The FBI and NYPD make peace, focusing on fighting terrorism and not each other - Washington Post
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Washington Post |
The FBI and NYPD make peace, focusing on fighting terrorism and not each other
Washington Post FBI Director James B. Comey later said, “There is no doubt it was terrorism.” “We had that conversation and moved on,” Miller said. “We made our point.” Miller added that disagreements are inevitable, but they don't spill into the tabloids as they used ... and more » |
Scoop.co.nz (press release) |
FBI Statement on Director Comey's Visit to New Zealand
Scoop.co.nz (press release) FBI Director James B. Comey met this week with our partners in New Zealand to discuss a host of important issues regarding the safety and security of the citizens of both countries. The U.S.-New Zealand law enforcement partnership remains steadfast ... |
Tunisian security forces killed five gunmen in new clashes Tuesday near the border with Libya and are hunting violent jihadists hiding out in the area.
The death toll from clashes between Tunisian forces and extremist attackers near the Libyan border has risen to 55.
The Islamic State is gradually being degraded, but it still holds large swaths of Syria, Iraq and now Libya — and it maintains a global terror network.
The Hill |
Comey's FBI makes waves | TheHill
The Hill The aggressive posture of the FBI under Director James Comey is becoming a political problem for the White House. The FBI's demand that Apple help unlock ... FBI Chief James Comey Stirs Tensions, Becomes Political Problem ...Newsmax all 4 news articles » |
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Russia’s top brass has called on leading military theorists and specialists as well as the defense industry and the government to jointly develop a “soft power” strategy to counter the potential threat from “color revolutions.” The annual general meeting of the Academy of Military Sciences (Akademiya Voyennykh Nauk—AVN), on February 27, saw a number of inter-linked presentations addressing the nature of modern warfare and the role of military science in assessing such issues, as well as a keynote speech by the chief of the General Staff, Army-General Valery Gerasimov. Experts supported Gerasimov’s conclusion that in order to counter the possible security threat posed by “color revolution,” Russia must form and develop a range of soft power instruments. It was made clear that a “coup” in the color revolution model is regarded by Moscow as a form of hybrid warfare conducted by foreign powers against Russia’s interests (RIA Novosti, March 1).
Color revolutions were characterized as an essential component in Western “hybrid warfare” approaches, with the underlying message during the conference being that Moscow must now remedy these threats by forming new anti-hybrid capabilities of its own. Gerasimov’s speech has brought full circle the discussion triggered by his controversial article in Voyenno Promyshlennyy Kuryer in February 2013; Gerasimov’s assessment of modern trends in warfare was soon interpreted as evidence of the existence of a Russian concept and doctrine pertaining to “hybrid warfare,” with many rushing to judgement based on the example in Ukraine (Kommersant, March 1; Voyenno Promyshlennyy Kuryer, February 27, 2013).
Among the themes covered by speakers were reforming the military-industrial complex, weapons procurement, and the formation of private military companies. Central elements in the military theoretical framework that formed the backdrop to the presentations, especially Gerasimov’s assessments, are found in the work of the country’s leading military theorist—Army-General Makhmut Gareev, the president of the AVN. Indeed, in recent years Gareev has walked a line between traditionalists and modernizers in his articles and speeches, particularly calling for new ideas and approaches to how Russia confronts the challenges of modern warfare. In his written analysis published prior to EuroMaidan, he warned that a color revolution could pose a direct threat to Russian security (Voyenno Promyshlennyy Kuryer, February 24, 2016; December 4, 2013).
It is in this context, and following Russia’s military experiences in Ukraine and Syria, that Gerasimov chose the AVN to issue his call to action against color revolutions. Reportedly, Gareev also addressed the academy on the results of its activities in 2015 and set out some tasks for the year ahead. The AVN consists of 13 academic departments with 21 regional branches. It has 98 honorary members and 2,783 professors. Among the professors, 72 percent are retired military officers or reservists and 28 percent of the AVN’s military scientists are current members of the Armed Forces (Kommersant, March 1).
