Sri Lanka’s Special Task Force (STF) units which specialise in counter terrorist operations and VIP security will be providing part of the security for the 17th SAARC summit which is due to be held in Addu City, Maldives in November, Maldivian media reported.

According to Maldivian media, the Sri Lanka police dogs and STF personnel will be deployed in and around the location of the venue. Emphasis has been given to the hall in which the conference is due to take place, the harbour and the airports.

Recently special training programmes have been taking place in Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo for STF personnel and the police dogs that are due to be deployed for the summit.

The STF played a major role during Humanitarian Operation against LTTE, which ended in May 2009.

The outfit, which was trained by former British Special Air Service (SAS) officers, has evolved into a tactical counter-insurgency unit since its inception in 1983.

The STF was selected by the United Nations Inter-regional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and the International Permanent Observatory (IPO) to provide security for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.