Georgetown Security Law Brief

In Litvinenko case, secrecy wins out over inquiry

05/20/13:  The New York Times reports ever since Alexander V. Litvinenko died, his supporters have nurtured a hope of one day learning answers to two critical questions: Did the Kremlin plan his poisoning in central London in November 2006? And could British spymasters have prevented it? The answers would have weighty implications for both Moscow and London. Mr. Litvinenko, 43, was a turncoat KGB officer, a whistle-blower assailing organized crime and the Kremlin; he was a newly naturalized British citizen with ties to the late Russian oligarch Boris A. Berezovsky; and according to his widow, he was an employee of the British Secret Intelligence Service, MI6. The toxin that killed him, moreover, was a rare radioactive isotope, polonium 210, the bulk of which is produced supposedly under strict safeguards in Russia. British prosecutors accused another former KGB officer, Andrei K. Lugovoi, of murder — a charge he denied. Last Friday, Robert Owen, the senior judge acting as the coroner at an oft-postponed inquest into Litvinenko's death, ruled in favor of a request from the British foreign secretary, William Hague, to exclude evidence relating to the “possible involvement of Russian state agencies” and to the British authorities’ “knowledge and/or assessment of threats to Mr. Litvinenko’s life.” With those words, the central questions — and the likelihood of answers — were removed from the inquiry.

Arrests and calls for calm in Turkey

05/14/13:  The New York Times reports Turkish officials said Sunday that they had arrested nine people accused of carrying out twin bombings in this town near the Syrian border the day before, as the investigation moved at a clip that underscored the intense pressure on the government to contain the fallout from the attacks.  Officials said the detainees were all Turkish citizens and asserted that the group had been backed by the intelligence services of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria. Anxieties were high in Turkey’s ethnically and religiously mixed southern border region, where some saw the bombings — which killed 46 and injured more than 100 — as a menacing consequence of the government’s strong support for Syria’s rebels. Officials’ repeated calls for calm reflected fears not only of the conflict’s spreading across the border, but also of the contagion of its sectarian fighting, with massacres and forced relocations compounding the horrors of the war. Turkey, like Syria’s other neighbors, is increasingly worried that the conflict will inflame border areas, where tensions among various groups are deepening amid the flood of traumatized Syrian refugees.

Kurdish PKK rebels 'begin leaving Turkey' after truce

05/08/13:  The BBC reports Kurdish rebel fighters have begun leaving south-eastern Turkey for their safe havens in Iraq under a ceasefire, Kurdish sources say. "We know that they have started moving," Selahattin Demirtas, a pro-Kurdish politician involved in the peace process, told AFP news agency. The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) announced last month a phased withdrawal to start early in May. More than 40,000 people have died in their 30-year fight against Turkey. There was no immediate official confirmation of the move from Turkey but an unnamed security source told Reuters news agency: "We have observed movement among [PKK] group members, but have not been able to establish whether this is regrouping or preparation for a withdrawal." The PKK is believed to have up to 2,000 fighters inside Turkey and their full withdrawal may take up to four months. They are expected to cross the border on foot, heading for their bases in the Qandil Mountains of Iraq. Abdullah Ocalan, the veteran PKK leader in prison in Turkey, ordered the withdrawal in March as part of peace negotiations with Ankara.

French ballistic missile test launch fails

05/07/13:  The Miami Herald reports a French ballistic missile test has ended in failure after the missile destroyed itself just minutes after its launch from a nuclear submarine off the coast of Brittany. The French Defense Ministry said in a statement that, as usual, the M51 missile was not armed with a nuclear warhead during the test Sunday. Debris from the missile fell in an area that was closed to sea and air traffic. The ministry said it was investigating why the test failed. Sunday's was the first failure in the six tests of the M51 so far. The ministry began testing the missile in 2006.

Dutch police may get right to hack in cyber crime fight

05/04/13:  The BBC reports the Dutch government has announced plans to give police far greater powers to fight cybercrime. Under a new bill, investigators would be able to hack into computers, install spyware, read emails and destroy files. They could also break into servers located abroad, if they were being used to block services. Critics say the proposed measures are unnecessary and could set a dangerous precedent for people living under oppressive governments. Use of the powers would be subject to the approval of a judge, the government stresses. The bill would also make it a crime for a suspect to refuse to decipher encrypted files during a police investigation. It is expected the draft legislation will be put to parliament by the end of the year.

Bodies of two US pilots found after Kyrgyzstan crash

05/04/13:  The BBC reports the Kyrgyz government says it has found the bodies of two US pilots after a military refuelling plane crashed in the Central Asian state on Friday. Search teams found the remains on Saturday morning, the emergencies ministry told news agencies. The search for the third member of the plane's crew was continuing. The KC-135 Stratotanker vanished from radar over mountains some 160km (100 miles) west of Bishkek where it had taken off. Witnesses said they saw the plane, believed to have been laden with fuel at the time, explode in mid-air. The wreckage was scattered across a wide area. Officials at the US base at Manas, outside the capital Bishkek, have released no information on the cause of the crash. Kyrgyz officials said the plane had taken off from Manas with some 70 tonnes of fuel on board.

