The Zrinski Battalion ( Croatian : Bojna Zrinski ) was a special forces unit of the Croatian National Guard ( Zbor narodne garde – ZNG ) and later of the Croatian Army ( Hrvatska vojska – HV ) established in Kumrovec on 18 May 1991 , during the Croatian War of Independence . The unit drew personnel from the special police forces and a former French Foreign Legion troops serving as its core . The battalion was set up and initially commanded by Ante Roso , while Major Miljenko Filipović took over as the commanding officer in August .