Counterterrorism

Iraqi held by US at Guantanamo pleads guilty to war crimes

An Iraqi man who has been held at the Guantanamo Bay detention center for more than 15 years pleaded guilty Monday to war crimes charges for his role in al-Qaida attacks against U.S. and allied forces along with civilians in Afghanistan. The pleas by the prisoner known…

55 people killed in latest attack in northern Burkina Faso

Gunmen killed at least 55 people over the weekend in northern Burkina Faso, authorities said Monday, the latest attack in the West African country where mounting violence is blamed on Islamic extremists. Suspected militants targeted civilians in Seytenga in Seno province…

Military & Defense

Congo military accuses Rwanda of invasion; rebels seize town

Congo’s military accused Rwanda of “no less than an invasion” after M23 rebels captured a key town on Monday. The military vowed that Congolese forces would defend their homeland, marking a dramatic escalation in tensions between the two Central African neighbors…

South Korea says North completed prep for new nuclear test

South Korea’s top diplomat said Monday that North Korea has completed preparations for a new nuclear test and that only a political decision by the country’s top leadership can prevent it from going forward. After talks with Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington…

Cybersecurity

Google engineer says Lamda AI system may have its own feelings

A Google engineer says one of the firm's artificial intelligence (AI) systems might have its own feelings and says its "wants" should be respected. Google says The Language Model for Dialogue Applications (Lamda) is a breakthrough technology that can engage in free-flowing…

US Army to double cyber corps strength as focus shifts from counterinsurgency

The U.S. Army will double the size of its active-duty cyber forces by the end of the decade as the Pentagon shifts its focus from counterinsurgency and prepares for future fights with technologically savvy opponents, officials said. Growth in Cyber Mission Force teams…

Counterintelligence & Espionage

IRGC announces 'martyr' deaths of 2 aerospace scientists amid other mysterious deaths in the country

The Iranian Armed Forces announced the deaths of two aerospace employees, the latest in a series of mysterious deaths in recent weeks that have raised red flags concerning the country’s internal affairs. On Sunday, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced the death of…

Former CIA hacker goes on trial accused of handing data to WikiLeaks

A former coder in a secret CIA hacking unit who is accused of the biggest leak of classified material in the intelligence agency’s history faced the courts for a second time today. Joshua Schulte, 33, worked for the CIA’s engineering development programme called the operations…

Transnational Organized Crime

Third Smuggling Tunnel Discovered Under Kyrgyz-Uzbek Border

Kyrgyz officials say they have found a third tunnel along the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border purportedly used for illegal border crossings and smuggling. The State Committee for National Security (UKMK) said on June 13 that a tunnel leading to the Uzbek side of the border was discovered…

Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira: Police deny bodies found in Amazon search

Brazilian police have denied reports that bodies were discovered in the Amazon belonging to a journalist and an indigenous expert. Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira went missing on 5 June. Mr Phillips' brother-in-law told the BBC that the Brazilian embassy…