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The Selous Scouts / s ə ˈ l uː / was a special forces unit of the Rhodesian Army that operated during the Rhodesian Bush War from 1973 until the reconstitution of the country as Zimbabwe in 1980. It was mainly responsible for infiltrating the black majority population of Rhodesia and collecting intelligence on insurgents so that they could ...
The Americans suffered seven combat fatalities and many others were wounded in combat, some maimed for life. Five served in Rhodesia's most prestigious unit, the Selous Scouts. [7] The United States' Neutrality Act prohibits American citizens from enlisting with foreign militaries or working as mercenaries for other governments. [8]
Although the Selous Scouts achieved many of their military objectives, their unorthodox and often criminal methods created tensions within the military hierarchy. Reid-Daly had several brushes with the Rhodesian authorities. In 1979, rumours surfaced in Salisbury that the Scouts were poaching ivory along the Zambezi valley.
During this period the Bush War intensified and the Rhodesian Army established the Selous Scouts as a less elitist special forces unit than the SAS. The Selous Scouts commander Ronald Reid-Daly was an old friend and was willing to accept the terms except the last. Because two men could evacuate a wounded third or, in extremis, kill him, Reid ...
The Selous Scouts' hidden forward observation posts (OPs) allowed for instant reactions by Fireforce to sightings of the enemy guerrillas. [32] When an attack, contact or sighting was reported a siren would sound throughout the base and the troopers would rush out to react in two "Waves".
Selous Scouts : top secret war. Alberton, South Africa: Galago Pub. ISBN 978-0-620-05771-4. The South African Democracy Education Trust ("SADET") (November 2005). The Road to Democracy in South Africa, Volume 1, 1960–1970. Cape Town: Struik Publishers. ISBN 978-1-86872-906-7
The Rhodesian military considered two units to be special forces, the Special Air Service and the Selous Scouts. [2] Combined Operations also considered the Grey's Scouts mounted infantry unit to be an elite unit, but it was not as well trained or effective as the SAS or Selous Scouts. [3]
The 1st was disbanded in July 1915 with many men joining the 2nd Regiment that also included thirty African scouts. Frederick Selous (after whom the Selous Scouts were named) was present at Kilimanjaro and other actions in Tanganyika and reported in letters to friends that the Rhodesia Regiment acquitted itself very well at Taveta, though, as ...