Insider Threat at DHS | Combatting Islamist Extremism | North Korean Hackers, and more
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The operation included disabling drone capabilities, disrupting communication by jamming operatives’ phones, and targeting servers to block online propaganda.
France Maintains Sahel Force to ‘Decapitate’ Al-Qaeda Groups (Defense Post)
“A French withdrawal … would be a mistake,” Macron said.
French National Assembly Backs Law to Combat Islamist Extremism (Roger Cohen, New York Times)
The French National Assembly, after 135 hours of sometimes heated debate, adopted legislation with the anodyne official purpose of reinforcing “Republican principles” but the tough real objective of shutting down the sources of Islamist terrorism across the country. Attacked by the left as an infringement of liberties and by the right as a weak compromise, the draft law reflects a decision by President Emmanuel Macron to defeat what he calls “Islamist separatism” and reinforce the unifying principles of French secularism, which affords no place in politics for religion. It will go to the Senate next month for final approval. More than 300 amendments to the draft law were adopted, but it retained its core elements and was approved with 347 votes in favor, 151 against, and 65 abstentions. Mr. Macron’s dominant centrist party, La République en Marche, backed the bill. With 15 months remaining before the presidential election, the left is in disarray, unable to identify a viable candidate. This has prompted Mr. Macron to embrace center-right territory for now. He hopes to lure voters who might otherwise vote for the right-wing Republicans or even for Marine Le Pen, the perennial rightist candidate whose weaknesses were again revealed in a televised debate last week.
Promotions for Female Generals Were Delayed Over Fears of Trump’s Reaction (Eric Schmitt and Helene Cooper, New York Times)
Under a Biden administration, the nominations are expected to go from the Pentagon to the White House within weeks and then to the Senate for approval.
DOJ Announces Charges against North Korean Hacker Spies Accused of Stealing More than $1.3 Billion in Cash and Cryptocurrency (Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post)
The Justice Department unsealed charges Wednesday against three North Korean hacker spies accused of conspiring to steal and extort more than $1.3 billion in cash and cryptocurrency from banks and businesses around the world.
The indictment builds upon 2018 charges brought against one of the alleged hackers in connection with the North Korean regime’s 2014 cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, marking the first time the United States charged a Pyongyang operative.
The move shows the degree to which North Korea relies on financial cybertheft to obtain hard currency in a country whose main exports are under United Nations and U.S. sanctions, and that is further isolated by a self-imposed coronavirus blockade.
Montana Bill Would Designate Antifa as Domestic Terrorism (Iris Samuels, AP / Tulsa World)
Montana lawmakers are considering a bill that would designate antifa as a domestic terrorism group, despite no evidence of antifa activities in the state.
The intent of the measure is to “send a message that we as a state won’t tolerate a group like this coming into our state,” bill sponsor Rep. Braxton Mitchell, R-Columbia Falls, told members of the Montana House Judiciary Committee during a Tuesday hearing.
[Mitcjell] said he did not consult with state law enforcement officials when drafting the bill.
Following the hearing on the bill, 31 Republican lawmakers who had previously signed on as co-sponsors of the measure requested that their names be removed from the sponsor list.
