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New U.S. strategy begins to take shape in Pakistan
The U.S. military and elements in the Pakistani national security establishments collaborate much more closely than in the past; the strategy of General David Patreus and the new Obama administration is to recognize that Pakistan is a fractured, divided country, and to work with those elements closer to us
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Former U.K. home secretary: compulsory passports rather than national ID
David Blunkett, in a speech today, will suggest making national ID voluntary, opting instead for compulsory, pocket-size passports; will also raise questions about massive national database; critics charge there is less here than meets the eye
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Hill committees put authorization, chemical security bills on top of agendas
Top House and Senate Homeland Security committees staffers say their top priorities would be authorization of DHS budget and chemical plants safety measure which may include “inherently safer technologies”
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Food safety is in farm worker's hands -- literally
Food safety experts says that the health and hygienic habits of migrant farms workers are an often-overlooked source of food borne illness
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U.K. government's reports into ID scheme must be disclosed
U.K. Information Tribunal has ruled that requests from the public for review of internal government reports into the cost-effectiveness and feasibility of the planned National ID Card scheme should be granted — but with names of people quoted in the reports deleted
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Iran has reached a nuclear breakout capacity; holds enough uranium for bomb
UN experts acknowledge Iran has enough uranium for one nuclear bomb; Iran has produced 839 kg of low enriched uranium hexafluoride — more than 200 kg more than previously thought; earlier estimates that Iran is about 12 months away from the bomb now appear dated
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TSA wants to screen your baggage -- emotional baggage, that is
To improve on X-ray and millimeter-wave scanning and go beyond group profiling, some suggest screening passengers for hostile intentions
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Calculations show Iran's 2 February launch used beefed-up rocket
Calculations show that Iran’s 2 February missile launch involved a more sophisticated and powerful rocket than had been initially thought; this two-stage vehicles, with more powerful fuel, are capable of lifting a nuclear warhead farther; Europe — but not yet the United States — is now within Iranian missile range
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Latest U.S. UAV strike in Pakistan signals change of strategy
A 7 February UAV strike on targets inside Pakistan killed 30; it was the fifth such attack since the beginning of the year — and the second since Obama took office; there were two things different about this attack: Its main target was a Pakistani insurgent leader, and it was launched from inside Pakistan
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Details emerge about CIA use of Pakistani airbase to strike militants
Shamsi airbase lies in a sparsely populated area about 190 miles southwest of the city of Quetta; it is also 100 miles south of the border with Afghanistan’s southern province of Helmand and about 100 miles east of the border with Iran
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Iran says it has built long-distance UAV
Iran says it has developed a UAV with a range of more than 950 kilometers; it is not yet clear what electronic and other capabilities Iran has mounted on the drone
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U.S. under growing cyber attacks
The number of cyber attacks on U.S. government computers and networks grow; there were 5,488 tracked incidents of unauthorized access to U.S. government computers and installations of hostile programs in 2008, compared to 3,928 such incidents in 2007, and 2,172 in 2006
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DHS receives IT money in stimulus package
DHS receives a $2.8 billion boost from the new stimulus package; largest single item is for TSA’s installation of checked baggage explosive detection systems
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Experts urge strategy change in Afghanistan
Security experts say U.S. and NATO forces are not likely to defeat the Taliban and other insurgent groups on their own; closer cooperation with Afghan tribes and local organizations is essential
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Iran, preparing for a nuclear break out, seeks sophisticated defensive system
Iran is about 12 months away from its first nuclear weapon; this means that there is a 12-month window for a military attack on Iran without risking a nuclear retaliation; Iran is desperate to acquire the most sophisticated defensive system in the world — Russia-made S-300 anti-aircraft missiles; the system can track up to 100 targets simultaneously while engaging up to 12; it has a range of about 200 km and can hit targets at altitudes of 27,000 meters
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The long view
Diversity as National Security: Why Retreating from DEI Risks Repeating Pre-9/11 Failures
One of often overlooked lessons of the 9/11 intelligence failure is that diversity — linguistic, cultural, experiential — was not simply a “nice to have” in intelligence work. It was essential infrastructure. The absence of diversity in America’s national security workforce thus represented more than a demographic imbalance; it represented a structural blind spot.
Online Mobilization and Violence in the United States
Even before the Charlie Kirk assassination, the United States was facing a resurgence of politically motivated violence that is deeply intertwined with the digital sphere. Extremists across the ideological spectrum exploit acts of violence to recruit followers, justify their ideologies, and sustain propaganda networks.
Nick Fuentes Is a Master of Exploiting the Current Social Media Opportunities for Extremism
That the antisemitic white nationalist Nick Fuentes and his followers have managed to get what their 20th-century predecessors could not — widespread awareness and political influence — reveals how fringe ideologies operate differently today compared to the mid-20th century, when institutional gatekeepers –political parties, law enforcement, the media –could more effectively contain extremist movements.
White Nationalism Fuels Tolerance for Political Violence Nationwide
Political violence is certainly not new in American society, but current patterns differ in key ways. We found that, today, white nationalism is a key driver of support for political violence –a sign that white nationalism poses substantial danger to U.S. political stability.
Political Violence Offers Extremist “Trigger Events” for Recruiting Supporters
Extremists are exploiting political violence by using online platforms to recruit new people to their causes and amplify the use of violence for political goals. High-profile incidents of political violence are useful trigger events for justifying extremist ideologies and calls for retaliation.
Fake survey Answers from AI Could Quietly Sway Election Predictions
Public opinion polls and other surveys rely on data to understand human behavior. New research reveals that artificial intelligence can now corrupt public opinion surveys at scale—passing every quality check, mimicking real humans, and manipulating results without leaving a trace.