The invention relates to an electromagnetic actuator for a surgical or medical instrument, the actuator having a stator (19) and a displaceable element (10), which at least partially comprises a paramagnetic or ferromagnetic material and can be displaced from a first position into a second position by applying an electromagnetic field.The invention is characterized in that the displaceable element (10) is or will be held in the first or in the second position by a permanent magnet.
