Counterterrorism
A federal appeals court Tuesday upheld a prison sentence of more than 13 years for a former Coast Guard officer accused of stockpiling weapons and plotting politically motivated killings inspired by a far-right mass murderer. Christopher Hasson argued the district court judge…
Police have charged a man with terrorism after he allegedly armed himself with two large guns and fired at members of the public before barricading himself inside a shop south of Sydney last year. The “frightening” incident unfolded on a Sunday morning on the main street of…
Somalia’s militant Islamist group al-Shabab spent $24m (£18m) in 2021 on purchasing weapons, according to a report by a Mogadishu-based research group, the Hiraal Institute. The 25-page report dubbed “Al-Shabaab Weapons” further alleges that al-Shabab, which is…
Military & Defense
Two Blackhawk helicopters crashed within a few hundred yards of a Utah ski resort Tuesday morning during a training exercise as skiers on a nearby lift watched a huge cloud of snow billow into the air. Amazingly, none of men and women aboard the helicopter or the dozens…
Russia has "undeniably" begun an invasion of Ukraine by declaring regions in its east independent and will now face billions of dollars in sanctions and additional U.S. troops deployed to the Baltic states, President Joe Biden said Tuesday. An infantry battalion based…
While patrolling a mock village to train in fighting extremists, a Ghanaian soldier wondered how he would cope if one day the drill became real. The 24-year-old special forces officer, who has never experienced war, is part of a select group of African soldiers being trained by…
Cybersecurity
The UK government alluded yesterday that it might launch offensive cyber operations against Russia if the Kremlin attacks UK computer systems after an invasion of Ukraine. “The Defence Command Paper published last year set out plans to establish, and grow to…
New research by journalist Laura Shin and blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis claims to identify who was behind the theft of $60 million in ether (ETH) from The DAO in 2016, pointing the finger at former TenX CEO Toby Hoenisch. Hoenisch denies the claims, telling…
A cyber rapid-response team (CRRT) is being deployed across Europe, after a call for help from Ukraine. The newly formed team of eight to 12 experts, from Lithuania, Croatia, Poland, Estonia, Romania, and the Netherlands, has committed to help defend Ukraine from…
Counterintelligence & Espionage
Germany has indicted a businessman on suspicion of breaking arms control laws by helping Russia purchase sophisticated machinery that could be used to make chemical weapons. The man, identified only as Alexander S because of privacy rules, was arrested by German…
Russian President Vladimir Putin mocked one of his chief officials during a televised meeting Monday, telling the intelligence officer to "speak plainly." The Russian president grew testy with Director of Foreign Intelligence Sergey Naryshkin during a tense meeting on Ukraine…
As the world waits on Russia’s next move in its slow-rolling invasion of Ukraine, US military aircraft continue flights over Eastern Europe, searching for changes in Russia’s posture along Ukraine’s border that could give clues about its next moves. Flying in the region among…
Transnational Organized Crime
A Brazilian court sentenced 15 members of an organized crime group - among them a former police officer - for having trafficked tonnes of marijuana from Paraguay, the Brazilian Prosecutor’s office said. The head of the gang, Silvio Cesar Molina Azevedo, a former police…
A Queens, New York, man today admitted his role in coordinating a $653 million money laundering conspiracy, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, and bribing bank employees in connection with financial transactions, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger…
Rio Grande Valley Sector Border Patrol (RGV) agents disrupted four migrant smuggling attempts resulting in nine arrests. On Feb. 20, Falfurrias Border Patrol Station (FLF) agents observed a Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) pursuit with a Chevrolet Silverado along…