Dutch man arrested for huge cyberattack

04/28/13: BBC News reports Spanish police have arrested a Dutch man suspected of being behind one of the biggest cyberattacks in history.  The 35-year-old man was detained in Barcelona following a request from the Dutch public prosecutor.  The attack bombarded the websites of anti-junk mail outfit Spamhaus with huge amounts of data in an attempt to knock them offline.  It also slowed data flows over closely linked networks and led to a massive police investigation.  The suspect is believed to be Sven Kamphuis, the owner and manager of Dutch hosting firm Cyberbunker that has been implicated in the attack.  Spamhaus servers were hit with a huge amount of data in a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack.  It overwhelms a web server by sending it many more requests for data than it can handle.

Bosnia: a President is arrested

04/27/13:  The New York Times reports the police on Friday arrested one of the country’s presidents and 18 other people in a corruption investigation in one of Bosnia-Herzegovina’s two main sections, a prosecution spokesman said. Zivko Budimir, a president of the Bosnian-Croat Federation, was among those suspected of “abuse of office, illegal intermediation, receiving and giving bribes, organized crime and drug trafficking,” the spokesman said.

Norway extends period for buying F-35 fighter jets

04/27/13:  Reuters reports oil-rich Norway is stretching out its purchase of 52 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters from Lockheed Martin, the Defense Ministry said on Friday, a move that will nudge up the total cost but reduce the annual burden on the defense budget. The country is about to place firm orders for six of the fighter planes and will extend the timeframe for the purchase of all 52 from four years to eight years, the ministry said. The F-35 is designed to be the next-generation, radar-evading fighter for US forces and their allies, but costs have risen sharply and production has been delayed, leading some countries to scale down or rethink their orders. The ministry said it had asked parliament to approve the purchase of six planes to be delivered in 2017, one year earlier than previously planned, but it would also take longer to complete the remaining purchases. That means Norway, which formally ordered the first four aircraft last June, will complete the purchases during the period 2017-2024, instead of the original plan of 2018-2021. Extending the period for the biggest weapons procurement ever for the Nordic country will bring the program's total cost to 62.6 billion crowns ($10.65 billion) in 2013 crowns rather than 60 billion crowns in 2012 terms. But stretching out the period will lessen a burden on the annual defense budget. Norway will buy six planes each year for eight years, instead of 12 planes each year for four years.

PKK to withdraw from Turkey

04/25/13:  The BBC reports the military leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Murat Karayilan, has said fighters will begin to withdraw from Turkey on 5 May. "The withdrawal is planned in phases... and will be completed as soon as possible," he said at a news conference in the Kandil mountains, northern Iraq. It follows a call by jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan for a ceasefire. More than 40,000 people have died in the 30-year fight for an ethnic Kurdish homeland in Turkey's south-east. More than 50 journalists from Turkish and foreign media outlets were taken from the regional capital, Irbil, to the briefing and had their mobile phones confiscated. No television crews were given access.

Serbian president apologizes for Srebrenica 'crime'

04/25/13:  The BBC reports Serbia's President, Tomislav Nikolic, has apologised for all "crimes" committed by Serbs during the break-up of Yugoslavia, including Srebrenica. But he refused to call the killing of thousands of Bosnian Muslims an act of genocide, as recognised by UN war crimes prosecutors. Mr Nikolic said he was kneeling down and seeking forgiveness for Srebrenica. The president is a former senior figure in the ultra-nationalist Serbian Radical Party. He was criticised after his election last year when he said: "There was no genocide in Srebrenica." Some 8,000 Bosnian Muslims were killed at Srebrenica in 1995 after Bosnian Serb forces overran the UN-defended safe area there. It was the worst atrocity in Europe since the end of World War II. Previous Serbian leaders such as Mr Nikolic's predecessor, Boris Tadic, have accepted that it was genocide. Under Mr Tadic's leadership, Serbia captured Bosnian Serb war crimes suspects Radovan Karadzic and Gen Ratko Mladic, and handed them over to international prosecutors at The Hague.
'Not convinced' Speaking to Bosnian TV, President Nikolic said: "I kneel and ask for forgiveness for Serbia for the crime committed in Srebrenica. "I apologise for the crimes committed by any individual in the name of our state and our people." Bosnian Muslim leader Bakir Izetbegovic had recently urged Mr Nikolic to acknowledge Srebrenica as an act of genocide.

Spain holds two North African 'al-Qaeda suspects'

04/23/13:  The BBC reports Spanish police have arrested two North African suspects thought to be linked to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. An Algerian identified as Nou Mediouni was arrested in Zaragoza, northern Spain, the interior ministry said. The other suspect, a Moroccan named Hassan El Jaaouani, was arrested in Murcia in the south. They have "a similar profile to the two suspects who carried out the Boston attacks", the ministry said. French police had helped to track them down. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) is among several Islamist groups fighting French and West African troops in Mali. It has its roots in the bitter Algerian civil war of the early 1990s, but in 2007 it emerged as an international jihadist group linked to Osama Bin Laden's network. AQIM says its aim is to spread Islamic law and it is known for kidnapping Westerners and extracting ransoms. It is not clear whether the pair arrested in Spain are suspected of planning any attacks. Their similarity to the Boston marathon bombers was not explained in the ministry statement. Moroccan Islamists linked to al-Qaeda were found guilty of the 2004 Madrid train bombings which killed nearly 200 people and injured more than 1,800.

