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The day after U.K. police charged three men with assisting Hong Kong’s intelligence service, China’s ambassador to Britain was summoned for an official reprimand by the British foreign ministry in the latest sign of growing tension between London and Beijing. The British government said that it had called the ambassador, Zheng Zeguang, to its Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office after the three men appeared in court on Monday. The Foreign Office said in a statement that it had been “unequivocal in setting out that the recent pattern of behavior directed by China against the U.K.” was not acceptable. It cited cyberattacks, alleged espionage and the issuing of bounties for information leading to the prosecution of dissidents who fled Hong Kong after its crackdown on the pro-democracy movement and resettled in Britain. The three men who appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday have been charged with gathering intelligence for Hong Kong, a former British colony which is a special administrative region of China, and of forcing entry into a U.K. residential address.

Persons: Hong, Zheng Zeguang, ”, cyberattacks Organizations: Foreign, Commonwealth, Development, U.K, ’ Locations: Britain, British, London, Beijing, China, Hong Kong, Westminster

☆ U.K. Police Charge 3 Men With Aiding Hong Kong Intelligence Service
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( Stephen Castle | More About Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Three men have been charged with assisting the Hong Kong intelligence service, the London Metropolitan Police said on Monday, following an investigation in which arrests and searches were carried out across England. The three people charged under Britain’s National Security Act were identified as Chi Leung (Peter) Wai, 38, of Staines-upon-Thames, Matthew Trickett, 37, of Maidenhead, and Chung Biu Yuen, 63, of Hackney, East London. “The foreign intelligence service to which the above charges relate is that of Hong Kong,” the police said in a statement. All three men were to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday. As court proceedings are now active, Britain’s reporting restrictions apply, preventing speculation about the case.

Persons: Chi Leung, Peter, Wai, Matthew Trickett, Chung Biu Yuen Organizations: Hong, London Metropolitan Police, Britain’s National Security, ’ Locations: Hong Kong, England, Staines, Maidenhead, Hackney, East London, Westminster

☆ In the battle of Telegram vs Signal, Elon Musk casts doubt on the security of the app he once championed
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Elon Musk once championed encrypted messaging app Signal, promoting its user privacy protections. Signal has been sharply criticized recently by a conservative activist and a rival app, Telegram. AdvertisementThe encryption wars brewing between the messaging apps Telegram and Signal have attracted the commentary of a high-profile critic: Elon Musk. In response to Rufo's post, Musk wrote cryptically, "There are known vulnerabilities with Signal that are not being addressed. Green, as well as Musk, Signal, and Telegram representatives, did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.

Persons: Elon Musk, Musk, —, Elon, Pavel Durov, Durov, Tucker Carlson, Vladimir Putin, Jeff Bezos, Christopher Rufo —, Katherine Maher, Rufo, Maher, Edward Snowden, Meredith Whittaker, Whittaker, haven’t, IbXREWVaPL — Meredith Whittaker, @mer__edith, Jack Dorsey, — Elon, Johns Hopkins, Matthew Green, Green Organizations: Service, Fox News, NSA, Amazon, Elon, Telegram, Business Locations: Moscow

☆ Ukraine was a magnet for foreign fighters. After 2 bruising years, many are disillusioned or dead.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Zelensky's International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine (ILDU) was born, echoing the International Brigades that fought fascism in the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s. According to Ukrainian officials, dozens of Ukrainians were killed and more than 100 foreign volunteers injured, ending their campaigns before they began. AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd, FileUkraine originally said 20,000 foreign volunteers had signed up to fight. That could prove "very enticing" for some foreign volunteers, Bocchese said. AdvertisementAn April 2024 increases payments for Ukrainian volunteers, adds new punishments for draft dodging, and seeks to compel Ukrainian men living abroad to come home.