Gerasimov framed his comments by noting the firmly established foreign “high-tech” warfare concept aimed at achieving its goals by “remote” non-contact impact upon enemy forces, using high-precision and long-range systems operating in the air, sea and space. This trend, according to Gerasimov, was a prominent theme in the development of the world’s leading militaries in recent years, and is now reflected in Russian defense planning to 2020, including the Plan of Defense approved by President Putin and put into effect at the beginning of 2016. He continued by noting that Russia faces a broad range of multi-vector threats, especially linked to the use of soft power: political, diplomatic, economic, informational, cybernetic, psychological and other non-military means. The main result of Russian military science should be practical, leading the way in formulating new ideas and thinking on these issues. Gerasimov elaborated on the nature of military threats, Russia’s complex security environment, changes in the nature of combat, as well as the means and methods of using military force. In addition, he raised questions about the future priorities for the Armed Forces, including modernization as well as developing the strategic rocket forces and system of air and space defense (Voyenno Promyshlennyy Kuryer, March 8; Krasnaya Zvezda, February 28).
Turning to the threat posed to Russia’s security from the phenomenon of color revolutions, Gerasimov linked the themes of globalization, the weakening of national borders, as well as the emergence of the field of information as a fundamental component in modern warfare. Gerasimov believes that this shifts the focus to an integrated application of “political, economic, and information activities and other non-military measures relying on military force.” Looking out on international approaches to modern warfare, the General Staff sees “hybrid” approaches readily being used and developed by other powers, which, in turn, means Russia needs to play catch up. In his view, a “soft power” approach is needed to combat color revolutions using a range of means partly already present in the Foreign Policy Concept but necessitating refinement. Gerasimov wants the AVN to further study trends in modern warfare and to take into account lessons learned from the Great Patriotic War, Afghanistan and anti-piracy missions, as well as Syria and Crimea (though Russian forces met with little resistance in the latter). He also combined his call for soft power counter measures against color revolutions with greater efforts to study offense and defense in outer space and in the information space (Voyenno Promyshlennyy Kuryer, March 8; Krasnaya Zvezda, February 28).
By including the Great Patriotic War as an additional area demanding study to strengthen Russia’s approaches to future warfare, Gerasimov was not simply paying lip service to the AVN and the esteemed role of Gareev—whose views were largely shaped by his experience of the war. Indeed, the collective memory of June 1941 (date of Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union), distilled even today into the educational culture of the top brass, explains the Russian security elite’s predisposed fear of a sudden, surprise attack—most recently embodied by the United States’ Prompt Global Strike and missile defense plans, which drive aspects of Moscow’s nuclear modernization (Nezavisimoye Voyennoye Obozreniye, February 26).
Gerasimov’s address to the AVN confirms the non-existence of a Russian hybrid doctrine, or approach to warfare per se. Rather, according to his public remarks, Gerasimov sees the need to respond to the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which he claims are forming such capabilities (Nezavisimoye Voyennoye Obozreniye, February 28).
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· · · ·
US Vice President Joe Biden touted military coordination the US and Israel are conducting with Russia
The Pentagon has deployed drones to spy over US territory for non-military missions over the past decade, according to a new report.
Months before the summit of NATO’s leaders in Warsaw in July, there is hesitance to tackle the issue of nuclear deterrence.
March 9, 2016, 8:06 PM (IDT)
Iraqi intelligence sources said Wednesday that Sleiman Daoud al-Afari, leader of the ISIS network for developing chemical weapons, was captured by US special forces troops in the Tal Afar area of northern Iraq about a month ago. He previously served as a biological and chemical weapons specialist for the regime of Saddam Hussein at the end of the 1980s. The capture is part of the Obama's administration's new doctrine of "surgical" special forces operations to eliminate or capture key ISIS leaders.
Washington Post |
Is the GOP really on the verge of breaking in two? Here's what history says.
Washington Post The strife and alarm inside the Republican Party cannot, at this point, be overstated. The very real possibility that Donald Trump will arrive at the GOP's July convention shy of the 1,237 delegates needed to secure the party's nomination raises all ... The GOP's gross Adam Sandler primary: Donald Trump, penis jokes and the pathetic state of conservatismSalon CHARLES HURT: Donald Trump forcing Republican Party to attack itselfWashington Times GOP races remove all doubt about Trump's frontrunner statusMSNBC Reuters Blogs (blog) -The Week Magazine -USA TODAY all 1,342 news articles » |
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Military Times |
Pentagon admits it has deployed military spy drones over the U.S.