Serbia and Kosovo reach agreement on power-sharing

04/20/13:  The New York Times reports after months of difficult negotiations, Serbia and Kosovo reached an agreement on Friday aimed at overcoming ethnic enmities in Kosovo, a former Serbian province. It is a milestone that officials hope will enhance stability in the region and clear a path for both countries to join the European Union. Catherine Ashton the European Union’s foreign policy chief, told reporters that the prime ministers of the two countries had initialed an agreement during talks in Brussels. Serbian officials said the accord was subject to approval by “state bodies” in Belgrade, the Serbian capital. But European officials said it was unlikely that Serbia would backtrack. The European Union is scheduled to meet Monday in Brussels to decide whether to allow Serbia to start negotiations for entry into the group, and analysts said the accord was likely to swing the decision in Serbia’s favor. The agreement hinged on how much autonomy Kosovo was willing to cede to Serb municipalities in the north, in return for Serbia’s recognition of Kosovo’s authority in the area. Until now, Serbia has had de facto control over the small Serb-majority area in the north, which does not recognize Kosovo’s authority.

4 UK men jailed for discussing acts of terrorism

04/18/13:  The Miami Herald reports four men were jailed in Britain on Thursday for discussing terrorist attacks, including plans to blow up an army reserve center using a bomb-laden toy car. Zahid Iqbal, Mohammed Sharfaraz Ahmed, Umar Arshad and Syed Farhan Hussain - aged between 22 and 31 - pleaded guilty in March to engaging in conduct in preparation for acts of terrorism between January 2011 and April 2012. Prosecutors said the Britons downloaded files containing instructions for an attack, bought survival equipment and collected money for terrorist purposes. They also admitted "facilitating, planning and encouraging" overseas travel for terrorist purposes. The men were recorded discussing sending a remote-controlled toy car carrying a homemade bomb under the gates of an army reservist center and speaking of using instructions in an al-Qaida manual to make an improvised explosive device. The four were arrested a year ago in the town of Luton, north of London, after an operation by police and the MI5 intelligence service. They were sentenced Thursday at London's Woolwich Crown Court. Iqbal and Ahmed were jailed for 16 years and 3 months, while Arshad received a sentence of six years and nine months. Hussain was jailed for five years and three months.

NATO eyes progress with Russia after US cancels missile shield

04/01/13: Reuters reports a top NATO official says the Alliance hopes a US change to global missile defenses will dispel Russian concern and foster cooperation on an issue that has long strained relations.  “The change in the US plans ... just simply makes the situation much less ambiguous,” Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow said.  “There is now no reason for concern that the system going into Europe will have any effect whatever on Russia’s strategic deterrent.”  Russia has said US missile shield plans could erode its nuclear deterrent, but has softened criticism since Washington announced on March 16 that it would station fourteen missile interceptors in Alaska in response to North Korean nuclear threats and at the same time forgo a new type of interceptor that would have been deployed in Europe.

Top UK commander in Afghanistan warns against leaving too early

04/01/13: BBC News reports the UK’s top commander in Afghanistan said Monday that cutting British forces too quickly could endanger progress at a critical time.  Lieutenant General Nick Carter, deputy chief of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), said passing control of security to Afghan forces was going well, but he warned any move to thin out UK forces too soon would be “unforgivable.”  NATO combat operations against the Taliban will finish by the end of 2014; as part of a gradual withdrawal, the number of British troops in Afghanistan will be almost halved from 9,000 to 5,200 by the end of 2013.  Carter’s warning comes as forces for Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who have been carrying out their first engagement without Western help, called for support from ISAF during a battle against drug smugglers.

Kosovo and Serbia near accord to end ethnic partition

04/01/13: Reuters reports Serbia and Kosovo may be on the verge of an agreement that will end the ethnic partition between the two countries.  Serbia does not recognize Kosovo’s 2008 secession, but is under pressure from the European Union to improve ties and help overcome a split between Kosovo's Albanians and a Serb enclave in the north over which Belgrade retained de facto control.  The status of the enclave is at the heart of EU-mediated talks aimed at normalizing ties between the two countries.  EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton wants an accord struck during a Tuesday meeting between Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dacic and his Kosovan counterpart, Hashim Thaci.  That would open the door to EU membership talks with Serbia, a process that would drive reform and signal stability to foreign investors.

Air Force General Breedlove nominated for top Nato post

03/29/13:  The BBC reports President Barack Obama has announced he will nominate US Air Force General Philip Breedlove as Nato's Supreme Allied Commander Europe. Gen Breedlove, whose nomination was endorsed by ambassadors from the 28 Nato allies, is expected to succeed Admiral James Stavridis. He is currently the commander of US Air Force units in Europe and Africa. US Marine General John Allen, who led Nato forces in Afghanistan, was originally nominated for the job. But his nomination was put on hold as he was embroiled in a scandal that led to the resignation of CIA director and former general David Petraeus. A Pentagon investigation cleared Gen Allen. Last month, he said he was retiring, forgoing the nomination to the top US military post in Europe because of his wife's health. The post requires US Senate confirmation, but Gen Breedlove is expected to take over the post this spring.

