Z Special Unit was a joint Allied special forces unit formed during the Second World War to operate behind Japanese lines in South East Asia. Predominantly Australian, Z Special Unit was a specialist reconnaissance and sabotage unit that included British, Dutch, New Zealand, Timorese and Indonesian members, predominantly operating on Borneo and the islands of the former Dutch East Indies.
Crew of the MV Krait during Operation Jaywick, 1943
Four of the crew members of Motor Launch (ML) 1321 and NX73110 Sapper (Spr) Edgar Thomas 'Mick' Dennis, Z Special Unit, the only survivor of the ill-fated raid on Muschu Island (off the coast of New Guinea), at Brisbane dockyard. May 1945
HMAS Tiger Snake in April 1945
Commemorative plaque to the Z Special Unit at Rockingham, WA
Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equipped forces using unconventional techniques and modes of employment".
An American special forces team moves together out of an U.S. Air Force CV-22 Osprey aircraft on February 26, 2018
Japanese drawing of the archetypical ninja, from a series of sketches (Hokusai manga) by Hokusai.
British Army scouts in South Africa (1893): Frederick Russell Burnham (middle); Hon. Maurice Gifford (right)
General Antonio Luna of the Philippine Revolutionary Army, the founder of Tiradores dela Muerte