Military Times The Pentagon has deployed drones to spy over U.S. territory for non-military missions over the past decade, but the flights have been rare and lawful, according to a new report. Loading… Post to Facebook. Pentagon admits it has deployed military spy ... Pentagon admits using drones to spy over US territory: ReportsAL.com Pentagon Admits to Deploying Military Spy Drones Over the U.S.TheBlaze.com Pentagon spy drones sometimes flown over US: USA TodayYahoo News Reno Gazette Journal all 27 news articles » |
Daily Beast |
U.S. Attacks ISIS Chemical Weapons Program
Daily Beast Two facilities were destroyed in airstrikes thanks to intelligence provided by an Iraqi operative held in U.S. custody for the past month. The Iraqi man currently being held and interrogated by U.S. officials is a suspected mid-level Islamic State ... Iraqi officials: US captured top IS chemical arms engineerFox News Who Is Sleiman Daoud Al-Afari? ISIS Chemical Weapons Leader In US Custody: ReportInternational Business Times US special forces capture IS chemical arms expert in Iraq: OfficialsHindustan Times all 121 news articles » |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. aircraft have begun targeting Islamic State's chemical weapons sites near Mosul in Iraq in an initial round of air strikes aimed at diminishing the militant group's ability to use mustard agent, CNN reported on Wednesday.
Russian Mining City Grapples With Yet Another Tragedyby support@pangea-cms.com (Sergei Khazov-Cassia, Robert Coalson)
A series of methane explosions in a coal mine in Russia's Far North recently left 36 people dead and the hardscrabble city of Vorkuta in mourning.
EU Lawmakers Demand Sanctions On Putin, 28 Others Over Savchenko by support@pangea-cms.com (RFE/RL)
Members of the European Parliament have urged EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini to impose personal sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin and 28 other individuals over the "illegal" treatment of Ukrainian pilot Nadia Savchenko.
A privately owned Turkish news agency, Cihan, says Turkey's government has seized control of its offices amid a widening crackdown on supporters of Fethullah Gulen, a U.S.-based Muslim cleric who opposes President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
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Palestinian militants unleashed a series of shooting and stabbing attacks against Israelis on March 8 -- including a stabbing spree in the Mediterranean port city of Jaffa that killed an American tourist.
U.S. Says Air Strikes Likely Killed Top IS Commanderby support@pangea-cms.com (RFE/RL)
Pentagon officials said U.S. air strikes last week likely killed a top Islamic State (IS) commander known as Umar al-Shishani, along with 12 other IS fighters.
A U.S. military aircraft with four crew members crashed in Iraq, but none
was injured and initial reports ruled out hostile action, a Defense Department official said on March 8.
was injured and initial reports ruled out hostile action, a Defense Department official said on March 8.
Accounts on state television did not specify whether the military had fired any such intercontinental weapons, which would violate a United Nations resolution.
The American was killed by a Palestinian man who attacked groups of people in Jaffa, a seaside district adjoining Tel Aviv, according to local officials and Israeli media.
The Turkish authorities have seized control of the Cihan news agency, expanding the crackdown against supporters of the Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen.
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President Obama is looking past his time in office and weighing a plan that would preserve at least the principle of a two-state solution for his successor to pursue.
A photograph provided by Fars News Agency shows a ballistic missile test launch at an undisclosed location in Iran on Wednesday.
ISIS Detainee Tells U.S. of Militants’ Plan to Use Mustard Gasby HELENE COOPER and ERIC SCHMITT
Defense officials said Sleiman Daoud al-Afari, held in Iraq, is a chemical weapons specialist who was captured by commandos in an American Special Operations force.
Slovenian comedian Klemin Slakonja spoofs Putin in viral video. Report by Jessica Wakefield.
The proposal quickly faced opposition and questions over international rights.