Britain's domestic spy agency names new director

03/28/13:  The Miami Herald reports Britain's domestic spy agency has chosen a new director, a 50-year-old ornithologist with counter-terrorism experience in the Middle East and Northern Ireland. Andrew Parker, one of the youngest MI5 directors in recent history, has worked for the service for 30 years and led the agency's response to the July 7 London transit bombings in 2005. Parker said Thursday that he's "extremely proud of the extraordinary work the men and women of MI5 do to keep the country safe in challenging circumstances," and that he looks "forward to leading the service through its next chapter." Parker has been the deputy director general since 2007. He succeeds Jonathan Evans, who is leaving MI5 after 33 years of service. He starts his job on April 22.

 

Pakistani arrested in Germany, suspected of spying

03/28/13:  The Miami Herald reports German authorities have arrested a man suspected of trying to obtain information on military technology for a Pakistani intelligence agency. The Federal Prosecutor's Office said Thursday the 28-year-old Pakistani citizen, identified only as Umar R. because of German privacy rules, was arrested Wednesday in the northern city of Bremen. Prosecutors said in a statement he's suspected of working for Pakistani intelligence since at least October. They say that he worked as a student assistant at a research facility and is alleged to have tried to obtain information on technology that could be used for military purposes. A judge has ordered the man kept in custody pending formal charges.

Turkey reverses plans to deport 130 Syrian refugees

03/28/13:  The New York Times reports Turkey reversed its plans on Thursday to deport about 130 Syrian refugees involved in a violent protest at a refugee camp, saying that the refugees had agreed to leave voluntarily after being told that they would face prosecution if they stayed. The turnaround came as the United Nations refugee agency expressed “serious concern” about reports of mass deportations and said it was seeking clarification from the Turkish government. Melissa Fleming, a spokeswoman for the United Nations high commissioner for refugees in Geneva, said in an interview that a forced return of refugees would violate international law and breach legal protections for refugees that prohibit host countries from forcing them out. A local government official in Turkey confirmed that Thursday afternoon, saying, “A deportation is out of question, and we cannot deport them when we do not have the right to do so according to the terms of temporary protection status.” But just a few hours earlier, another local government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity in line with diplomatic protocols, said that nearly 100 Syrians had been identified as provocateurs based on security camera footage taken during the protest.

Global internet slows after 'biggest attack in history'

03/28/13:  The BBC reports the internet around the world has been slowed down in what security experts are describing as the biggest cyber-attack of its kind in history.  row between a spam-fighting group and hosting firm has sparked retaliation attacks affecting the wider internet. It is having an impact on popular services like Netflix - and experts worry it could escalate to affect banking and email systems. Five national cyber-police-forces are investigating the attacks. Spamhaus, a group based in both London and Geneva, is a non-profit organisation that aims to help email providers filter out spam and other unwanted content. To do this, the group maintains a number of blocklists - a database of servers known to be being used for malicious purposes. Recently, Spamhaus blocked servers maintained by Cyberbunker, a Dutch web host that states it will host anything with the exception of child pornography or terrorism-related material. Sven Olaf Kamphuis, who claims to be a spokesman for Cyberbunker, said, in a message, that Spamhaus was abusing its position, and should not be allowed to decide "what goes and does not go on the internet". Spamhaus has alleged that Cyberbunker, in cooperation with "criminal gangs" from Eastern Europe and Russia, is behind the attack. Cyberbunker has not responded to the BBC's request for comment.

Bristow Group to take over UK search and rescue from RAF

03/26/13: The BBC reports a private company will take over the UK's helicopter search and rescue operations, the Department for Transport has announced. The Bristow Group has won a 10-year contract to run the service from 2015. The £1.6bn deal ends 70 years of search and rescue from the RAF and Royal Navy. Bristow will replace ageing RAF and Royal Navy Sea King helicopters with modern Sikorsky S-92s and AgustaWestland 189s. Under the new contract, 22 helicopters will operate from 10 locations around the UK. All bases will be operational 24 hours a day, and half of the new fleet will be built in Yeovil, Somerset. The new deal will also see Bristow take over some of the civilian SAR bases currently run by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. Bristow Helicopters is an Aberdeen-based company, although the corporate headquarters of the Bristow Group is in Texas. There will continue to be an RAF base at Valley, Anglesey, but the SAR unit will be in Caernarfon. The new service run by Bristow will be fully rolled out by summer 2017.

 

Russian authorities raid Amnesty International office

03/25/13: The New York Times reports Russian authorities on Monday raided the local headquarters of the human rights group Amnesty International, the latest in a continuing series of office searches aimed at putting pressure on nongovernmental groups.  The head of Amnesty International, Sergei Nikitkin, said officials from the general prosecutor’s offices and from the tax police arrived Monday morning unannounced to conduct what they described as an “audit” and demanded a list of documents, most of which Nikitkin said were already on file with the government.  “They don’t have any concrete complaints.  They say it’s a regular check and other cliché phrases,” he said.  Last week, the authorities conducted a similar raid at the offices of Memorial, an international historical society and human rights group that has operated in Russia for more than two decades.