Persons: —, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Carl Larson, Marco Bocchese, Rodrigo Abd, Bocchese, Matteo Pugliese, Pugliese, Larson, Oleksandr Shahuri, Zelenskyy, Lukatsky Organizations: Ukraine's, Service, Legion of Territorial Defense of, Brigades, Royal United Services Institute, International Legion, Legion, Webster Vienna Private University, AP, Washington Post, 59th Motorized Brigade, Company, University of Barcelona, Georgian Legion, International, Army, Green Beret, Navy SEAL, State Department, National Guard, Bolivar Battalion, Associated Press Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine, Spanish, Ukraine's, London, Iraq, Kharkiv, Alabama, Russian, Lviv, Bucha, Kyiv, Austria, Montenegro, Kosovo, India, Latin America, Ukrainian, Lyman, Bolivar, Venezuela, Ecuador, Argentina, Colombia, Venezuelan

☆ London's elite Garrick Club votes to allow women for the first time
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON — Members of Britain's exclusive all-male Garrick Club has reportedly voted to permit women to join the institution for the first time in its 193-year history. The historic vote comes after the club has been under immense scrutiny over recent weeks following the publication by the U.K.'s Guardian newspaper of some of the elite club's most influential members. The closely-guarded membership list showed the club to be an emblem of Britain's patriarchal establishment, with the majority of members white and aged over 50. Notable public figures from the arts, including actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Brian Cox, were also named. The Garrick Club, named after the 18th-century actor David Garrick, was founded in 1831 as a place where "actors and men of refinement and education might meet on equal terms," according to a statement on the club's website.

Persons: Garrick, King Charles III, Benedict Cumberbatch, Brian Cox, David Garrick Organizations: U.K, Secret Intelligence Service, Garrick Locations: London

☆ Britain to Expel Russian Defense Attaché and Close Some Diplomatic Sites
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Britain’s diplomatic feud with Russia escalated on Wednesday after the British government announced it would expel a senior Russian diplomat who officials claim is an “undeclared” military intelligence officer, and also shut down several Russian diplomatic facilities in the country. The government accused Russia’s foreign intelligence service, the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., of a pattern of “malign activity” in Britain and Europe, including hacking and leaking trade documents relating to the United States, and targeting of British lawmakers through malicious email campaigns. James Cleverly, the British home secretary, told Parliament that the government was announcing the retaliatory measures “to make clear to Russia that we will not tolerate such apparent escalations.”Britain’s action came two days after the Russian Foreign Ministry said it had summoned the British ambassador to Moscow to lodge a “strong protest” over remarks the British foreign secretary, David Cameron, had made about Ukraine’s using weapons supplied by Britain to strike Russian territory.

Persons: James, ”, David Cameron Organizations: Federal Security Service, Russian Foreign Ministry Locations: Russia, British, Russian, Britain, Europe, United States, Moscow

☆ NATO says Russia is carrying out 'malign activities' like sabotage on its member states and will address them
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

NATO is accusing Russia of "malign activities" in its member states, including Germany and the UK. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementThe North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Thursday singled out Russia in a statement condemning "recent malign activities" in its member states. The treaty organization said these individuals' actions were part of an "intensifying campaign of activities" carried out by Russia. Amid the heightened tensions, NATO members have increasingly highlighted what they say are Russian clandestine activities in their own governments and institutions.

Persons: —, Emmanuel Macron Organizations: NATO, North Atlantic Council, Service, Atlantic Treaty Organization, North Atlantic, Moscow, Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Business Locations: Russia, Germany, Czechia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Moscow, Ukraine, —, Kyiv, Russian, London, China

☆ CNBC's Inside India newsletter: Will AI make or break India?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

But one that could foreshadow India's growth story. Can Teleperformance's stock plunge be the canary in the coal mine for what is likely to happen to India because of AI? But it's likely to be a blip for India's growth trajectory, given the macro forces at play. Besides creating jobs that are less likely to be immediately disrupted by AI, India could also be a net beneficiary of artificial intelligence. The Indian stock market indexes, Sensex and Nifty 50 , are heading for a positive week again — up by 1% and 1.2%, respectively.