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MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) -- Hoping to capture a high-profile target, U.S. special forces hopped off helicopters a couple of miles (kilometers) from an al-Shabab-controlled town, slipped through the dark and then got into a fierce firefight that reportedly killed more than 10 Islamic extremists....
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Yesterday, the U.S. military announced that it had successfully targeted and killed over 150 al Shabaab militants in Somalia in a series of airstrikes against a training camp. According to theWashington Post, Pentagon officials described the group of militants as an “imminent threat” to both U.S. and African Union troops in Somalia. Foreign Policy calls the strike “one of the deadliest U.S. airstrikes in recent memory.” The news of the airstrikes, which apparently included drone strikes, came as Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President on Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, revealed that the Obama administration plans to release the number of suspected terrorists and civilians killed in U.S. drone strikes since 2009.
A day after the airstrikes, the New York Times reports that a bomb planted within a laptop computer exploded at an airport security checkpoint in the town of Beletwein in central Somalia. The hidden explosive wounded at least six people. Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack shortly after the laptop detonated. According to police officials in Somalia, a second bomb was successfully defused. The month of February saw an uptick in attacks by al Shabaab with a twin car bombing in Baidoa, an attack on a hotel, and an attempted bombing of a jetliner.
A top Islamic State leader may have been killed in a U.S. drone strike. The U.S. military and intelligence community are assessing whether a targeted airstrike last week killed a militant known as“the Chechen.” “The Chechen” is also known as Abu Omar al Shashani and is one of the Islamic State’s most capable commanders. CNN has more.
Stars and Stripes reports that more than a dozen Islamic State militants were killed in a drone strike in eastern Afghanistan Sunday night. That news comes shortly after Afghan President Ashraf Ghanistated that Afghanistan would “become a graveyard for the Islamic State.” According to Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman for the governor of Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, “if all drone attacks continue like this, then it will not be difficult to eradicate the insurgency in the country.”
Yet while Afghanistan is seeing measured success against ISIS, U.K. authorities are increasnigly worried about a potential attack in the British isles. The Guardian reports that the Islamic State seeks to “inflict an ‘enormous and spectacular’ terrorist atrocity on Britain and may have people trained to a paramilitary level to carry out attacks.” According to Mark Rowley, Britain’s Metropolitan police assistant commissioner, terrorists still want to kill soldiers and police but now pose a real danger of attacking Western lifestyle targets. Rowley further stated that the Islamic State is “going from a narrow focus on police and military as symbols of the state to something much broader."
The Pentagon has presented the White House with its plan for stemming the Islamic State’s growing threat in Libya. The New York Times writes that the set of military options includes a range of potential airstrikes against training camps, command centers, munitions depots, and other militant targets. The Times also shares that the airstrikes against 30-40 targets in four areas around the country would seek to deal a “crippling blow” to the Islamic State’s most deadly affiliate outside of Iraq and Syria.
Back in the homeland, military intelligence reports on the Islamic State’s threat were softened after leaving analysts desks at U.S. Central Command. The Washington Examiner reports that the congressional task force established to investigate the allegedly cooked documents found that the higher the reports traveled in the chain-of-command the more they become "rose-colored" in regards to the actual threat.
The main Syrian opposition group will decide later this week whether to participate in the peace talks set to resume in Geneva tomorrow. Riad Hijab, the head of the Higher Negotiations Committee acknowledged that Russia’s bombardment has decreased following the implementation of the “cessation of hostilities” last week. However, Hijab added that Bashar al Assad’s government has not released any detainees and he said that the flow of aid to rebel-held areas was too small, citing the main preconditions for the opposition to continue in the peace process. ABC News has more.
Following a joint meeting between European Union officials and Turkey on the migrant crisis, Turkey has agreed to do more than the E.U. has asked in order to curb the flow of migrants traveling across the Aegean Sea. However, there is a catch. The Washington Post reports that Turkey will only step up its efforts in return for billions of dollars in aid and a new hearing on Turkish membership in the European Union. The proposal came as a surprise to E.U. negotiators.