Turkey sees greater regional role after agreements with Israel, Kurds

03/25/13: The Miami Herald reports that after two major breakthroughs in less than a week – an accord to end a three-year squabble with Israel and a landmark step by a jailed Kurdish leader to settle a 30-year insurgency – Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s star appears to be rising, and with it, the country’s role as a major regional power.  Erdogan seemed matter-of-fact and serious on Saturday as he voiced hope that the Turkish-Israeli reconciliation that President Barack Obama brokered on Friday might even help resolve the Arab-Israeli dispute.  Israel, for the first time in memory, formally apologized for a military operation and promised compensation to families of eight Turks and one Turkish-American killed in the attack on a ship bringing supplies to civilians in Gaza in July 2010 that ran Israel’s blockade.

Frustrated with international inaction, Syria opposition leader resigns after EU meeting

03/24/13: Al Jazeera reports Syrian opposition leader Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib has announced his resignation from the National Coalition.  His spokesman said the resignation followed Saturday’s meeting with the European Union, “which resulted in achieving nothing.”  In a statement released Sunday, al-Khatib confirmed his resignation from the dissident group recognized by dozens of nations – including the US – as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people.  “I announce my resignation from the National Coalition, so that I can work with a freedom that cannot possibly be had in an official institution,” Khatib.  “For the past two years, we have been slaughtered by an unprecedentedly vicious regime, while the world has looked on.”  His statement comes hours after the Arab League extended an invitation to the opposition coalition to attend its summit in Qatar next week.

US, Netherlands in nuclear security pact

03/24/13: The blog Space War reports the United States and the Netherlands say they’ve expanded their cooperation to reduce global nuclear and radiological threats.  Under an agreement signed with the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)’s Office of Global Threat Reduction, (GTRI) the Netherlands will contribute $650,000 to GTRI’s efforts to secure and remove vulnerable radiological material.  This is Amsterdam’s second major cooperative activity with GTRI, and the third time it has partnered with NNSA’s nuclear nonproliferation programs.  Under the new agreement, the Netherlands financial contribution will support GTRI’s current work in Kazakhstan on projects related to the search, removal, and physical protection of radiological material.  The NNSA is a semiautonomous agency within the US Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the application of nuclear science.

Israel apologizes to Turkey over 2010 flotilla raid

03/22/13:  NPR reports in a phone call today with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized to Turkey over the 2010 Israeli raid of a flotilla that left nine people dead. The flotilla was attempting to break an Israeli naval blockade of Gaza, when it was intercepted by Israel. "PM Netanyahu made it clear that the tragic Consequences of the Mavi Marmara flotilla were not intended & that Israel is sorry for loss of life," Ofir Gendelman, the prime minister's spokesman said on Twitter. "PM Netanyahu apologized to the Turkish ppl for any mistake that could have led to loss of life, agreed to complete the compensation agreement." This is a tremendous diplomatic breakthrough. As we've reported, back in September of 2011, Erdogran said the raid in international waters was "cause for war." Israel had refused to apologize since the incident. In September of 2011, a United Nations panel found Israel's naval blockade of Gaza was legal but that the raid was "excessive and unreasonable." According to a senior White House official, Erdogan accepted the apology. Another senior administration official said this was a "first step" toward normalization of relations between the two countries. The phone call between Netanyahu and Erdogan took place in a trailer at the Tel-Aviv airport where President Obama was taking off for Amman. The senior administration official said at one point Obama jumped in on the call.

Italy-India row: Rome to send marines back for trial

03/22/13:  The BBC reports two Italian marines accused of murdering two Indian fishermen, in a case that has sparked a diplomatic row, are to be sent back to Delhi for trial. The Indian government had allowed them to return to Italy to vote in last month's election. But when they failed to return, India's Supreme Court ruled Italy's ambassador was barred from leaving the country. The Italian government said it had received assurances about the men's treatment and their human rights. The marines, Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, are accused of shooting the fishermen off the Kerala coast in February 2012. The marines had been guarding an Italian oil tanker and said they mistook the fishermen for pirates. The marines, who had been out on bail awaiting trial, were allowed to fly back to Italy for the February 2013 general election on condition that they returned to stand trial by 22 March. Italian ambassador Daniele Mancini gave his personal assurance that they would return within four weeks. But then Rome decided that they would not fly back to Delhi, arguing that India was violating international law by putting them on trial, as the shooting had taken place in international waters.

Hezbollah courier guilty of role in Cyprus terror plot

03/21/13:  The New York Times reports in a decision that could have significant repercussions for Hezbollah’s operations in Europe, a court in Cyprus on Thursday found a man guilty of participating in a plot to attack Israeli tourists on vacation in Cyprus, part of a conspiracy similar to a deadly bombing last July in Bulgaria. The court found the man, Hossam Taleb Yaacoub, a dual Swedish-Lebanese citizen, guilty on five of the eight charges against him, including participation in a criminal organization. The three others were conspiracy charges, which the ruling said were already covered under the other counts. Mr. Yaacoub will be sentenced at a separate hearing.  Mr. Yaacoub admitted in court last month that he was a member of Hezbollah, a Shiite militant group, and that he was trained in the use of weapons and dispatched around Europe on missions as a courier and scout for the organization. The court rejected his assertion that he had no idea why his handlers had asked him to monitor the arrival times of flights from Israel and to track locations of Israeli tourists in Cyprus. The conviction is likely to give further impetus to efforts to have the group designated a terrorist organization by the European Union. Experts say that in the legalistic, bureaucratic world of Brussels, a court conviction holds significantly more weight than a declaration by a government or an intelligence report.