Persons: Findlay Kember, Klarna, ChatGPT, K Krithivasan, Krithivasan, Narendra Modi, It's, Shilan Shah, Goldman Sachs, Vinay Dwivedi, Ashok Gulati, Nomura, League Pickleball, Karine Jean, Pierre, Jerome Powell, Raghuram Rajan, Ashish Jain, CNBC's Ayushi Jindal Organizations: AFP, Getty, India's Tata Consultancy Services, Financial Times, TCS, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, University of Oxford, Capital Economics, Investment, Nomura, Qualcomm, Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing, UPI, India, Commission, Agricultural, United Pickleball Association, Global Sports, PPA, League, Washington Post, White, U.S ., Federal, CNBC, Reserve Bank of India, University of Chicago Booth School of Business Locations: Swedish, Paris, India, Chennai, U.S, Europe, China, Singapore, South Korea, Canada, United States

☆ Google workers fired for Israel contract protests claim terminations were illegal
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Google employees who were fired for protesting the company's work with Israel have gone to the NLRB. AdvertisementGoogle workers who were fired for protesting against the company's cloud contract with the Israeli government filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board on Monday. Last month, Google said that it fired 28 employees for staging in-office protests in New York City and Sunnyvale, California. But Google told BI last month that the company's work was not directed at highly sensitive or classified military projects relevant to weapons or intelligence services. AdvertisementThe ongoing dispute between Google and some of its employees highlights companies' tricky balance between their business interests and their workers' desire for self-expression.

Persons: —, Nimbus, Rob Munoz Organizations: Google, Service, National Labor Relations Board, Business, NLRB, BI, Amazon, Protesters, Washington Post, Nimbus, Post Locations: Israel, New York City, Sunnyvale , California, Gaza

☆ Netanyahu Again Vows to Invade Rafah ‘With or Without’ Cease-Fire Deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Erika Solomon | Christopher F. Schuetze | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

A camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt on Sunday. One official also suggested that Israel was using the threat of an imminent military maneuver to press the armed group into a hostage deal. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain spoke to Mr. Netanyahu on Tuesday, his office said in a statement. A senior Hamas official said on social media on Monday that the group was studying a new Israeli proposal. A Hamas delegation met with officials in Egypt’s intelligence service on Monday, according to a senior Hamas official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to talk about sensitive discussions between Hamas and Egypt.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Antony J, Blinken, Netanyahu, ”, “, Netanyahu’s, Rishi Sunak, Adam Rasgon Organizations: Hamas, State Department, Mr Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Egypt, Gazan, United States, Qatar, Israel, Jordan

☆ Germany's far-right AfD party is finding success on TikTok — as its popularity among young voters grows
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Cardboard stands with the AfD logo lie on the chairs in the Wiesenhalle before the start of the AfD Brandenburg state party conference. Traditionally, young voters are seen as more left-leaning, but the voting data suggests some divergences, with experts pointing to social media and what they describe as online echo chambers. A study published earlier this month showed that over half of those aged 14-29 in Germany use social media to stay updated about news and politics. But Berendsen told CNBC that it is one of the social media platforms where the tunnel-effect can be an issue. An AfD spokesperson confirmed to CNBC that its videos and texts posted on social media are tailored to young people.

