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U.S. communities support surveillance systems
Despite calls by the ACLU to halt the expansion of the use of CCTVs in public places, towns across the United States are eager to get their hands on the extra sets of eyes; midsized communities across the United States are installing more surveillance video cameras in an effort to cut down on crime, without having to spend more money on additional law enforcement officials
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U.K. plans new body for the regulation of nuclear power
The United Kingdom is setting up a new nuclear regulatory body; the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) would be a new independent regulator, formally responsible in law for delivering its regulatory functions and consolidating civil nuclear and radioactive transport safety and security regulation in one entity
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Mubarak cedes authority to Suleiman, but remains in office
Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak said Thursday he has passed authority to Vice President Omar Suleiman, but will not step down before September elections; the move, announced in a nationally televised address, means he will retain his title of president and ensures the regime will continue to control the reform process; it is not clear whether the anti-government protesters would accept Mubarak’s plan; Suleiman has led the regime’s management of the crisis since he was named to the vice president post soon after protests erupted on 25 January; with his efforts failing to bring an end to protests, he and his foreign minister both warned of the possibility of a coup and imposition of martial law if the protesters do not agree to a government-directed framework of negotiations for reforms
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Governing post-Mubarak Egypt
The end of Mubarak’s reign and the likely reforms of Egypt’s political system make for an unpredictable, nervous period; in 2005 the Muslim Brotherhood won 88 seats in parliament, or about 20 percent; the leadership of the MB at the time was more pragmatic and actively sought to be involved in the country’s politics; in January 2010 the leadership of the MB was changed, and a more religiously conservative, but also a more politically aloof, leaders are now at the helm; moreover, the MB historically has been the only movement to take on the regime, and as a result it has enjoyed what analysts regard as an inflated support; the demonstrations of the last two weeks show that there are many movements and groups now willing to participate in the political process; this means that Egypt’s silent majority will have alternatives to the MB at the polls; the trouble: there may be too many alternatives, risking splitting the secular vote, thus allowing the MB to emerge as one of the largest, if not the largest, party in the post-September elections parliament
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275,000 visas issued to people from terror-prone countries
Nearly 275,000 entry visas to the United States have been given through 2009 to individuals from countries like Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia, Iran, and Syria — defined by the State Department as states which sponsor terrorism or in which terrorists enjoy relative free movement; it is estimated that of the 12 to 15 million undocumented aliens in the United states, between 4 and 5 million are visa overstays; DHS has only 272 agents to look for these 4 or 5 millions who disappeared after entering the United States
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Arizona to vote on bill denying birthright citizenship
An Arizona bill that would put a stop to automatic U.S. citizenship for children of illegal immigrants could come to a vote next week; the state’s legislation would define a U.S. citizen as someone who has been naturalized, or someone born in this country who has at least one parent who has no allegiance to a foreign country; a group of state legislators known as the State Legislators for Legal Immigration (SLLI) is proposing legislation which would allow a state to issue two kinds of birth certificates — one to babies of people legally in the United States, and a different one to babies of illegal immigrants; SLLI says that lawmakers in as many as fourteen states plan to introduce bills on the matter this year
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Bus bombing signals tough road ahead for Philippines
Al Qaeda-linked Muslim extremist group Abu Sayyaf is continuing its attacks in the Philippines; the latest attack, in Makati City, has killed five; last year, the same terrorist organization claimed responsibility for killing 116 people in a burning ferry in Manila Bay, the deadliest terrorist attack in the country’s history; lawmakers propose installing CCTVs on city buses
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Lt. Col. Cabangbang flushes out Abu Sayyaf leader
Government forces killed an Abu Sayyaf leader in an encounter at a remote village in Basilan Island, southern Philippines on Tuesday; Abu Sayyaf, an Islamist separatist group founded in the 1990s with links to external terrorist organizations, has about 400 members at present
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Air Force to deploy supercomputer aboard a superblimp
The U.S. Air Force is developing a massive blimp to gather and process all intelligence feeds from Afghanistan; the air ship will be longer than a football field and seven times the size of the Goodyear Blimp and will be able to stay afloat for nearly a week at nearly four miles up; the key feature of the ship will be its sophisticated supercomputer which can process 300 terabytes of data an hour; this computer will help limit data overload as surveillance sensors become increasingly complex; it currently takes fourteen analysts to monitor a single feed from a predator and the next generation drones will have ninety-six cameras; the blimp’s first test flight is scheduled for 15 October
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Japan and U.S. agree on nuclear counterterrorism road map
Japan and the United States are preparing a “road map” for cooperative efforts to prevent atomic site workers from stealing potential ingredients for an act of nuclear terrorism; the plan would also address the development of “security-by-design concepts” for facilities such as nuclear energy stations and atomic fuel processing sites
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Oregon’s new budget may kill interoperability system
The goal of the $600 million Oregon Wireless Interoperability Network (OWIN) project is to design and construct a reliable public safety radio system for emergency responders, comply with the FCC’s 2013 deadline to transition state radios, consolidate four existing independent state radio systems, and create a network that all public safety radio users in Oregon can access; the governor proposes to halt the project for lack of money
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N.J. county to purchase mobile morgue with DHS grant
Burlington County, New Jersey officials plan to use this year’s DHS grant of $775,000 to purchase surveillance for the county’s radio communications towers, license plate readers, and a mobile morgue unit capable of transporting eight bodies; the mobile morgue is used to provide morgue support in a mass fatality event
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Egypt's Christians fear change will not be for the better
Egypt has the largest Christian community in the Mideast; Egypt’s Christians, who make up about 10 percent of the population, increasingly live in fear of discrimination and persecution, and political change — which many outside and inside Egypt welcome — may not be a change for the better; whatever the changes bring, Egypt’s Christians are not likely to end up with someone in power as tolerant of them as even President Hosni Mubarak has been; “The Muslim Brotherhood has a long-term commitment to establishing an Islamic state under Shariah rule in Egypt,” says one expert; “The Copts and other Christians should be worried. They would be reduced to ‘dhimmi’ status — denied the right to celebrate Christmas and weddings or otherwise publicly display their faith”
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Russian extremists remotely detonate suicide bombs
Investigators believe that the suicide bomb in Russia’s airport was remotely triggered by a cell phone; officials found melted circuit boards that suggest a cell phone was embedded with the bomb; CCTV footage corroborates this theory; Russian extremists from the northern Caucasus often include remote triggers in their suicide bombs to allow handlers remotely to detonate the explosive device in the event that the attacker changes their mind or becomes incapacitated; in a recent failed attack, a spam text message prematurely triggered a female suicide bomber’s explosive device on New Year’s eve foiling a plot to kill hundreds in central Moscow
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Russia fears increasing domestic radicalization
In an increasing trend, the suspected mastermind behind the recent Russian airport bombing is an ethnic Russian who converted to radical Islam; terrorists are increasingly recruiting more ethnic Russian Muslim converts to their cause; several recent prominent figures in Islamic terrorist groups have been ethnic Russian converts; the latest suspect, Vitaly Razdobudko, is believed to also be behind a failed attack planned for New Year’s Eve; authorities have been searching for Razdobudko since he went missing last October
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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.