View source for Unit 777

{{more citations needed|date=January 2013}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name                     = Unit 777 Combat
| native_name                   = الوحدة 777 قتال
| image                         =
| image_size                    = 200px
| caption                       = 
| dates                         = 1978 – present
| country                       = {{flag|Egypt}}
| allegiance                    = [[Military of Egypt]]
| command_structure             = [[El-Sa'ka Forces]]
| branch                        = [[Egyptian Army]]
| type                          = [[Special forces]]
| size                          = Classified
| garrison                      = [[Cairo|Southern Cairo]]
| current_commander             = Classified
| nickname                      = 
| motto                         = 
| colors                        = 
| march                         = 
| mascot                        = The Eagle of Thunderbolt
| battles                       = [[EgyptAir Flight 321]]<br>[[EgyptAir Flight 648#The raid|EgyptAir Flight 648]]<br>[[Egyptian raid on Larnaca International Airport|Larnaca International Airport Raid]]<br>[[Operation Eagle]]
| notable_commanders            = [[Hatem Saber]]
| anniversaries                 = 
| identification_symbol         = <!-- Aircraft -->
| aircraft_helicopter           = [[Westland Sea King|Westland Sea King Commando]]<br>[[Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk]]<br>[[Mil Mi-8]]<br>[[CH-47 Chinook]]
}}
'''Unit 777''' ({{langx|ar|الوحدة 777 قتال}}), also known as '''Task Force 777''', is a special forces unit in the Egyptian Army, falling under the El-Sa'ka Force. They specializes in [[black operations]], commando style raids, counterterrorism, executive protection, hostage rescue, irregular warfare, [[Manhunt (military)|manhunt]]ing, and special operations in behind enemy lines. It was created in 1978<ref name="Ryan, p.22">Ryan, p.22</ref> by the [[Government of Egypt|government]] of [[Anwar El Sadat|Anwar Sadat]] in response to concerns of increased terrorist activity following the expulsion of [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] military advisors from the country by Sadat and his [[Camp David Accords|efforts]] to achieve peace with [[Israel]].<ref name="Ryan, p.22"/>

==Creation==
In 1978, Egyptian Army Special Forces were dispatched to [[Larnaca International Airport]], [[Larnaca]], [[Cyprus]] in response to [[Egyptian raid on Larnaca International Airport|the hijacking]] of a [[Cyprus Airways (1947–2015)|Cyprus Air]] passenger aircraft by operatives of the [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine]] (PFLP).  Cairo merely informed Cypriot president Kyprianou that "people are on the way to help rescue the hostages" and did not reveal who was on board nor what their intentions were. Upon landing in Cyprus, the Egyptian force immediately launched an all-out assault, dispatching a single [[Jeep]] all-terrain vehicle with three men to race ahead of an estimated 58 troops (another report has this figure at 74) moving towards the hijacked aircraft on foot. As the [[Egypt|Egyptian]] troops advanced quickly towards the hijacked [[DC-8]] aircraft and the Cypriot special forces who surrounded it, the Cypriot special forces reportedly issued a single verbal warning to halt and submit, though in other reports, the Cypriots issued two verbal warnings, the second demand for the Egyptians to return to their aircraft. As this occurred, the occupants of the Jeep and the Cypriot operators exchanged gunfire, and the Egyptian Jeep was struck by a [[rocket propelled grenade]] (RPG), as well as gunfire, killing all three occupants. As the vehicle came to a halt, the Cypriots and the main Egyptian force confronted each other at a range of less than 300 metres (330 yd), and it is variously reported that the Egyptians, who lacked any form of cover, dropped down onto the tarmac in prone firing positions. At this moment, the two forces engaged each other with heavy gunfire, and the Cypriots opened fire on the Egyptian C-130H aircraft with a 106 mm anti-tank missile, striking it in the nose and killing the three crew on board.

