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 Police
Belgium – Directie Openbare Veiligheid (DAS)/Direction Securité Public (DAS) (since 2016)
Bulgaria – National Gendarmerie Service
Chile – Carabineros de Chile
Colombia - ESMAD (since 1999)
Czech Republic - Public Order Units
France – Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité and Escadrons de Gendarmerie Mobile
Germany – Bereitschaftspolizei units of the state and federal police forces
Greece – Units for the Reinstatement of Order
Hungary – Készenléti Rendőrség
Indonesia - Mobile Brigade Corps
India – Rapid Action Force
Ireland – Garda Public Order Unit
Israel – Yasam
Italy - Reparto Mobile Polizia di Stato, Battaglione Mobile Carabinieri
Japan - Riot Police Unit
Malaysia – Federal Reserve Unit
Myanmar - Lon Htein
Netherlands – Mobiele Eenheid (since 1936)
Poland - ZOMO (1956 – 1989), OPP - Oddziały Prewencji Policji
Romania – Trupele de Securitate (1948 – 1989), Romanian Gendarmerie (1893 – 1948 and again since 1990)
Russia – OMON
Serbia - Gendarmerie, Policijska Brigada, in extremely tough situations special forces units may be called, such as the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit
Spain – Grupos de Reserva y Seguridad, Unidad de Intervención Policial
Singapore – Police Tactical Unit (Singapore)
South Africa – Public Order Police
South Korea - Combat Police, division of National Police Agency
Texas (USA) – Texas Ranger Division
Turkey – Çevik Kuvvet
Ukraine – Berkut (1992 – 2014), Patrol Police (since 2015)
United Kingdom - Territorial Support Group (Metropolitan Police area)
Vietnam - Mobile Police
