The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security – Worldwide Protective Services (WPS) contract hires armed bodyguards and security for American diplomatic personnel worldwide. That means a combination of personal protective (bodyguard), static guard (facilities and checkpoints), and emergency response security (fan looks hit…) services. It is probably the most lucrative such program on the planet, and as one might expect from its size and nature: the FY 2010 budget request and justification was for $1.65 billion, covering 1,898 personnel.

The winning firms include: 

(Oct 06, 2010 19:25 UTC by Defense Industry Daily staff)

The Embassy of the United States of America in Kabul is the diplomatic mission of the United States of America in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The embassy complex is located on Great Massoud Road in the Wazir Akbar Khan neighborhood of the Afghan capital, Kabul, and was home to the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan. The Embassies of Finland and South Korea are located behind this complex and the headquarters of NATO's Resolute Support Mission is located across the street. It is the largest U.S. embassy facility. As of July 2021, the Embassy does not have an official Senate-confirmed ambassador; the acting ambassador is chargé d'affaires Ross Wilson. As of August 15, 2021, due to the ongoing 2021 Taliban offensive and fighting in Kabul, the embassy has been relocated to Hamid Karzai International Airport and is expected to be closed within days as the Taliban, the former government of Afghanistan (the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (1996-2001)), take control of the country from the Western-backed Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2004-present). Initially, Afghanistan was served concurrently by the legation to Iran (Persia), with William H. Hornibrook served as the first minister to the country. A legation in Kabul was established in 1942, which was elevated to an embassy in May 1948. Louis Goethe Dreyfus, who previously served as Minister Plenipotentiary from 1940 to 1942, became the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan from 1949 to 1951. In 1979, then-ambassador Adolph Dubs was kidnapped and ultimately assassinated under mysterious circumstances. It was closed in 1989, before the start of the long civil war followed by the Taliban takeover. A U.S. liaison office was opened after the U.S.-led Operation Enduring Freedom in late 2001 before the embassy was reopened in 2002. A new complex was under construction until early 2006, when U.S. President George W. Bush along with Afghan President Hamid Karzai held an inauguration ceremony. The U.S. State Department planned to spend another $500 million to further expand its premises, which was scheduled to be completed in 2014. However, the U.S. State Department extended the completion date to July 2016.  During the very early phases of Operation Enduring Freedom, a small detachment of U.S. Marines from Kilo Battery 3rd Battalion 10th Marines attached to the 26 MEU, who specialized in Embassy Reinforcement was tasked with retaking the U.S. Embassy in Kabul in early December 2001. This unit was part of the one of the longest amphibious operation in Marine Corp History starting the assault from LCAC's into Pakistan then moving on to Bagram Airfield before the airfield was fully secured by U.S. and Coalition troops. The Marines set up camp inside of a factory building and secured local transportation in the form of Afghan private buses driven by Marines to disguise their pending assault on the Embassy. They left in the early morning and secured and held the embassy until Diplomatic Security Services arrived to properly handle the sensitive information that was still locked in the embassy and to measure the compound's suitability for a continued U.S. presence on the site. Later that month, The Marines from this unit were the first Marines to raise the U.S. flag since the embassy was closed in 1989. This was the same flag that had flown over the U.S. Embassy in Kabul that day when it closed in 1989.

Ongoing evacuation and likely closure (August 2021-present) On August 12, 2021, the State Department announced there would be a partial evacuation of the embassy. 3,000 soldiers and Marines were temporarily deployed to Kabul to evacuate an unspecified amount of the 4,000 embassy employees, 1,400 of which are American citizens. State Department spokesman Ned Price stressed that the embassy would "remain open" with a "core diplomatic presence" remaining. In the event that Taliban forces assault the embassy mid-evacuation, a contingency force of 3,500 soldiers is being sent to Kuwait. On August 13, Price stated that the Taliban had agreed not to attack diplomatic facilities, although he stressed that the U.S. was "not going to trust anything the Taliban says" and would verify intentions through intelligence. Embassy staff were ordered to destroy classified documents, electronics, and equipment, as well as American flags that could be "misused" for propaganda purposes. Citing unnamed officials, POLITICO reported that the Defense Department was preparing for a full evacuation and closure of the embassy and that USCENTCOM saw such an event as "inevitable." On August 14, soldiers and Marines already in Kabul enhanced security of Hamid Karzai International Airport for use by evacuating diplomatic staff and Special Immigrant Visa Afghan embassy workers and translators. Military evacuation planes began flying out daily and the number of evacuated Special Immigrant Visa recipients (Afghans that helped Americans and are at risk of Taliban retaliation) was increased. Spokesman Price stated that, as a contingency, embassy operations could be moved to Hamid Karzai Airport. President Biden additionally deployed a further 1,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne to Kabul to provide additional security.[33] Also on August 14, the State Department requested that humanitarian groups help identify Afghans in need of evacuation. As of the weekend of August 14-15, informal groups of American NGOs, Afghanistan veterans, and former officials and diplomats began attempting to evacuate local Afghans awaiting official State Department evacuations or Special Immigrant Visa application processing. Individuals are leveraging connections with Congresspeople and current State and Defense Department officials to help evacuees, seeing the formal process as too bureaucratic and slow. As of August 15, Taliban forces had surrounded Kabul and sent unarmed fighters to negotiate a "peaceful transfer of power." Taliban spokesmen claim to be in ongoing negotiations with the Afghan government and said their fighters had been ordered not to enter the city.

You will receive the items as shown in the first photo (TWO patches, all velcro backed). Other items in other pictures are for your reference only, available in my eBay Store. They will make a great addition to your SSI Shoulder Sleeve Insignia collection. You find only US Made items here, with the same LIFETIME warranty.