Persons: Monika Skolimowska, Infratest Dimap, Eva Berendsen, Anne Frank, Baerbock, Maximilian Krah, TikTok, Berendsen Organizations: Getty, Russia, Anne, CNBC Locations: Hesse, Germany

☆ Putin likely did not directly order Navalny’s killing, U.S. intelligence agencies conclude
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Floral tributes, portraits of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and messages are seen left outside the former Russian Embassy in Tbilisi on March 1, 2024. U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably didn't directly order the killing of Alexei Navalny at a remote penal colony in February, according to three sources familiar with the matter. As Russia's most high-profile and popular dissident, Navalny's death dealt a severe blow to the country's opposition movement, which has been brutally suppressed by the Kremlin. Before Navalny's death, there had been tentative discussions about a possible prisoner exchange with Russia involving Navalny and Americans detained in Russia, NBC News previously reported. Navalny's allies allege that Putin had the dissident killed to thwart the proposed prisoner swap that would have freed him.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Navalny, Joe Biden, Sergei Skripal, Navalny's Organizations: Russian Embassy, Kremlin, Washington, Russia's Federal, Service, CIA, National Intelligence, NBC Locations: Tbilisi, Russia's, Russia, Russian, United Kingdom, Western

☆ Doctors warn they’re seeing syphilis patients with unusual and severe symptoms
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Disease detectives in Chicago say they have been seeing a worrisome trend: Patients complaining of unusual symptoms like vision and eye problems, headaches and hearing loss or dizziness caused by the sexually transmitted infection syphilis. More than two-thirds of these patients (68%) lacked typical syphilis symptoms, like a rash or chancre sore, that might tip doctors off to the infection. Syphilis cases are surging across the US. In 2022, there were more than 207,000 syphilis cases reported, the highest number since the 1950s, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “There could just be an increase in untreated or inadequately treated patients, which is leading to more severe outcomes of syphilis,” Nham said.

Persons: ”, Amy Nham, Nham, “ They’re, —, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, ” Nham Organizations: CNN —, Intelligence Service Conference, Chicago Department of Public Health, US Centers for Disease Control, CNN, CNN Health, CDC Locations: Chicago, Atlanta

German national Jian G, who worked for AfD MEP Maximilian Krah, was arrested by Saxony State criminal police in Dresden and had his residences searched, the prosecutor’s office said early Tuesday. The aide was later suspended by the European Parliament, a spokesman for the body told CNN. Prosecutors said he passed on information about “negotiations and decisions in the European Parliament” to China in January. The far-right AfD party has nine seats in the European Parliament, and is competing alongside Germany’s traditional parties in the European elections in June. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office said the homes and workplace of the trio were searched in Düsseldorf and Bad Homburg.

Persons: Jian G, Maximilian Krah, ”, Jens Schlueter, Jian, “, Krah, Nancy Faeser, Thomas R, – Herwig, Ina F, –, Wang Wenbin Organizations: CNN, Prosecutors, International Trade, Security, Defence, Foreign Trade, Federal Prosecutor’s Office, Ministry of State Security, ” Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Crown Prosecution Service Locations: China, Europe, Saxony, Dresden, Germany, United States, Bad Homburg

☆ Germany arrests EU Parliament staff member on China espionage charges
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Germany has arrested a national on charges of spying for the Chinese secret service and leaking information from the European Parliament, Germany's federal prosecutor's office said on Tuesday. The man was also accused of spying on members of the Chinese opposition in Germany, according to a CNBC translation. The alleged spy was named as Jian G. and identified as an employee of a German member of the European Parliament since 2019. "If it is confirmed that there was espionage for Chinese intelligence services from within the European Parliament, then that would be an attack on European democracy from within. The ministry also said it hoped that Germany would stop using the so-called spy threat to manipulate political narratives, according to Reuters.

Persons: Scholz, Jian G, Maximilian Krah, Nancy Faeser Organizations: Tongji University, CNBC, Reuters Locations: China, Germany, Brussels

☆ Tech's earnings bonanza this week shines spotlight on growing troubles at Tesla, Google
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Hayden Field | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

Justin Sullivan | Getty ImagesAs tech's behemoths get set to report earnings this week, they do so facing a mountain of drama. Tesla kicks off tech earnings season after the close of trading on Tuesday, with shares of the electric vehicle maker trading at their lowest since January 2023. When it comes to AI, Meta debuted its assistant — Meta AI — on WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and Messenger last week. Loren Elliott | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesOn a busy Thursday for tech earnings, Alphabet is likely to capture the most attention. On Thursday, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai announced a consolidation of the company's AI teams, including responsible AI and related research teams, under the Google DeepMind umbrella.

