Counterterrorism

Paris attacker given life sentence as Bataclan terrorism trial ends

Salah Abdeslam has been given a life sentence after being found guilty of murder carried out during the 2015 Paris attacks that killed 130 people. Nineteen other people, 10 of whom are in custody, were also found guilty of crimes including helping to provide the attackers with…

Yemen car bomb targeting security official leaves 6 dead

A car bomb targeting a top provincial security official in the southern Yemen city of Aden killed at least six people Wednesday and wounded eight others, Yemeni officials said. A car carrying explosives detonated while the convoy of a security official from a neighboring…

Military & Defense

U.S. Blacklists Five Chinese Firms for Allegedly Helping Russia’s Military

The U.S. Commerce Department added five Chinese companies to an export blacklist for allegedly helping Russia’s military despite U.S. and allied efforts to cut off Russia’s access to technology following its invasion of Ukraine. Commerce officials said the companies had…

Ukraine war: US to ramp up military presence across Europe

The US will increase its military presence across Europe as Nato agreed a "fundamental shift" in its response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A permanent army headquarters will be created in Poland, while new US warships will go to Spain, fighter jets to the UK and ground…

Cybersecurity

Lithuania Faces ‘Intense’ Cyber Attack Amid Russia Standoff

Lithuania’s defense chief said the Baltic nation has come under an unprecedented cyber attack this week after the government announced it would start blocking the transit of sanctioned goods to the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. “This cyber war has been ongoing…

UK announces support to protect Georgia against Russian cyber attacks

Britain said it would bolster Georgia's resistance to cyber attacks from Russia on Wednesday, and announced additional security support for the country at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit. “The people of Georgia live every day on the frontline of Russian…

Counterintelligence & Espionage

Suspected Russian spy was well-liked by classmates, but something just seemed a little off

Victor Muller’s accent just didn’t sound right. The man now alleged to be a Russian spy was studying at the prestigious Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies, an elite graduate program favored by US military personnel, young diplomats and, sources say, future…

Iranian Court Confirms Long Prison Sentence For Espionage For French National Briere

A court in Iran has denied an appeal by French citizen Benjamin Briere and confirmed his prison sentence of eight years and eight months for espionage, a charge he and his family have rejected. Briere’s Iranian lawyer, Saeid Dehghan, announced on Twitter on June 28 that the…

Transnational Organized Crime

Mexican journalist is shot to death; 12th so far this year

A journalist was shot to death Wednesday in northeastern Mexico as he was leaving his house with his 23-year-old daughter, who was seriously injured, according to state prosecutors and the newspaper that employed him. Antonio de la Cruz, 47, was a reporter for the local…

$30B from Russian oligarchs frozen under REPO seizure effort

A multinational task force designed to seize Russian oligarchs’ wealth has blocked and frozen $30 billion in sanctioned individuals’ property and funds in its first 100 days in operation, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday. That’s on top of the yachts, other vessels and…