Directorate General for Public Security
Directorate General for Public Security | |
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Agency overview | |
Formed | September 23, 1930 |
Jurisdictional structure | |
Operations jurisdiction | Austria |
Constituting instrument |
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Operational structure | |
Overseen by | Franz Ruf, Director General |
Headquarters | Palais Modena, Innere Stadt, Vienna |
Agency executives |
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Parent agency | Ministry of the Interior |
Child agencies |
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Website | |
www.bmi.gv.at |
The Directorate General for Public Security (Generaldirektion für die öffentliche Sicherheit, "GDföS") is the governing body of general law enforcement in Austria and a division of the Ministry of the Interior. It oversees the Federal Police, the Criminal Intelligence Service, the Intelligence Directorate, the EKO Cobra, and the Aerial Police.
The Directorate General is headquartered in the Palais Modena, Vienna.
History
The Directorate General was first established in 1930 as a division of the Chancellery. After the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany, Heinrich Himmler ordered the organization's dissolution. Directorate General was restored following the end of Nazi rule, but did not gain back control of most police forces until
Ensuing the Ibiza affair in 2019, Interior Minister
Agencies
Federal Police
The Federal Police is the primary civilian law enforcement agency of Austria, responsible for ordinary policing and border control. It succeeded the Gendarmerie, the Guard Corps, the Detective Corps, and the urban police forces in 2005.
The Federal Police is not an actual government authority, but the aggregate of various geographically based police forces. It is organised into nine police directorates, one for each
EKO Cobra
The Cobra Special Operations Command, abbreviated EKO Cobra, is the main police tactical unit of Austria.
It is responsible for hostage situations, highly dangerous criminal apprehensions, organized crime, counterterrorism, the protection of high-profile politicians, and providing air marshals for commercial flights.
Intelligence Directorate
The Intelligence Directorate, officially the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence (
Established on December 1, 2021, in order to replace the old BVT service.[4] It is led by Omar Haijawi-Pirchner.[5]
History
The decision to create the DSN came after the BVT, the predecessor intelligence agency, failed to prevent the 2020 Vienna attack, despite numerous warnings and surveillance information.[6]
The current director of the DSN is Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, an Austrian police officer of Jordanian descent.[5]
Espionage in Austria is not illegal if the country itself is not the target. The country is thus excluded from the Club de Berne.[7]
Criminal Intelligence Service
The Criminal Intelligence Service is a specialized police agency that investigates certain types of crime. It has nationwide criminal operations jurisdiction and about 900 employees. It also serves as the national bureau for Europol and the Schengen Information System as well as a regional outpost for Interpol.
Aerial Police
The Aerial Police is a complementary law enforcement agency that conducts airborne operations to support the Federal Police with criminal matters, major events, and traffic control. It also assists fire fighters when needed and carries out search and rescue missions for the Civil Aviation Authority. The Aerial Police is also in close cooperation with the European border agency Frontex.[8]
References
- ^ Verfassungsschutzreform: Aus BVT wird DSN
- ORF.at
- ^ bmi.gv.at - „Omar Haijawi-Pirchner wird neuer DSN-Direktor“
- ^ http://www.uniindia.com/austria-to-launch-domestic-security-agency-on-wednesday/world/news/2579427.html, 1 December 2021
- ^ a b Sneineh, Mustafa Abu (December 17, 2021). "Austria appoints Jordanian as security chief". Middle East Eye. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
- ^ Haijawi-Pirchner wird neuer Chef des Staatsschutzes
- ^ Jones, Sam (2023-07-13). ""It's really the Wild West": Vienna's spying problem spins out of control". Financial Times. Retrieved 2023-07-14.
- ^ "BMI".
External links
- (in German) Website of the Generaldirektion für die öffentliche Sicherheit on the website of the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
- (in German) Badges and insignia of the General Director for Public Security