HOSTAGE RESCUE MANUAL

The book is a comprehensive guide to the dynamic operations that have saved hundreds of lives in hostage situations around the world. It is based on strategies that have proved successful in numerous incidents including the landmark SAS rescue at Prince's Gate, London, and is compiled by an author with intimate and practical knowledge in the field, from nuclear power plants to airliners and a range of special weapons available to the men and women tackling each situation. At 5.30am on 26th October 2002, when Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) teams stormed a theatre in Moscow in an attempt to rescue more than 700 hostages who had been held for 58 hours by up to 50 Chechen terrorists, they launched the largest hostage rescue operation up until that time. The question is how many would have died had the operation not been launched? The previous day, intelligence had been gleaned when Alpha Personnel drilled a hole in a side wall of the theatre auditorium and inserted a fibre optic camera. This confirmed two large explosive devices were not wired for immediate detonation. They also emplaced infrared sensors to monitor the movement of the Chechens. An operator skilled in infrared surveillance tracked the terrorists by the juxtaposition of the 'hot' signature of the body, and the 'cold' signature of the weapon carried. FSB psychologists were also called in to assess the mood of hostage-takers based on information from the listening devices. With vivid photographs and diagrams of the rescue units in action, this is the complete reference work on counter-terrorist procedures. 192 page large paperback, very well illustrated. A 2001 and revised edition 2005 edition reprinted 2015. 31 illus.