Today, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps staged nationwide ballistic missile tests. The New York Times tells us that Iranian state television reported the news but did not specify whether the military had launched any missiles capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. Such a test would violate a United Nations resolution. Under the nuclear accord signed by the United States and Iran last summer, Iran was prohibited from testing missiles designed to deliver nuclear weapons. Commander of the IRGC’s Aerospace wing, Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, stated that the United States is “trying to turn off the lights of Iran’s missile program” but that “the Guard Corps doesn’t give into threats.”
An American tourist was killed by a Palestinian attacker today in Israel’s port city of Jaffa. Israeli police spokeswoman Luba Samri said that the American man was killed Tuesday when a Palestinian stabbed seven people. The victim has not yet been named.
Over the weekend, the Taliban issued a statement saying that it would not participate in any talks aimed at peace with the Afghan government. However, the Afghan government still hopes to hold peace talks with the insurgent group. The Associated Press shares that Afghanistan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai deemed the Taliban’s statement a “tactical” move and said that Afghanistan would continue the peace process.
Following yesterday’s deadly bombing at a courthouse in Pakistan by Jamat-ul-Ahrar, Pakistan’s military conducted airstrikes that killed at least 21 militants in North Waziristan's tribal region near the Afghan border. According to Voice of America, Pakistan’s counter-insurgency army operation has cleared around 90 percent of the Waziristan territory of insurgents.
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi indicated that China would not permit other nations to infringe on its sovereign rights in the South China Sea. Taking a hard line during a news conference today, the Associated Press reports that Wang said “another nation’s claim to freedom of navigation in the region doesn’t give it the right to do whatever it wants,” referencing the United States. Wang also deflected allegations that China is militarizing the disputed waters, saying instead that China was acting in defense and adding that “China cannot be labeled as the most militaristic. This label is more suited to other countries.”
Defense officials announced yesterday that the John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group has passed out of the South China Sea just days after it had arrived in the heavily disputed waters. Appearing in the waters on March 1, the strike group entered amid rising tensions over China’s decision to install surface-to-air missiles on an island in the Parcel Island chain. <a href="http://Military.com" rel="nofollow">Military.com</a> tells us that Navy officials indicated that the ships were in the South China Sea only for standard operations and were not intended to show force to Chinese naval personnel. However, the strike group’s departure does not signal the end to U.S. missions in the South China Sea. Today, U.S. Air Force General Lori Robinson announced that the Air Force will continue to conduct missions in and over the South China Sea despite China’s recent claim that freedom of navigation has its limits.
Foreign Policy reports that an unpublished document by a United Nations panel responsible for enforcing sanctions against North Korea suggests that Pyongyang moved tens of millions of dollars through a Chinese bank to avoid sanctions. Foreign Policy has more on that report here.
South Korea has approved unilateral sanctions against North Korea by blacklisting dozens of northern companies and people for the first time and banning ships that have visited North Korean ports from its waters. The Washington Post shares that South Korean Minister of Government Policy Coordination Lee Suk-joon stated, “North Korea’s provocations—and its nuclear tests and long-range missiles—can no longer be accepted, and North Korea’s misjudgments should be corrected by making them pay the heavy price for their actions.”
Additionally, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service accused North Korea of hacking into the smartphones of dozens of senior South Korean government officials. Allegedly, Pyongyang stole the officials’ text messages, contact information, and voice conversations. The New York Times writes that the news comes as South Korea faces a growing threat of online attacks from the North, possibly in retaliation for the latest sanctions imposed on the Hermit Kingdom.
The Pentagon recently issued a military wide cybersecurity discipline implementation plan in an attempt to hold leaders up and down the chain of command accountable for cybersecurity. Initially released last October, the plan was updated in February and made public last week. C4ISR & Networks writes that the plan shares some similarities with the Defense Department’s other large-scale cyber assessments. Read the updates here.
In other cyber news, the Department of Defense has awarded Booz Allen Hamilton a $5 billion contract for cybersecurity. C4ISR & Networks tells us that “Booz Allen will be the prime contractor on the five-year, indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract awarded by the Department of Defense Information Analysis Centers Program Management Office.”
