Counterterrorism
Lebanese authorities have arrested members of a “terrorist” militant group which recruited Palestinian youths to carry out bombings, they said on Wednesday. Security forces also thwarted three bombings being planned by the ISIS-linked group targeting Shiite places of…
Three men pleaded guilty today to crimes related to conspiring to attack power grids throughout the United States in furtherance of racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism advocating for the supremacy of the white race. Christopher Brenner Cook, 20…
Prosecutors told a federal court judge on Tuesday that an 18-year-old Waterville man charged with possession of unregistered destructive devices planned to commit “mass murder” in mosques in Chicago. Xavier Pelkey was arrested Feb. 11 by FBI agents and charged with one…
Military & Defense
Russia’s attack on Ukraine is under way. Russian President Vladimir Putin, in an early Thursday morning address in Moscow, announced that Russia would launch a military action in Ukraine. Soon thereafter, NBC News reported that explosions were heard in Kyiv…
The Pentagon announced that it has signed off on a request for up to 700 National Guard troops to be activated in response to potential protests in the nation's capital tied to President Joe Biden's first State of the Union address next week. "The Secretary of Defense has…
Older people are often at heightened risk of abuses during armed conflict, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. All parties to armed conflict should end abuses against older people and facilitate humanitarian assistance to older people in need. The United…
Cybersecurity
Various financial and government websites in Ukraine were temporarily disabled on Wednesday by heavy denial-of-service attacks that resembled ones last week attributed to Russia by U.S. officials. Around 4 p.m. local time, attackers began to direct large volumes of…
Governor Kathy Hochul is creating a Joint Security Operations Center in Brooklyn to oversee cybersecurity in New York. The Democrat said Tuesday the facility in Brooklyn will be a nerve center for data collection, response efforts and information sharing between local, state and…
A Crowdstrike report looking into access brokers' advertisements since 2019 has identified a preference in academic, government, and technology entities based in the United States. Initial access brokers are a vital link in the cybercrime chain, as these threat actors are…
Counterintelligence & Espionage
The Biden administration is shutting down a Justice Department program that focused on countering Chinese espionage, following stumbles in a series of criminal cases and accusations that it amounted to racial profiling. Officials said Wednesday that the three-year-old effort…
A Canadian court has ruled that a Chinese government agency responsible for citizens living abroad and liaising with overseas Chinese communities engages in acts of espionage that are “contrary to Canada’s interests”. The Overseas Chinese Affairs Office – which is part of…
As Russia has escalated its campaign against Ukraine, the Biden administration has fought back with aggressive use of intelligence. But beware: Two can play this game, and history shows the Russians are ruthless masters of covert operations in this region. The Ukraine spy…
Transnational Organized Crime
Over the last few years China’s presence in Mexico has expanded in both legal and illegal activities. According to preliminary data, trade between China and Mexico topped $100 billion in 2021, a new record. Imports from China account for over 90% of total trade…
The European Union’s law enforcement agency, Europol, has revealed through its latest reports that migrant smugglers and human traffickers have continued to thrive despite the new rules and restrictions that were imposed within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic…
The Turkish justice ministry asked Emirati authorities to temporarily arrest Turkish mobster Sedat Peker following an Interpol decision to issue a red notice on him, Turkish news agency Anadolu reported on Wednesday. Interpol issued the red notice on 1 February following…