security guard is a person who is paid to protect property, assets, or people. Security guards are usually privately and formally employed personnel...
s at government buildings and as Personal Security Details
Bodyguard
A bodyguard is a type of security operative or government agent who protects a person—usually a famous, wealthy, or politically important figure—from assault, kidnapping, assassination, stalking, loss of confidential information, terrorist attack or other threats.Most important public figures such...
to protect important government officials. This number includes approximately 2,200 Diplomatic Protection Service (DPS) guards charged with protecting foreign embassies in Iraq.
There are an estimated 17,800 FPS personnel who working for the MOI. Half of them work in Baghdad. The MOI’s FPS has established better regulation, training, and discipline than have FPS staff in other ministries, and a higher proportion of them, possibly half, have completed the Facility Protection Service basic training course.
The majority of the FPS staff consists of former Iraqi military personnel and former security guards. The FPS will now secure public facilities such as hospitals, banks, and power stations within their district. Once trained, the guards work with US military and coalition forces protecting critical sites like schools, hospitals and power plants. Being part of the Baath Party is not disqualifier on joining the Facility Protection Service or working elsewhere with coalition forces.
The FPS are paid on either on a contract basis or according to a civil pay scale which is lower than that of the Police or the New Iraqi Army. The starting salary of an FPS guard is 83,000ID ($56) per month and FPS guards receive an additional 96,000ID ($64) per month in hazardous duty pay.
Reorganization
The Iraqi government has created a national headquarters for the FPS, began to codify the relationships among the different ministries’ FPS forces, and standardized the uniforms and vehicle markings, recruiting, training, terms and conditions of service, and responsibilities.Eight reviewing committees were established to assess the current status of the organization and to make recommendations for future change.
Growth
- As of August 2003 more than 4,000 Iraqis had been hired.
- As of mid-October 2003 roughly 20,000 members were protecting more than 240 sites.
- As of 15 February 2004, there were more than 70,000 guards on duty.
- As of October 14, 2006; 150,000 per Jawad al-Bolani, Iraq's Interior Minister,
Uniforms and equipment
FPS uniforms consists of light grey shirts with dark blue pants, a leather belt, and a grey beret. They wear brassards which bear the letters 'FPS' under the Iraqi flag.They are armed with AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
's, PKM
PK machine gun
The PK is a 7.62 mm general-purpose machine gun designed in the Soviet Union and currently in production in Russia. The PK machine gun was introduced in the 1960s and replaced the SGM and RPD machine guns in Soviet service...
s, Glock
Glock
Glock Ges.m.b.H. is a weapons manufacturer headquartered in Deutsch-Wagram, Austria, named after its founder, Gaston Glock...
pistols, individual body armor, high-frequency radios, small and medium pick-up trucks, and mid-sized SUVs.
The FPS' vehicles are provided by the various government agencies or private organizations.
Issues
Allegations were made by Ellen Knickmeyer of the Washington Post Foreign Service on Saturday, October 14, 2006; that the FPS Was Behind Death Squads http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101301447.html operating in BaghdadBaghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
, he also has repeatedly suggested that killings by gunmen in police uniforms were being carried out by impostors to discredit the government.
Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily allege that the
Iraqi Militias Take Refuge in Facilities Protection Service, They state that former Iraqi army General Harith al-Fahad claims that the FPS basically consists of the various militias who are padding the payroll of the FPS.
See also
- Iraqi ArmyIraqi ArmyThe Iraqi Army is the land component of the Iraqi military, active in various forms since being formed by the British during their mandate over the country after World War I....
- Iraqi Army Ranks InsigniaIraqi Army Ranks Insignia-Iraqi military ranks: Every military needs discipline and respect in order to achieve its objective. The military uses ranks in order to achieve a chain of command that is responsible for work to go smoothly...
- Iraqi Air ForceIraqi Air ForceThe Iraqi Air Force or IQAF is the military branch in Iraq responsible for the policing of international borders, surveillance of national assets and aerial operations...
- Iraqi NavyIraqi NavyThe Iraqi Navy is one of the components of the military of Iraq currently being reconstructed by UK-US Coalition forces in Iraq. Its primary responsibilities are the protection of Iraq's coastline and offshore assets...
- Iraqi Security ForcesIraqi Security ForcesThe Iraqi Armed Forces are the military forces of the Government of Iraq. They consist of the Iraqi Army, the Iraqi Air Force, and the Iraqi Navy....
- Military transition teamMilitary transition teamA Military Transition Team, or Transition Team, is a 10-15 soldier team that and trains local forces. The term has been used in the context of the "War on Terror" to design groups training in particular the Iraqi Security Forces, Afghan Army and other Afghan security forces.- Mission :The primary...
External links
- FPS at Coalition Provisional Authority
- FPS at Global security
- FPS at Global Guerillas
- Policing Post-War Iraq: Insurgency, Civilian Police, and the Reconstruction of Society (research paper) - By Mathieu Deflem and Suzanne Sutphin, published in Sociological Focus, Vol. 39(4), November 2006.
- Iraqi police deaths 'hit 12,000'
- Reforming the Iraqi Interior Ministry, Police, and Facilities Protection Service
- IRAQ STUDY GROUP REPORT
- FPS at Brussels Tribunal