History
Main article: Military of East Pakistan See also: Bangladesh Liberation War, Indo-Pakistani war of 1971, and Indo-Pakistani Naval War of 1971The Pakistan Marines traced its establishment history in 1971 when the East Pakistan Navy under Rear-Admiral Mohammad Shariff, formed the amphibious and expeditionary warfare wing on June 1, 1971. The unit consisting of a Marine Battalion and an Amphibious Wing to support riverine operations in East Pakistan. The entire geographical region of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) is covered with dead level plain, making highly difficult of Pakistan Army to conduct operations regarding the mechanized warfare, although an ideal place for amphibious warfare. The aim and objectives of Indian Army was to occupy strategic areas of East Pakistan, notably the Chittagong and Khulna. In these two areas, Indian Army aimed to established the provisional government, the capture of the whole of East Pakistan was not even conceived. The Pakistan Navy in the East was capable of conducting the riverine operations, but with only four patrol craft and some two dozen improvised or confiscated river vessels. But it could hardly challenge the Indian Navy in deep waters, especially in the absence of air cover. The Marines on the other hand produced poor production of operations that completely surprised the Pakistan Armed Forces therefore, adopting the white papers of Hamoodur Rahman Commission, the government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto desetablished, decommissioned and disbanded the Marines formation in 1974.
The Marines were finally restored by Admiral Jasturul-Haq Malick, chief of naval staff of Navy, on 14 April 1990. Its initially objectives were to provide security to cover naval assets, naval bases, and to aide civil power using the Naval mobility. Immediately, the two battalions were raised after personnel from Naval police were drafted. Navy's Commander M. Obaidullah (PN. Service number 1558) was designated its first Commanding Officer. The Marines were headquartered at the Fort Qasim which was at that time under the operational control of PNS Himalayas. As a first step, PNS Qasim was commissioned as training Camp Depot Unit (DCU) on November 25, 1990. The commissioning crew consisted of eighty commissioned officers, sixty seven sailors from general service and forty three Marines. Since the Corps' establishment, Marines had performed their assigned task with utmost dedication and alacrity.
As part of the first combat assignment, the Marines were deployed at the Sir Creek region during the last decade, threat on the South-Eastern border increased manifolds, warranting an immediate response. Estimating the type and quantum of threat, the Pakistan Navy proposed deployment of a sizable force in the Sir Creeks region. The then-Rear Admiral Shahid Karimullah vigorously pursued the case of an additional battalion and its phase-wise development plan. Since, its inception, Creeks Battalion is deployed in its designated Area of Responsibility.
On 28 March 2013, Pakistan Navy commissioned the third battalion of Pakistan Marines in order to further strengthen the defense of the Gwadar Port and to enhance the security of vital Pakistan Navy assets and installations along the western coasts of Pakistan.
Read more about this topic: Pakistani Marines
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