The Washington Post has the latest updates on the Apple vs. FBI dispute. Yesterday, the Department of Justice filed an appeal to a federal judge’s ruling in New York that Apple did not have to help the FBI access a locked iPhone belonging to a drug dealer. Read the rest from theWashington Post here.
Reuters reports that the Obama administration announced yesterday that the number of former Guantanamo Bay prison detainees who are suspected of having returned to fighting for militants doubled to 12. According to a report issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, as of January 15, the United States confirmed that seven out of the 144 detainees who were freed since President Obama took office in 2009 have returned to fighting.
The Washington Post reports that the White House is considering nearly half a dozen relatively new federal judges to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. The Post shares a list of some of the judges under consideration for the bench here.
Ever wonder what the 2016 presidential candidates get wrong about the future of war? Defense Onehas you covered. Check out Defense One’s piece on the topic here.
Parting Shot: Here's an atomic oxymoron: Foreign Policy calls Donald Trump an “idiot savant on nuclear policy” who may not know just how right he is about the U.S.'s incoherent nuclear attitudes.
ICYMI: Yesterday, on Lawfare
Cody shared the Week That Will Be and flagged upcoming events this week.
Ben linked us to a trans-Atlantic town hall dialogue with Germans on data privacy that he participated in.
Daniel Severson described how France amended a pending counterterrorism bill to impose heavy penalties on technology companies that fail to cooperate in decrypting information for investigators.
Jack Goldsmith provided us the title and description on a new book on international law in a changing world.
Bobby Chesney responded to the U.S. government’s airstrikes targeting 150 al Shabaab militants in Somalia.
Email the Roundup Team noteworthy law and security-related articles to include, and follow us onTwitter and Facebook for additional commentary on these issues. Sign up to receive Lawfare in your inbox. Visit our Events Calendar to learn about upcoming national security events, and check out relevant job openings on our Job Board.
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Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news.
IRAQ and SYRIA
Abu Omar al-Shishani, the Islamic State’s defense secretary, was likely killed by coalition airstrikes near the Syrian town of al-Shadadi last week, according to Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook. [Washington Post’s Thomas Gibbons-Neff]
America will need to use more military resources in order to reclaim important parts of Iraq and Syria from the Islamic State, said the head of US Central Command, Gen Lloyd Austin before Congress yesterday, adding that he has made recommendations to top Pentagon officials, the details of which he declined to disclose. [Wall Street Journal’s Felicia Schwartz]
US B-52 bombers are “ready and able” to target the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, according to Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James, speaking at a Pentagon press briefing. [CNN’s Ryan Browne]
The US and to a certain extent Russia have “seized the opportunity afforded to it by the aerial free-for-all over Iraq and Syria” and other combat zones to carry out live trials of military equipment, reports David Axe. [The Daily Beast]
US-led airstrikes continue. The US and partner military forces carried out seven airstrikes against Islamic State targets on March 7. Separately, coalition forces conducted a further 17 strikes against targets in Syria. [Central Command]
The Washington Post editorial board comments on the partial Syria ceasefire, opining that while it has saved lives, “the price of the deal has been high,” leaving Russian President Vladimir Putin “in command in Syria, able to chip away at Western-backed forces while ensuring that the genocidal dictatorship he backs remains in place.
ISIS is “gradually being degraded” however it still retains control of large parts of Syria, Iraq and now Libya – “and it maintains a global terror network and a demonstrated willingness to use chemical weapons,” opines David Ignatius at the Washington Post.
“The Islamic State group: the full story,” from Jim Muir at the BBC.