With their aircraft destroyed, the Egyptian force and the Cypriot special forces exchanged heavy gunfire for nearly an hour in sporadic fighting on the open [[Airport apron|tarmac]]. Some of the Egyptian troops took cover in a nearby empty [[Air France]] aircraft.

Kyprianou, who was watching the events unfolding from the airport control tower, was forced to withdraw from the windows and take cover as Egyptian commandos shot at the tower with automatic gunfire.<ref name="Ryan, p.22" />  Of the Egyptian commando force, 15 men were killed, in addition to three crew of the [[Lockheed C-130 Hercules|C-130H Hercules]] transport aircraft who were killed when it was struck by a missile. An estimated 15 more Egyptian commandos were reported to have been taken injured to [[Larnaca]] General Hospital with [[Gunshot wound|gunshot wounds]]. No fatalities of Cypriot commandos were recorded. Following the assault, it emerged that the surrender of the two hostage-takers had already been secured at the time of the failed Egyptian attack, and the two men were taken prisoner by the Cypriots and later extradited to [[Egypt]], where they received death sentences, later commuted to life sentences.The aftermath of the failed night-time incident and the need of a professional counter-terrorism unit in [[Egypt]] resulted in the creation of Unit 777.

==EgyptAir Flight 321==
[[Image:777قتال.jpg|thumb|Unit 777]]
On August 23, 1976, three armed terrorists claiming to be from the [[Abd Al-Nasir Movement]] hijacked the [[EgyptAir Flight 321]], a Cairo-Luxor flight, and asked the pilot to land in [[Tripoli, Libya|Tripoli]]. One of the three hijackers was a 21-year-old Palestinian, Mohammed Naguid, who was working in Kuwait.<ref name="mickolus">{{cite book| last=Mickolus| first=Edward F.| date=2009| title=The Terrorist List| publisher=ABC-CLIO}}</ref> They demanded the release of five Libyans imprisoned in Cairo in connection with two assassination attempts.<ref>{{cite web|title=Terrorist Skyjackings: A CIA Report|url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/53824134/Terrorist-Skyjackings-A-CIA-Report|website=scribd.com|access-date=2 June 2015}}</ref> The context was the deterioration of relations between [[Egypt]] and [[Libya]] after the [[Yom Kippur War]] due to Libyan opposition to Sadat's peace policy. There had been a breakdown in unification talks between the two governments, which subsequently led to the [[Libyan-Egyptian War]]. Fifteen minutes after takeoff from [[Cairo International Airport]], an Italian pilot called the airport to report that he had received a beam aerial from the Egyptian aircraft heading to Luxor that it had been hijacked and the flight was under terrorist control.

President Sadat ordered the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defense to make the necessary decisions to protect the passengers and arrest the terrorists. The Prime Minister and the Minister of Defense quickly flew to Luxor International Airport where they started a secret meeting in the airport's tower, while Major General Abdul Hafiz Al-Bagori, Governor of Qena started negotiations with the three terrorists in order to gain time.{{citation needed|date=March 2016}} During a call between the cockpit and the airport, the pilot complained about a problem in the aircraft - that it had not shown that the aircraft needing refuelling - and that the aircraft needed maintenance. The terrorists were persuaded to allow the aircraft to land in Luxor for refuelling. Negotiations continued until 3 p.m., when the governor told the terrorists that engineers were ready. The engineers were two disguised Sa'ka officers, who went inside and outside the aircraft several times in order to appear to be maintenance workers. Minutes later three officers stormed the aircraft and captured the hijackers.

The force that stormed the aircraft was later announced to be a special unit within the [[Sa'ka Forces]] and further information was classified, the same force which was later named 777.

