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Maryland rolls out public safety interoperable communication system
To be better prepared for man-made or natural disasters, Maryland leaders have decided to develop Twelve Core Capacities for Homeland Security, picking the deployment of an interoperable communications system as the highest priority; on 5 June 2012, Governor Martin O’Malley inaugurated the state’s new network, known as the Maryland First Responders Interoperable Radio System Team (Maryland FiRST)
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New York unprepared for flooding, sea level rise
New York City may be a fast paced city of bright lights, sleek attitudes, fashion trends, and some of the best sports teams in the country, but underneath the glitz and glamour is a city which is not prepared for an act of God and which is being threatened by rising sea levels and severe storm flooding; “It’s a million small changes that need to happen,” one expert says
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Twenty dead, scores injured, in violent anti-U.S. demonstrations in Pakistan
Demonstrations across Pakistan this afternoon (local time) have turned deadly, with reports that eighteen people were killed and seventy-eight injured; most of the violence occurred during demonstrations in Karachi and Peshawar; among those killed in Karachi were two police officers; in Peshawar, two police officers were killed; U.S. diplomatic facilities were cordoned off by the police, and the demonstrators instead torched theaters and shops; the Pakistani government deployed a large number of military and security personnel, and cellular phone services in fifteen cities were temporarily blocked to prevent militants from using phones to detonate bombs during the protests; in several cities, military helicopters buzzed overhead
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Administration: attack on consulate was a pre-planned terrorist attack
The administration yesterday (Thursday) began to move away from its initial description of the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi as a spontaneous reaction to the anti-Islamic movie, to suggest that the attack was a terrorist act planned in advance
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Critics: U.S. not doing enough to combat domestic terrorism
The effectiveness of the U.S. campaign against al Qaeda and its affiliates may have reduced the threat of foreign terrorists launching attacks on targets in the United States, but the threat of terrorism the United States is facing has not been reduced owing to the rise in domestic terrorism
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LAPD wants to know why you are taking these photos
If you live in Los Angeles and decide to take some pictures of a few monuments or public places to send to friends and family or for your own private collection, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) may see you as a potential threat to public safety
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France braces for Muslim backlash
France said it would temporarily close French embassies, diplomatic facilities, cultural centers, and schools in twenty Muslim countries in anticipation of anti-French backlash; on Wednesday, the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo published cartoons which mocked the Prophet Mohammed; the French government government also said it would not give a permit for a protest demonstration, scheduled for 22 September, against the crude anti-Islamic movie produced by an Egyptian Christian Copt now living in California
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Many issues fueling Muslim world's anti-American backlash: expert
Anti-U.S. uprisings in the Muslim world reveal old and new tensions despite hope for better relations with the West since the Arab Spring; the sources of the unrest are suspicion of U.S. motives; ignorance of the norms and practices of democratic societies; and the more recent, and more dangerous, manipulation of these sentiments by radical, conservative Islamic groups in the Middle East and North Africa
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Sequestration would result in draconian cuts in biological, medical research
The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology says that sequestration would result in draconian cuts in biological and medical research; the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would be reduced by $2.529 billion, the National Science Foundation would lose $586 million, and the Department of Energy Office of Science would be cut by $400 million
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French satirical magazine today publishes unflattering caricatures of Prophet Mohammed
The French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo announced yesterday (Tuesday) that today (Wednesday), it would publish satirical cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed as a protest against the violent wave of anti-American demonstrations in several Muslim countries
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U.S. urgently needs better bioterrorism, disease tracking system
Nearly eleven years have passed since the fall 2001 bioterrorism-related anthrax attacks that shook the United States, killing five people and injuring seventeen, a leading bioterrorism expert says the country has still not learned its lesson; he says that current data mining approaches are passive and do not provide immediate solutions to the emergencies at hand, proposing instead an electronic, clinician-based reporting system which would have the capacity to limit the impact of a bioterrorism attack
