Unité Spéciale – Garde Nationale

Unité Spéciale de la Garde Nationale
Active	1980–present
Country	Tunisia
Branch	National Guard
Type	Paramilitary unit, Special Operations and Tactical Law Enforcement
Role	Counter-terrorism and Hostage Rescue
Size	Unknown
Garrison/HQ	Bir Bouregba, Nabeul Governorate, Tunisia
Nickname(s)	USGN
Motto(s)	Servitas Vitae ("To Save Lives", unofficial) or Celui qui ose gagne ("who dares wins")
Commanders
Current commander	Col. Gharbi Houssine.

The National Guard Special Unit, commonly abbreviated USGN (French: Unité Spéciale de la Garde Nationale), is the Tunisian National Guard's elite counter-terrorism paramilitary tactical unit. USGN is trained to rescue citizens and allies who are held by a hostile force foreign or domestically, either terrorist or criminal.

USGN’s purpose is to serve as the Tunisian governments premier counter-terrorism unit, offering a tactical resolution option in hostage and high-risk law enforcement situations. USGN functions as a national SWAT team in highly sensitive or dangerous situations.

History

This 50 man force was established in the early 1980s and is broken down into two operational sections and a headquarters element. Based in Hammamet, they have responsibility for CT operations at government and diplomatic buildings, aircraft hijackings and maritime situations. In the event of a major operation, the U.S.G.N. would be reinforced by the Commandos Unit of the Garde National (National Guard's Commando Unit- U.C.G.N.).