 

Turkey Kurds: PKK chief Ocalan calls for ceasefire

03/21/13: The BBC reports rhe jailed leader of Kurdish rebels fighting Turkey, Abdullah Ocalan, has called for a truce after years of war. Ocalan also urged the fighters of his PKK organisation to withdraw from Turkey, in a message read out to cheers during Kurdish New Year celebrations in the city of Diyarbakir. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan cautiously welcomed the call. More than 40,000 people have died in the 30-year fight for an ethnic Kurdish homeland in Turkey's south-east. Mr Erdogan said the move was "positive" but stressed the importance of the implementation of any ceasefire. He said Turkish security forces would not undertake fresh operations against the rebels if Ocalan's call was implemented. The military leader of the PKK, Murat Karayilan, said that he "very strongly" supported Ocalan's move. "All of Turkey, Kurdistan and the world must know this: as the PKK movement, we are ready for war and for peace," he told the Kurdish Firat news agency. Hundreds of thousands of people were present in Diyarbarkir to hear Ocalan's message, which follows months of talks between the PKK and Turkey.

Iran indicts 18 over killing of nuclear scientists

03/18/13: The Miami Herald reports Iran’s judiciary has indicted eighteen suspects on charges of involvement in the killing of nuclear scientists.  Since 2010, at least five Iranian nuclear scientists, including a manager at the Natanz enrichment facility, have been killed.  Tehran has accused Israel’s Mossad, the CIA, and Britain’s MI6 of being behind the assassinations; Washington and London have denied the allegations, while Tel Aviv has not commented.  Iranian state media said Sunday that authorities have issued indictments against the eighteen suspects, who will be tried in the coming months.  In 2012, Iran hanged a man for the 2010 killing of a nuclear physicist.

New Prime Minister says Bulgaria won't take lead in EU Hezbollah sanctions

03/17/13: Haaretz reports Bulgaria's new interim Prime Minister said Saturday he would not initiate any move to impose EU sanctions on the Islamist group Hezbollah, even though the country had implicated Hezbollah in a bombing at a Black Sea resort.  Marin Raikov did not give a reason for his decision, but it will likely be seen as a concession to Bulgarian opposition groups, who have argued the country could open itself up to more attacks if it takes the lead in blacklisting Hezbollah.  "Bulgaria will not initiate a procedure [for listing Hezbollah as a terrorist organization]," Raikov told state media.  "We will only present the objective facts and circumstances and let our European partners decide."  Last month, then-Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov said an investigation had linked Hezbollah to the Black Sea attack.

Iranian group rejects Albania asylum offer

03/17/13: The Miami Herald reports an Iranian opposition group Saturday turned down Albania's offer of asylum to 210 of its members who are living at a former US military base near Baghdad.  Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha made the offer after meeting with US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf, UN envoy in Iraq Martin Kobler, and other officials.  Berisha said the offer of asylum for the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq members was made for humanitarian reasons.  Shahin Gobadi of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, which oversees the Mujahedeen, said that while they "really appreciate the [Albanian] government's helping hand," they couldn't accept an offer of asylum for such a small portion of the group.  The UN says more than 3,000 members (nearly fifteen times Albania's offer) live at the former US base.

Other Europeans balk at bid by Britain and France to arm Syria’s rebels

03/16/13:  The New York Times reports as the Syrian crisis entered its third year on Friday, the top rebel military leader declared that the opposition would “never give up” and asked for more support, even as a push by France and Britain to arm the outgunned rebels drew heavy resistance from other European countries. Germany, Austria and other countries pushed back hard against a French-British effort to lift a weapons embargo on Syria to allow the arming of the rebels — who say they desperately need antiaircraft and other sophisticated weapons to turn the tide of a war that has killed more than 70,000 people. After a two-day European Union summit meeting in Brussels, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany told reporters she worried such a step would “just fan the flames of conflict.” Gen. Salim Idriss, the leader of the Free Syrian Army, sought Friday to rebut some key arguments marshaled against arming the rebels — fears of sectarian conflict and extremist Islamist influence — by declaring that the rebels welcomed all Syrians into their fold, including members of President Bashar al-Assad’s Alawite sect.

 

US scraps final phase of European missile shield

03/16/13:  The BBC reports US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel has scrapped the final phase of its European missile defence shield, citing development problems and funding cuts. Upgraded interceptors were to have been deployed in Poland to counter medium- and intermediate-range missiles, and potential threats from the Middle East. Mr Hagel said the threat had "matured" and that the US commitment to Nato missile defence remained "ironclad". The interceptors had been strongly opposed by the Russian government. It complained that they would be able to stop Russia's intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and undermine its nuclear deterrent. The US has always insisted that the missile shield was intended to protect against attacks by Iran and North Korea. Analysts said Friday's announcement could open the door to another round of talks between the US and Russia on nuclear arms reductions.

India airports on alert over Italy ambassador Mancini

03/15/13:  The BBC reports Airports across India have been told to stop Italian ambassador Daniele Mancini if he tries to leave the country, a home ministry official told the BBC. The advisory follows a Supreme Court order to Mr Mancini not to leave India after Rome's refusal to return two marines charged with the murder of two fishermen in Kerala last year. The court had allowed the marines to go home to vote in last month's elections. Mr Mancini had personally assured the court the marines would return on time. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh warned that "there will be consequences" unless Italy returned the marines. In unusually strong language, the prime minister said that Italy's refusal to send back the marines was "unacceptable". Rome's decision has come as a major embarrassment for the Indian government and opposition parties have been demanding their immediate return.

