Riot police are police who are organized, deployed, trained or equipped to confront crowds, protests or riots.
Riot police may be regular police who act in the role of riot police in particular situations or they may be separate units organized within or in parallel to regular police forces. Riot police are used in a variety of different situations and for a variety of different purposes. They may be employed to control riots as their name suggests, to disperse or control crowds, to maintain public order or discourage criminality, or to protect people or property. In some cases, riot police may function as a tool of political repression by violently breaking up protests and suppressing dissent or civil disobedience. In recent decades, observers have noted the increasing militarization of riot and protest policing, with police deploying snipers, flashbang grenades and guns with plastic bullets.
Riot police often use special equipment termed riot gear to help protect themselves and attack others. Riot gear typically includes personal armor, batons, riot shields and riot helmets. Many riot police teams also deploy specialized less-than-lethal weapons, such as pepper spray, tear gas, rifles that fire rubber bullets, stun grenades, and Long Range Acoustic Devices.
Australia – Public Order and Riot Squad (New South Wales); Public Order Response Team (Victoria)Austria – Bereitschaftseinheit Wien of the Federal PoliceBelgium – Directie Openbare Veiligheid (DAS)/Direction Securité Public (DAS) (since 2016)Bulgaria – National Gendarmerie ServiceChile – Carabineros de ChileColombia - ESMAD (since 1999)Czech Republic - Public Order UnitsFrance – Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité and Escadrons de Gendarmerie MobileGermany – Bereitschaftspolizei units of the state and federal police forcesGreece – Units for the Reinstatement of OrderHungary – Készenléti RendőrségIndonesia - Mobile Brigade CorpsIndia – Rapid Action ForceIreland – Garda Public Order UnitIsrael – YasamItaly - Reparto Mobile Polizia di Stato, Battaglione Mobile CarabinieriJapan - Riot Police UnitMalaysia – Federal Reserve UnitMyanmar - Lon HteinNetherlands – Mobiele Eenheid (since 1936)Poland - ZOMO (1956 – 1989), OPP - Oddziały Prewencji PolicjiRomania – Trupele de Securitate (1948 – 1989), Romanian Gendarmerie (1893 – 1948 and again since 1990)Russia – OMONSerbia - Gendarmerie, Policijska Brigada, in extremely tough situations special forces units may be called, such as the Special Anti-Terrorist UnitSpain – Grupos de Reserva y Seguridad, Unidad de Intervención PolicialSingapore – Police Tactical Unit (Singapore)South Africa – Public Order PoliceSouth Korea - Combat Police, division of National Police AgencyTexas (USA) – Texas Ranger DivisionTurkey – Çevik KuvvetUkraine – Berkut (1992 – 2014), Patrol Police (since 2015)United Kingdom - Territorial Support Group (Metropolitan Police area)Vietnam - Mobile Police