Persons: Sundar Pichai, Justin Sullivan, tech's behemoths, Tesla, Microsoft's, Lip, CNBC's, we've, Brandon Bell, Drew Baglino, Rohan Patel, Musk, John Murphy, Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, Wall, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Joe Biden, Republican Donald Trump, Loren Elliott, Ruth Porat, Thomas Kurian's, livestreamed, Pichai, that's, Satya Nadella, Sam Altman, Altman, OpenAI, chatbot, MSFT Organizations: Inc, Government, Society, Google, Big Tech, Nvidia, BakerAvenue Wealth Management, Tech, Meta, Microsoft, Getty, Elon Musk's EV, Bank of America, Reality Labs, Facebook, Republican, Bloomberg, CNBC, Google Cloud, Union, Apple, Guggenheim Locations: Stanford , California, Austin , Texas, New York, Sunnyvale , California, Sunnyvale, Seattle, San Francisco , California, OpenAI, Mistral, U.S

☆ China sees foreign threats ‘everywhere’ as powerful spy agency takes center stage
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

But among the crowds you and I together are protecting national security,” the narrator concludes. Chinese soldiers look at a poster promoting national security in the southwestern city of Beihai on National Security Education Day on April 15, 2024. CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty ImagesAccording to the MSS, foreign spies are omnipresent and infiltrating everything – from mapping apps to weather stations. But China’s spy agency has gradually stepped out of the shadows as Xi makes national security a key priority. “Shenyin Special Investigation Squad” is a comic series based on real-life counterespionage operations, according to China's spy agency.

Persons: –, “, ”, Xi, Xuezhi Guo, Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Xi Jinping, Greg Baker, Mao Zedong, Greitens, Chen Yixin, Chen, “ Chen, ” Greitens, Xi –, denigrate, Bain, Alex Plavevski, Guo, influencers, China’s, can’t, James Zimmerman, Perkins Coie, Zimmerman, ” Zimmerman Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, National Security Education, “, Ministry of State Security, National Security, Publishing, CIA, National, Education, Capitol, Guilford College, Asia, University of Texas, Getty, Communist Party, FBI, National Security Propaganda, CCTV, Ministry of State, China’s National Security Commission, Group, China Development Forum, Perkins Coie LLP, ”, MSS Locations: China, Hong Kong, Beihai, British, American, Beijing, Austin, AFP, Zhejiang province, Shanghai, New York, overreaching

☆ Russia's military is allergic to the deep reforms it needs
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Can the Russian military can be reformed to better achieve Putin's revanchist aims? Yes, but the drastic changes will not be easy, an expert on Russia's military says. AdvertisementWhatever the outcome of the Ukraine war, one thing seems certain: the Russian military needs drastic changes. Indeed, Russia's tendency to seek top-down structural reforms matched with enduring characteristics of the Russian military suggest that a transformation of the Russian military will be difficult." Given that observers so misjudged Russian military capabilities prior to the Ukraine war, how can the West accurately determine whether reforms are occurring?

Persons: —, Vladimir Putin, Katherine Kjellström Elgin, Putin, Elgin, Michael Peck Organizations: Service, Center for Strategic, National Guard Service, Nazi, NATO, Elgin, Business, Russo, Defense, Foreign Policy, Rutgers Univ, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Washington ,, Elgin, Moscow, Russia, Crimean, Soviet, Nazi German, Turkish, Forbes

☆ Russia recruiting female convicts into the military report says, as the role of women in the Ukraine war expands
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewRussia is recruiting female convicts to bolster its war effort in Ukraine, the Kyiv Post reported, citing a Ukrainian intelligence spokesperson. The role of women in the war has expanded rapidly since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The practice of offering convicts freedom in exchange for military service in Ukraine began under Yevgeny Prigozhin, the late founder of the mercenary Wagner Group. Business Insider contacted the Russian Ministry of Defense for comment. Elena Tita/Global Images Ukraine via Getty ImagesUkrainian women have been joining the military in significant numbers since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.