SURVEILLANCE, PRIVACY and TECHNOLOGY
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden described as “horses—” the FBI’s suggestion that only Apple is capable of breaking into the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters, at a conference hosted by liberal advocacy group Common Cause. [The Hill’s Julian Hattem]
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates “stuck solidly to the same neutral position” on the ongoing dispute between Apple and the FBI during a Reddit “As My Anything” yesterday. Gates said: “I think there needs to be a discussion about when the government should be able to gather information.” [NBC News’ Matthew Deluca]
Windows 10 will be deployed throughout the Department of Defense by January, with the hope of strengthening cybersecurity and streamlining the information technology operating environment, according to a memo from Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work. [DoD News]
ISRAEL and PALESTINE
A US citizen has been killed by a Palestinian man who embarked on a stabbing “spree” near Tel Aviv. The victim has been identified as Taylor Force a graduate student at Vanderbilt University. He had been on a trip with 29 other students to learn about global entrepreneurship. Several others were injured, including Force’s wife, in a series of attacks carried out over 20 minutes until the attacker was shot dead by police. [New York Times’ Diaa Hadid; The Daily Beast]
“There is no justification for such acts of terror.” Vice President Biden, speaking at a meeting with former Israeli President Shimon Peres in Tel Aviv, condemned the attack. [The Hill’s Jordan Fabian] Biden also criticized Palestinians for a “failure to condemn” the attack. [AP] Back in the US, State Department spokesperson John Kirby stated yesterday that the US condemns the attack, adding that all parties should take steps to “reduce tensions and restore calm.”
The attacks took place just as Vice President Biden began his two-day trip to Israel to try to salvage relations with Israel’s President Benjamin Netanyahu following the “very public” and “deeply partisan” quarrel over last year’s Iran nuclear deal – as well as the clash over Netanyahu’s recent last-minute cancellation of a visit to the White House. It is not known whether the attack was timed to draw attention to Biden’s visit. [Washington Post’s William Booth and Ruth Eglash; Wall Street Journal’s Rory Jones and Carol E Lee]
It would have been “good manners” for Israel to inform the White House directly that Prime Minister Netanyahu had canceled his trip, Press Secretary Josh Earnest said in a press briefing. The White House originally learned that Israel’s Prime Minister no longer intended to meet with President Obama via Israeli media. [Politico’s Eliza Collins]
President Obama is considering a UN Security Council resolution to enshrine a “two-state solution” in relations between Israel and Palestine. Having accepted defeat over a peace deal between Israel and Palestine, he is debating whether to pave the way for his successor to pursue the proposals originally tabled by Secretary of State John Kerry in 2014. The deliberations have reportedly “rattled” Israel’s prime minister, and may have been one factor that led him to cancel his planned meeting with Obama on March 18. [New York Times’ Mark Landler]
And two Palestinians have been killed by Israeli police in Jerusalem, having allegedly attacked a bus and then open-fired at a bus stop. [Al Jazeera]
IRAN
Iran has launched two further ballistic missiles today, in violation of a UN Security Council resolution. [BBC] Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which carried out the tests, said that the missiles had been designed to “be able to hit our enemy the Zionist regime [Israel] from a safe distance.” [Reuters]
Iran accused the US of “threats” against its missile program as it broadcast its ballistic missile tests yesterday. [AP] Following the tests, it repeated its threat to walk away from the UN nuclear agreement that was reached last year. [Fox News’ Adam Kredo]
SOMALIA
Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for a car bomb that exploded in the vicinity of a police building in Mogadishu, Somalia, today. At least three police officers were killed, though al-Shabaab has told reporters that the death count is ten. [Reuters]
Washington’s “mounting concerns” over the strength of al-Shabaab is revealed by the “surprisingly large-scale” US airstrike on a training camp in Somalia on Saturday, which resulted in the deaths of over 150 fighters, says Heidi Vogt. [Wall Street Journal]
“Huge numbers of people today who have absolutely no idea who was killed are certain that they all deserved it.” There is “no evidence” that the 150 killed in the US airstrike on Saturday were terrorists, yet US media was content to relay quotes from officials “uncritically and with no skepticism of their accuracy,” says Glenn Greenwald. [The Intercept]
GUANTANAMO BAY
A resolution of opposition to President Obama’s Guantánamo Bay closure plans was formally introduced by GOP senators yesterday. In a written statement, Senator Kelly Ayotte made reference to the latest Director of National intelligence report, which stated that a number of those recently released were likely to reengage with terrorists. [The Hill’s Kristina Wong]