Three admit to terror charges in the UK

03/15/13: The BBC reports three British men have pleaded guilty to preparing for terrorism acts overseas. One of the men used to be a police community support officer and another was a recent convert to Islam. Richard Dart, Jahangir Alom and Imran Mahmood all pleaded guilty at a hearing at the Old Bailey ahead of their expected trial. They were arrested in London weeks before the Olympic Games in July 2012. They will be sentenced later. The three men were charged last year with engaging in preparation for acts of terrorism by travelling to Pakistan for training between July 2010 and July 2012 and by "advising and counselling" acts of terrorism by providing information about how to go to the country for the same purpose. The precise activities of the men have not been disclosed in court ahead of sentencing, but the BBC understands that the operation involved security services in both the UK and Pakistan. Mahmood had been the first to travel to Pakistan where security chiefs feared he was receiving training with jihadists near the border with Afghanistan. In the summer of July 2011, the Pakistani authorities detained him before deporting him to the UK. Dart and Alom had arrived in Pakistan the same summer. All three men were arrested shortly before the Olympics amid intelligence that Dart and Alom wanted to use Mahmood's contacts to return to Pakistan.

 

Italian marines will not be returned to India for trial

03/12/13:  The New York Times reports two Italian marines facing murder charges in India will not be returned there for trial, the Italian Foreign Ministry said Monday. The Italians, who were part of an antipiracy military security team, are accused of fatally shooting two Indian fishermen who they believed were pirates in February 2012. India allowed the marines to travel to Italy last month to vote in national elections, and they were scheduled to return to India. But the ministry said in a statement that India’s decision to try the pair in India would violate their rights, in particular the principle of immunity for foreign state actors. The long fight over the marines’ fate has strained ties between India and Italy.

Hungary approves disputed Constitutional amendment

03/12/13:  The Miami Herald reports Hungarian lawmakers on Monday overwhelmingly approved a long amendment to the constitution which critics say threatens certain democratic checks and balances. After smaller protests during the day, several thousand people gathered in the evening near the offices of President Janos Ader, asking him to veto the amendment. The bill enshrines in the Fundamental Law, as the new constitution is called, a number of policies that were previously been struck down as unconstitutional by the country's highest court. The vote drew swift reaction from European institutions, which along with the United States and many Hungarian legal experts and civic groups, say it puts too much unchecked power in government hands. Among the government policies struck down by the Constitutional Court over the past months and now added to the Fundamental Law are the possibility for local authorities to fine or jail homeless people living in public areas, a ban on political campaign ads on commercial radio and TV, and a contract obliging university students who accept state scholarships to work in Hungary for years after graduation. The amendment also prevents the president or the court from reviewing changes to the Fundamental Law other than for procedural errors and practically wipes out 20 years of jurisprudence by banning the court to refer to rulings or reasoning given while the previous constitution - originally a Stalin-era document nearly fully re-written in 1989 as communism ended in Hungary - was in force.
 

France: Northeast Mali should be secure by end of March

03/11/13: Reuters reports French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Monday that French and Chadian forces expect to secure the northeast region of Mali that is the stronghold of Islamist militants by the end of March.  Le Drian said that while the results of DNA tests were still being awaited, it seemed likely that top al-Qaeda leaders in the region had been killed in recent fighting.  His view on the timetable was in line with France’s goal to start winding down its eight-week-old military intervention in Mali in April and handing over to African forces.  Le Drian said Friday at the end of a brief visit that French forces were now deep in the Islamists’ stronghold in the remote valleys of northern Mali and had uncovered weapons caches stockpiled by the al-Qaeda-linked fighters.

Radical UK cleric Abu Qatada returned to prison for bail violation

03/11/13: The Miami Herald reports a British judge ruled Saturday that radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada must remain in custody following his arrest for allegedly breaching his bail conditions.  The cleric, who has been described as a key al-Qaeda operative in Europe, was arrested in London Friday following a series of raids by counterterrorism police.  The arrest came three days before the government’s latest court bid to extradite him to Jordan.  Judge Stephen Irwin refused on Saturday to grant the preacher bail and ordered him to return to prison, finding there was strong evidence that Abu Qatada had breached bail conditions.  In November, a court sustained Qatada’s appeal from his deportation to Jordan and allowed him to stay in the UK; the British government will challenge that decision at the Court of Appeal on Monday.

EU tightens Iran sanctions over human rights violations

03/11/13: The Miami Herald reports the European Union is tightening sanctions against Iran, concerned about alleged violations of human rights in the country.  EU foreign ministers, meeting Monday in Brussels, added nine people they said were “responsible for serious human rights violations” to the list of those subject to a travel ban and an asset freeze, bringing the number of people sanctioned in this way to eighty-seven.  The foreign ministers also decided to freeze the assets of one “entity,” meaning a company or organization.  The measures will be valid until April 13, 2014; the names of the targets will be published Tuesday.  Iran carried out at least fifty-five public executions in 2012, UN spokeswoman Cecile Pouilly has said.  Some 400 people were reportedly put to death in the country last year.