==EgyptAir Flight 648, 1985==
In 1985, Unit 777 was dispatched again to deal with a hijacking, this time to [[Malta]]. An [[Egypt Air]] [[Boeing 737#737-200|Boeing 737]] ([[EgyptAir Flight 648]]) had landed in [[Luqa Airport]] under the control of [[Abu Nidal]] faction terrorists, purportedly as retaliation for Egypt's failure to protect the terrorists that had hijacked the [[MS Achille Lauro|MS ''Achille Lauro'']] earlier that year.<ref name=bbc>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/24/newsid_4356000/4356024.stm|title=BBC On This Day 1985: Commandoes storm hijacked plane|access-date=2009-02-08|date=1985-11-24|work=BBC News}}</ref> Although the operation was planned more carefully this time, the TF 777 operators committed several mistakes that would eventually prove fatal to many of the hostages.<ref>{{cite news|title=Anniversary of a massacre - The EgyptAir hijack in Malta|url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20101123/local/anniversary-of-a-massacre-the-egyptair-hijacking-in-malta.337385|access-date=2 June 2015|work=[[Times of Malta]]|date=23 November 2010}}</ref> As explosives were detonated to attempt to blow a hole on the top of the airframe, the explosion ripped through the cabin area, immediately killing 20 passengers.<ref>Some sources claim that the terrorists hurled grenades, causing many of the deaths.</ref> Using the same hole, the operators gained entry to the plane but in the confusion opened fire indiscriminately and killed and injured more passengers. In the ensuing chaos, passengers that managed to flee the plane were then gunned down by snipers in positions around the airport who mistook them for terrorists attempting to escape. The total number of passengers killed was 57, out of 88 total.<ref name="Ryan, p.23">Ryan, p.23</ref>

==Op-Global Sky==
{{External media|video1 = [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMHawU9qlt4 Footage of Op-Global Sky]|float = right}}
On June 3, 1998, in response to the departure of the ship ''Global Sky'' from [[Suez]] without paying port fees it owed, the [[Suez Canal|Suez Canal Authority]] asked the [[Egyptian Armed Forces]] to intervene. The Egyptian Armed Forces decided to send Unit 777 along with [[Egyptian Navy|naval forces]] to deal with the ship in international waters. Unit 777 used a [[Westland Sea King|Commando helicopter]] to descend on the main deck, capturing the whole crew without damaging the vessel.

==Current status==
After the outcomes of their first two major operations, Unit 777 was temporarily disbanded, and formed again later to deal with internal threats. The unit is currently located in southern Cairo and is equipped with [[Mil Mi-8|Mi-8]] helicopters. The unit actively trains with a number of Western special operations groups, including the [[United States Army]]'s [[Delta Force]], [[United States Navy]]'s [[SEAL Team Six]], and the French [[National Gendarmerie Intervention Group|GIGN]].<ref name="Ryan, p.23">Ryan, p.23</ref>

==Firearms==
* {{flag|Germany}}: [[Heckler & Koch MP5]]
* {{flag|Germany}}: [[Heckler & Koch G36]]
* {{flag|Germany}}: [[SIG Sauer SSG 3000]]
* {{flag|United States}}: [[M1911 pistol]]
* {{flag|Iraq}}: [[Beretta M1951]]
* {{flag|Russia}}: [[Orsis T-5000]]
* {{flag|Soviet Union}}/{{flag|Egypt}}: [[AKM]] - Locally made Egyptian rifle
* {{flag|Switzerland}}: [[SIG SG 550]]
* {{flag|Switzerland}}: [[SIG P226]]
* {{flag|Germany}}: [[Heckler & Koch USP]]
* {{flag|Italy}}: [[Beretta ARX160]]

==See also==
* [[Hatem Saber]]
* [[EgyptAir Flight 648]]
* [[Egyptian raid on Larnaca International Airport]]
* [[Egyptian Sinai war on terror]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* Ryan, Mann and Stillwell (2003). ''The Encyclopedia of the World's Special Forces''. {{ISBN|0-7607-3939-0}}

==External links==
* [http://www.shadowspear.com/egypt-special-operations/unit-777.html Shadowspear article on Unit 777]

{{Egyptian Army}}

[[Category:Special forces of Egypt]]
[[Category:Special forces units and formations]]
[[Category:Military counterterrorist organizations]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1978]]
[[Category:1978 establishments in Egypt]]