Indonesia will “find a way to ensure” Guantánamo Bay detainee Riduan Isomuddin, an Indonesian known as “Hambali,” does not return to Indonesia if President Obama’s plans to close the detention center go ahead. Indonesian officials have stated that they would rather he remained in US custody. Hambali has yet to be charged with anything. [Miami Herald’s Niniek Karmini]
NORTH KOREA
North Korea has developed miniaturized nuclear warheads capable of fitting on the tips of ballistic missiles, a North Korean news agency has quoted leader Kim Jong-un as saying. North Korea has made similar claims on previous occasions, and it is not clear whether this latest announcement is true. [Washington Post’s Anna Fifield; Wall Street Journal’s Alastair Gale]
Russia has responded to North Korea’s threat to “annihilate” the US and South Korea with a warning that it could justify the use of military force against it. At the same time, Russia criticized the US and South Korea for carrying out their largest ever military drills recently, which it said put “unprecedented … military and political pressure on Pyongyang.” [NK News’ Chad O’Carroll]
SAUDI ARABIA and YEMEN
The US has urged Saudi Arabia to stop punishing Lebanon economically for the growing presence of Hezbollah there; Riyadh has suspended military aid and restricts its citizens from visiting Lebanon. [Wall Street Journal’s Jay Solomon and Dana Ballout]
Houthi group delegates are in Saudi Arabia discussing ending the conflict in Yemen, according to Yemeni officials. This is the first visit since the war between Iran-allied Houthi forces and the Saudi Arabia-assembled Arab military coalition began in March 2014. [Al Jazeera] The conflict has forcibly displaced over 2.4 million people so far, and the UN has warned that the “situation is likely to get worse” while there is “no political settlement in sight.” [UN News Centre]
AFGHANISTAN
China has offered to increase military aid to Afghanistan, according to Afghan officials. Previously “wary of publicly supporting the Afghan military against the Taliban,” it has been prompted to take a more active role by the deterioration of Afghanistan’s security under the threat of Islamic State, report Jessica Donati and Ehsanullah Amiri. [Wall Street Journal]
As Afghanistan enters its 15th year of Taliban insurgency, US and Afghan officials consider that Afghan commando and special forces units, such as Hazara, will be able to reassure the country that the Taliban will not succeed in regaining power. The Afghan army’s reliance on its “elite but strained” commandos is “controversial,” however, reports Tim Craig. [Washington Post]
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
The NYPD and the FBI are recognizing the benefits of “working together” after years of friction.NYPD Commissioner William J Bratton, who took over in late 2013, is succeeding in diffusing tensions and improving a relationship that deteriorated sharply after 9/11, when the NYPD expanded its counterterrorism operations well beyond the city itself and in doing so “brushed up against” the FBI’s prerogatives. [Washington Post’s Adam Goldman]
President Obama and Canadian President Justin Trudeau will meet today to discuss, among other things, Russia’s strategy in the Arctic. Scott Borgerson and Michael Byers suggest that rising tensions with Russia will be an incentive for the US to settle the Northwest Passage dispute with Canada. [Wall Street Journal]
The UN has warned that the EU-Turkey migrant deal may be illegal, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi informing the European Parliament that he is “deeply concerned” about the “blanket return of anyone from one country to another without spelling out the refugee protection safeguards under international law.” [Reuters’ Stephanie Nebehay and Gabriela Baczynska]
An Islamic State plot to kidnap Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak and two other officials has been foiled, according to the deputy prime minister, one of the alleged intended targets. Plans for several attacks throughout the country were also detected and stopped, he said, the planners receiving instructions from the Islamic State in Syria. [CNN’s Euan McKirdy]
It is “extraordinarily unlikely” that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be prosecuted for her handling of classified emails, says Ruth Marcus, which she dismisses as “political idiocy.” On the facts there is not much” clear evidence of criminality”, she writes, quoting Just Security‘s Steve Vladeck. [Washington Post]
China’s “distinctly Chinese approach” to national security has caused “unease” among Western nations. The US, Canada, Germany and Japan signed a letter dated Jan. 27 expressing concern over cybersecurity laws that give the Chinese government “sweeping powers” and “heightened control” over technology as well as counterterrorism legislation that potentially draws non-violent dissidents into its definition of terrorism. [Reuters]
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