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Power lines to Iran’s enrichment facilities cut, damaging centrifuges
Iran said that power lines to two of its uranium enrichment facilities, Fordow and Natanz, have been cut by explosions, disrupting enrichment work and causing damage to centrifuges; the head of Iran’s nuclear program said that the ranks of the IAEA may have been infiltrated by “terrorists and saboteurs,” hinting that IAEA personnel may have been behind the sabotage; in the meantime, news emerged of a late-August series of tests the Syrian military conducted with tank- and aircraft-fired systems designed to deliver chemical agents; the tests were conducted in the presence of officers from Iran Revolutionary Guard
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New immigration policy separates families, loved ones
When DHS issued, on 15 June, an executive order which would defer, for two years, deportation proceedings against many illegal immigrants who came to the United States as children, it was a day of celebration for many young immigrants and their families; the order went into effect on 15 August; some illegal immigrants had a cause for celebration, but many do not – because they found out they were not eligible
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Libya arrests 50 in connection with Benghazi consulate attack
The Libyan government and the Obama administration differ on the origins of the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi; Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, insisted that attack in Benghazi was similar to the attacks on embassies in Cairo and Sana, and that all were reminiscent of previous spontaneous unrest among Muslim in response to perceived slights toward the Prophet Mohammed; the Libyan president, announcing the arrest of about 50 in connection to the attack, said the attack was planned “by foreigners” affiliated with al Qaeda; among those arrested are militants from Mali and Algeria
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U.K.’s first research institute to investigate the science of cyber security
A new U.K. academic research institute, aiming to improve understanding of the science behind the growing cybersecurity threat, was announced last week; GCHQ, the U.K. intelligence agency, says that the institute, which is funded by a £3.8 million grant, is part of a cross-government commitment to increasing the U.K. academic capability in all fields of cybersecurity
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More headlines
The long view
Preventing Another 'Jan. 6' Starts by Changing How Elections Are Certified, Experts Say
The 2024 presidential election may be a rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, but preventing a repeat of Jan. 6, 2021 — when false claims of a stolen election promoted by Donald Trump and his allies led to an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol —will be top of mind this election year. Research finds broad support among public for nonpartisan certification commissions.
States Rush to Combat AI Threat to Elections
This year’s presidential election will be the first since generative AI became widely available. That’s raising fears that millions of voters could be deceived by a barrage of political deepfakes. Congress has done little to address the issue, but states are moving aggressively to respond — though questions remain about how effective any new measures to combat AI-created disinformation will be.
Chinese Government Hackers Targeted Critics of China, U.S. Businesses and Politicians
An indictment was unsealed Monday charging seven nationals of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) with conspiracy to commit computer intrusions and conspiracy to commit wire fraud for their involvement in a PRC-based hacking group that spent approximately 14 years targeting U.S. and foreign critics, businesses, and political officials in furtherance of the PRC’s economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives.
European Arms Imports Nearly Double, U.S. and French Exports Rise, and Russian Exports Fall Sharply
States in Europe almost doubled their imports of major arms (+94 per cent) between 2014–18 and 2019–23. The United States increased its arms exports by 17 per cent between 2014–18 and 2019–23, while Russia’s arms exports halved. Russia was for the first time the third largest arms exporter, falling just behind France.
LNG Exports Have Had No Impact on Domestic Energy Costs: Analysis
U.S. liquified natural gas (LNG) exports have not had any sustained and significant direct impact on U.S. natural gas prices and have, in fact, spurred production and productivity gains, which contribute to downward pressure on domestic prices.
Don’t Buy Moscow’s Shameless Campaign Tying Biden to Its Terrorist Attack
Russia has offered many different explanations to the ISIS-K’s 22 March 2024 terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, but the most recent explanation offered by Russia is the most audacious yet: Russia now charges that the Ukrainian energy company Burisma financed the attack. Burisma is at the center of an effort by a congressional committee to impeach President Biden, but the case has all but collapsed. Hunter Stoll writes that Russia’s disinformation and propaganda apparatus appears to be searching for ways to keep Burisma in the news ahead of the U.S. presidential election.