Deputy National Police Chief Attends 43rd Anniversary Ceremony of Arintaraj 26 Unit
Thailand's Deputy National Police Chief presided over the 43rd anniversary ceremony of the Counter-Terrorism Division on April 24, presenting commendations to officers and providing aid to an injured commander from a 2020 shooting incident.
On April 24, 2026, at the Counter-Terrorism Operations Center, National Police Chief Pol. Gen. Siam Bunyasem assigned Pol. Lt. Gen. Charintr Gopattana, Deputy National Police Chief, to preside over the 43rd founding anniversary ceremony of the Counter-Terrorism Division, also known as Arintaraj 26. The ceremony was attended by multiple high-ranking police officials including Pol. Lt. Gen. Thawat Wongsangga, Deputy National Police Chief, and other senior commanders and personnel from the unit, along with former commanders and retired officers.
The morning proceedings included officers paying respects at the unit's sacred shrine, which features a Buddha image serving as Arintaraj 26's emblem, followed by religious rites. After the ceremony concluded, Pol. Lt. Gen. Charintr presented commendations and scholarships to outstanding officers who excelled in volunteer work, border patrol duties along the Thai-Cambodian frontier, and those representing the Royal Thai Police at the UAE SWAT Challenge 2026 in Dubai. The Deputy National Police Chief also visited Sgt. Maj. Kritsada Karun, commander of the 2nd Special Operations Company, who sustained severe injuries during a shooting response at Terminal 21 shopping mall in Nakhon Ratchasima on February 9, 2020, providing financial assistance and medical supplies through the "Police Do Not Abandon" program.
The unit's history traces back to 1977 when the serious crime and international terrorism threat prompted the establishment of an elite counter-terrorism unit originally called "Anti-Hijacker." After changing missions under subsequent leadership, the unit was revived in 1983 with international training standards and formally established in 1984 as Arintaraj 26 under the Bangkok Metropolitan Police Division, with the name signifying a supreme ruler victorious over all enemies.