Persons: —, Andriy Yusov, Yusov, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Vladimir Osechkin, Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin, Elena Tita Organizations: Service, Kyiv Post, Kyiv, Business, Newsweek, UK Ministry of Defence, Russian Ministry of Defense, Getty Images, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense, BBC, CNBC Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukrainian, Russian, Zaporizhzhia Oblast

☆ Google terminates 28 employees after multi-city protests: Read the full memo
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Hayden Field | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Google workers have the right to peacefully protest about terms and conditions of our labor. Last month, Google Cloud engineer Eddie Hatfield interrupted a keynote speech from the managing director of Google's Israel business stating, "I refuse to build technology that powers genocide." That same week, an internal Google employee message board was shut down after staffers posted comments about the company's Israeli military contracts. The Israeli Ministry of Defense reportedly sought consulting services from Google to expand its access to Google Cloud services. "A small number of employee protesters entered and disrupted a few of our locations," a Google spokesperson told CNBC Wednesday evening.

Persons: Thomas Kurian's, Chris Rackow, Googlers, Cheyne Anderson, Anderson, Eddie Hatfield, Hatfield, Israel, Ariel Koren, It's, Hasan Ibraheem, Ibraheem Organizations: Google, CNBC, Google Cloud, Apartheid, Protesters, Hamas, enclave's Health Ministry, Israeli Ministry of Defense, The New York Times, Security, New Locations: New York, Sunnyvale , California, Sunnyvale, Seattle, Washington, Israel, Gaza, South Africa, York, New York City

☆ Germany Arrests 2 in Spying and Sabotage Case Linked to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Christopher F. Schuetze | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Two men have been arrested in Germany over suspicions that they spied for Russia and were part of a plot to sabotage aid to Ukraine by trying to blow up military infrastructure on German soil, the authorities announced on Thursday. The two men, both dual citizens of Russia and Germany, were arrested on Wednesday in Bayreuth, a city about 120 miles north of Munich, German federal prosecutors said. The arrests came as worries grow in Germany about the reach of Russian intelligence and disruption operations. One of the men had been in contact with Russian intelligence services and had considered a U.S. military base in Germany as one of several potential targets, according to federal prosecutors based in Karlsruhe, in southwestern Germany, who oversaw the arrests. But the federal prosecutors said that the pair were suspected of working for a foreign intelligence service and, in one man’s case, of illegally taking pictures of military infrastructure and of planning explosive attacks and arson.

Locations: Germany, Russia, Ukraine, Bayreuth, Munich, U.S, Karlsruhe

☆ Google fired 28 employees for staging in-office protests against the company's contract with Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Ana Altchek | Meghan Morris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Nine Google employees were arrested after protesting the company's contract with Israel. AdvertisementA small group of Alphabet employees' long-simmering protests against the Google parent company's work with Israel ended with more than two dozen terminations on Wednesday. Google fired 28 employees who participated in office protests in New York and California on Tuesday, the company said on Wednesday. Last month, a Google employee protesting the contract was fired for disrupting a talk in New York by the company's head of Israel. Related storiesMore than 100 people, including Google workers, protested the project outside the company's New York office in 2022.

