77th Brigade (United Kingdom)
The 77th Brigade is a British Army formation, created in January 2015 by renaming the Security Assistance Group which was created under the Army 2020 concept. It is based at Denison Barracks in Hermitage, Berkshire and became operational in April 2015. The brigade was named the 77th in tribute to the 77th Indian Infantry Brigade, which was part of the Chindits, an Indian Army guerilla warfare force led by Orde Wingate who used unorthodox tactics against the Japanese in Burma in World War II. The formation badge of the revived 77th shows a mythical Burmese creature  known as a Chinthe in reference to the Chindits. History. The first 77th Brigade was raised as part of the new army also known as Kitchener's Army and assigned to the 26th Division and served on the Western Front and the Macedonian Front during the First World War. Some of the past units include: Role and composition. The Security Assistance Group (SAG)'s mission was to work with cross-Whitehall agencies to achieve the goals of Defence Engagement and Building Stability Overseas Strategies. 77th Brigade was created to draw together a host of existing and developing capabilities essential to  meet the challenges of modern conflict and warfare, the unit's objectives will be similar to that of the SAG. Specifically, it is to: The SAG aimed to have a full strength of 453 military and civilian personnel and occasionally, personnel from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Department for International Development and the Stabilisation Unit may be attached to the Brigade or work with it, of this total there will be 440 military posts in the brigade with up to 42% of these being reservists. A recent freedom of information answer in December 2016 stated that the liability of the  brigade was 182 regular and 266 reserve but current strength is only 153 regular and 123 reserve. Structure. Future Structure. From 2022 under the Future Soldier programme the structure of the brigade will become: Previous structure. Initially designated as the Security Assistance Group, the formation included the following units: In July 2015 and October 2015, these units were reshaped into six 'Columns'. There was no No.6 Column for historical reasons. Activities. The Brigade participated in a two-week disaster relief exercise in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It deployed to the Philippines in April 2015 to assist the Philippines Government in developing  their contingency plans for natural disasters. 77th Brigade has formed a formal partnership with the 361st Civil Affairs Brigade, US Army Europe. The Brigade uses social media such as Twitter and Facebook as well as psyop techniques to influence populations and behaviour. David Miller, a professor of political sociology at the University of Bristol who studies British government propaganda and public relations, said that it is "involved in manipulation of the media including using fake online profiles". In September 2019, "Middle East Eye" reported that Gordon MacMillan, a Twitter executive with editorial control over the Middle East and North Africa , is also a reservist officer in the 77th Brigade. Both Twitter and the British Army denied that they have a relationship or agreement. Miller said it was hypocritical of Twitter to close accounts alleged to be connected with non-Western governments while having links to the British Army. On 22 April 2020, during the UK government's daily coronavirus briefing, General Nick Carter confirmed that 77th Brigade are working with the Home Office Rapid Response Unit "helping to quash rumours from misinformation, but also to counter disinformation". On 7 May 2020, "The Economist" interviewed Carter on the role of 77th  Brigade in fighting coronavirus disinformation. The Defence Cultural Specialist Unit was used to monitor the internet for content on COVID-19 and to look for evidence of disinformation related to COVID-19 vaccines. Future. Under the Future Soldier programme, the brigade will move to Pirbright Camp in Surrey in 2026. The groups themselves will be moved around with the Specialist Expertise Group being re-structured by August 2022, the Deployed Information Activities Group moving to Upavon along with the Stand-off Information Activities Group.