Rediff.com« Back to articlePrint this article

Face-off: Elite army squads battle it out at Jordan's Warrior Competition

April 24, 2015 08:37 IST

Jordan's annual Warrior Competition event saw elite anti-terrorism squads from 18 countries, including fellow members of military coalitions fighting rebels in Yemen and Islamic State extremists in Iraq and Syria.

Lebanese soldiers compete in the 7th Annual Warrior Competition at the King Abdullah Special Operations Training Centre in Amman. Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

The 7th annual Warrior Competition was held at a time when Jordan is stepping up its military role in the region, as part of a US-led campaign against Islamic State and a Saudi-led battle against Shiite rebels in Yemen.

A Jordanian soldier competes in the 7th Annual Warrior Competition at the King Abdullah Special Operations Training Center in Amman. Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

“The five-day competition offers a chance for team leaders to meet and to know each other, as the terrorists have become international,” said Colonel Khaled Abu Hamad, a spokesman for the King Abdullah Special Operations Training Centre on the outskirts of Amman, where the event is being held.

Chechen soldiers, representing Russia and wearing uniforms stitched with Chechen flags, compete in the 7th Annual Warrior Competition at the King Abdullah Special Operations Training Center in Amman. Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

Neighboured by Syria and Iraq, the HashemiteKingdom has spent more than a decade with bloody sectarian war on its doorstep. There are few countries to which the threat of the Islamic State is a closer and more immediate threat, and counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency training is high up on the country's defence agenda.

Chechen soldiers move through an obstacle course. Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

The competition opened with a drill by Jordanian Special Forces who rescued mock-hostages from a passenger plane and rappelled from a helicopter into a five-story building to chase militants. The opening ceremony also included skydivers and snipers.

An Afghan soldier competes in the 7th Annual Warrior Competition at the King Abdullah Special Operations Training Center in Amman.  Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

Teams compete in 10 events, including shooting. Among those participating are the US, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Bahrain and China -- which won the counter-terrorism competition in 2014.

Lebanese soldiers compete in the 7th Annual Warrior Competition. Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

While the competition is pure sportsmanship, many of the events the teams compete in mimic deadly real-life scenarios that special units must be prepared for; perhaps none more so than host country Jordan.

Lebanese soldiers take part in the competition. Photograph: Muhammad Hamed/ Reuters

Jordan assumed a more high-profile role in the coalition against the Islamic State group after the militants released a video in February showing a captured Jordanian pilot being immolated while trapped in a cage.

Soldiers flip a tyre as part of an obstacle course. Photograph: Warrior Competition

Jordan's army chief, Brig. Gen. Mashal Zaben, said that the killing of the pilot “unmasked the ugly faces of those outlaws.”

A soldier blazes through an obstacle course. Photograph: Warrior Competition