Persons: —, Israel, Santa Clara County, Chris Rackow, Nimbus, Dzanh Le, Speaks Le, Le, Hasan Ibraheem, Ibraheem Organizations: Google, Israel, Service, Amazon, New York . Police, New York Police Department, Tech, Apartheid, Hamas, BI, Sunnyvale Police, Bloomberg Locations: California, New York, Sunnyvale , California, New York City, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Israel, York, Google's New York City

☆ C.I.A. Director Blames Hamas for Stalled Peace Talks
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Julian E. Barnes | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Negotiations for a cease-fire and the release of Israeli hostages have stalled because Hamas rejected the latest proposal put forth by Israel, Qatar and Egypt, the C.I.A. director said Thursday, putting the blame for a lack of progress in talks squarely on the group that led the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. director and lead American negotiator, traveled to Cairo and pushed what he called “a far-reaching proposal” that Egyptian and Qatari negotiators took to Hamas. While Mr. Burns did not describe the details of that proposal, he said that so far Hamas has not accepted it. “It was a deep disappointment to get a negative reaction from Hamas,” said Mr. Burns, speaking at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas.

Persons: William J, Burns, C.I.A, ”, George W, “ Organizations: Hamas, Qatari, Bush Presidential Center, Sunday Locations: Israel, Qatar, Egypt, Cairo, Dallas, Gaza

☆ Björn Höcke: Far-right German politician on trial accused of using banned Nazi slogans
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Lindsay Isaac | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —A far-right German politician has gone on trial accused of using banned Nazi slogans at two rallies dating back to 2021. Björn Höcke, leader of the regional branch of Alternative for Germany party (AfD) in the eastern state of Thuringia, is accused of ending a May 2021 election event in Merseburg by shouting the Socialist Nationalist slogan, “Everything for our homeland, everything for Saxony-Anhalt, everything for Germany,” according to the regional court of Halle. Prosecutors allege that although he was aware the slogan is banned in Germany, and despite already facing criminal charges related to the first instance, Höcke went on to use it a second time at an AfD event in December 2023. In that incident he allegedly shouted to the crowd: “Everything for” and incited the audience to reply “Germany.”Prosecutors also claim Höcke was aware of the phrase’s origins as the slogan for the Nazi paramilitary wing. Höcke, a former history teacher, intends to run as the lead candidate for the AfD in the upcoming state elections in Thuringia in September.

Persons: Björn Höcke, Höcke, ” Prosecutors, ”, Elon Musk, ” Hans, Christoph Berndt Organizations: CNN, Germany, Socialist Nationalist, Prosecutors, ”, Nazi Locations: Thuringia, Merseburg, Saxony, Anhalt, Germany, Halle, Brandenburg

☆ Some House Republicans need this reminder that Russia is not their friend
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-17 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —There is a major disconnect between two CNN stories on Wednesday about Russia and the US. While it is mostly Republicans who oppose additional funding for Ukraine, they are still a minority, even within their own party. In February, 22 Republicans in the Senate joined all but three Democrats to form a 70-vote majority in favor of the funding. Asked about that propaganda comment by Tapper earlier this month, Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio, who chairs the House Intelligence Committee, agreed. The two appeared together at Mar-a-Lago last week, and Johnson has bought into Trump’s proposal to structure some Ukraine aid as a loan rather than direct aid.

Persons: Sean Lyngaas, ”, Mike Johnson, Johnson, “, ” Johnson, CNN’s Jake Tapper, “ We’re, Matt Gaetz, Chip Roy didn’t, he’s, it’s, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Defense Lloyd Austin, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Tucker Carlson, Vladimir Putin, Ralph Norman, Thomas Massie, Chip Roy, Tom Williams, It’s, Liz Cheney, Donald Trump, Michael McCaul, Puck, Tapper, Mike Turner of Ohio, ” Turner, Greene, Ken Buck, Moscow Marjorie ”, Putin, Trump Organizations: CNN, Capitol Hill, GOP, White, Conservative, Ukraine, Republicans, Senate, Florida, ” Texas, Defense, Republican, Fox News, Putin, Texas Republican, Foreign Affairs, House Intelligence, Trump, Mar, Lago Locations: Russia, Texas, Russian, Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Wyoming, Colorado

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