British residents in Falklands to hold referendum on status

03/11/13: BBC News reports the people of the Falkland Islands have begun voting in a two-day referendum on whether to remain a British overseas territory.  Argentina has constantly reiterated its claims to the islands, thirty years after it was repelled by a British task force in a 74-day conflict.  The islanders decided to hold the vote in response to Argentine pressure for negotiations over sovereignty.  Some 1,672 British citizens, out of a population of about 2,900, can vote.  Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has said the inhabitants’ wishes are not relevant in what is an issue of territory and sovereignty.  Most Argentines regard the islands, which they call Las Malvinas, as Argentine and their recovery is enshrined in the country’s constitution.

France, Israel express support for stronger Iran sanctions

03/10/13: The Space War blog reports French President Francois Hollande and his Israeli counterpart Shimon Peres said on Friday sanctions on Iran over its contested nuclear program are biting but need to be strengthened further.  “I have said how much we want the sanctions to be beefed up, which are already efficient,” Hollande said after meeting Peres.  Iran last month held talks with the five UN Security Council permanent members, plus Germany, in Kazakhstan.  “I was very glad to hear from [President Hollande] that he plans to take more measures because if we can end this danger without military use, it will be better,” Peres said.  Although Hollande and Peres both hold the title “President,” the latter is a figurehead; the real power in Israel lies with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Peres’ former political rival.

Mali conflict: French troops 'dismantle al-Qaeda base'

03/09/13:  The BBC reports a major al-Qaeda base has been dismantled by French forces in the remote mountains of northern Mali, France's defence minister has said. Jean-Yves Le Drian said a "very impressive" arsenal of weapons had been recovered from the site, called Ametetai, in the Ifoghas mountains. He also said a French national fighting with the militants had been captured. French President Francois Hollande said earlier this week French troops would begin withdrawing from Mali next month. He said the final phase of military intervention would continue throughout March and be scaled down in April.  "We're dealing with resolute and heavily-armed terrorists, who are engaging in significant fighting, and we have been able to inflict heavy damage on them." French troops found weapons "by the tonne," he said, including AK47s, grenade launchers and pick-ups hidden in natural caves. "I hadn't expected this to such an extent," he added.

Two french citizens accused of terrorist plot

03/08/13:  The New York Times reports two Frenchmen suspected of plotting terrorist attacks, making explosives and being involved in extremist activity online were detained Thursday amid heightened concern about threats to France over its military campaign against fighters in Mali linked to Al Qaeda. Officials at the Interior Ministry and the Paris prosecutor’s office say intelligence and police officers detained the young men on Thursday in a house in Marignane, near Marseille. The authorities searched the house for explosives or other evidence of terrorist connections. The suspects are French citizens, aged 18 and 20, the officials said. The men had been under surveillance since November, the Interior Ministry official said. They had been identified as a threat based on “jihadist messages and consultations” online, and the authorities said they moved in because they believed the men were ready to carry out terrorist acts.

Russia launched massive nuclear drill, Pentagon alarmed

03/07/13:  The Washington Times reports Russian nuclear forces conducted a major exercise last month that tested the transport of both strategic and tactical nuclear weapons near Europe, according to United States officials. The exercise raised concerns inside the Pentagon and with the US European Command because it was the largest exercise of its kind in 20 years and involved heightened alert status of Russian nuclear forces. The nuclear drills were part of other military maneuvers in Russia carried out between Feb. 17 and Feb. 21. The exercises followed a recent surge in Russian strategic bomber flights that include a recent circling of the US Pacific island of Guam by two Tu-95 Bear bomber and simulated bombing runs by Tu-95s against Alaska and California in June and July. However, a US official said the exercise was a concern within the US national security community because of the scale of the exercise and the number of weapons being moved. “Certainly it’s a concern when you have this kind of exercise going on,” this official said.

Libyan man offers to settle UK rendition case

03/04/13: BBC News reports a Libyan man suing the British government for its alleged role in his 2004 rendition to Libya has offered to settle the case.  Abdul Hakim Belhaj is also suing former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and a retired MI6 officer.  Belhaj says he wants an apology, an admission of guilt, and nominal damages of one pound ($1.50) from each.  The British government has said it is cooperating with investigations into UK involvement in ex-Libyan detainees’ mistreatment.  Belhaj, who began legal action last year, says he and his wife were detained by US intelligence officers at Bangkok Airport in March 2004.  He was allegedly tortured for several days while his wife Fatima Bouchar, who was five months pregnant, was chained to a wall at a secret prison at the airport.

UN Security Council to vote on loosening Somalia arms embargo

03/03/13: Reuters reports the UN Security Council will vote Wednesday on a draft resolution lifting an arms embargo on Somalia’s government for one year so it can beef up its army to combat Islamist fighters.  Mogadishu has asked for the arms embargo to be lifted and the United States wants the Council to agree, but Britain and France have been wary of removing the ban in a country already awash with weapons.  The draft resolution, drawn up by the UK, appears to propose a compromise: lifting the arms embargo for one year but keeping restrictions in place on heavy weapons such as surface-to-air missiles, howitzers, and cannons.  Under the resolution, the embargo would not apply to other “weapons or military equipment or the provision of advice, assistance or training” to the Somali government.