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☆ The US military has been testing pulsed energy on animals trying to recreate the mysterious 'Havana Syndrome' symptoms: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The US military has been carrying out and funding testing on various animals. The testing is aimed at seeing if radio frequency waves cause the mysterious sickness known as "Havana Syndrome." US intelligence determined last week that the ailment is likely not caused by a foreign adversary or weapon. A defense official told Insider that the Department of Defense, in accordance with congressional requirements, "continues to address the challenges posed by" anomalous health incidents, "including the causation, attribution, mitigation, identification, and treatment for such incidents. The official did not comment on the reported testing on primates but said that the testing at Wayne State University is aimed at alleviating "the deficits associated with traumatic brain injury."

Since the Senate on March 1 passed the bill - by unanimous consent - it now goes to the White House for Biden to sign into law or veto. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his intentions. The debate was refueled last month, when the Wall Street Journal first reported that the U.S. Energy Department had concluded the pandemic likely arose from a Chinese laboratory leak, an assessment Beijing denies. Four other U.S. agencies still judge that COVID-19 was likely the result of natural transmission, while two are undecided. Representative Mike Turner, the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said as he urged support for the measure.

☆ Congress sends bill to Biden requiring his administration to declassify intelligence on COVID-19's origins
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The House passed a bipartisan bill that would require the Biden administration to declassify information related to COVID-19's origins. The origins of COVID-19 have long been debated and theorized. The House of Representatives unanimously approved the bill, titled the COVID-19 Origin Act of 2023, in a 419-0 vote on Friday. The bill comes after the US Energy Department recently concluded with "low confidence" that the pandemic was likely the result of a lab leak. Indeed, lawmakers could likely override a potential veto with a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate.

☆ Russia used rarely seen missiles and wildly unpredictable ones Ukraine's forces can't stop in deadly strikes across the country
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ukraine's air defenses are unable to shoot down these weapons, a military official said. Ukraine's military said Russia fired 81 missiles and eight Iranian-made suicide drones at cities across the country, leaving multiple civilians dead and injured. Among the missiles that were fired were 28 Kh-101 and Kh-555 air-launched cruise missiles, 20 Kalibr sea-launched cruise missiles, 13 S-300 surface-to-air missiles, eight Kh-31P and 6 –Kh-59 guided missiles, six Kh-47 Kinzhal missiles, and six Kh-22 missiles, according to Ukrainian state media. Three rockets launched against Ukraine from Russia's Belgorod region are seen at dawn in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Thursday, March 9, 2023. AP Photo/Mykola TysYurii Ihnat, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military, said Thursday's attack was "really large-scale and for the first time using such different types of missiles.

☆ Watch live: U.S. spymasters testify on global threats before House Intelligence Committee
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

[The hearing is slated to start at 10 a.m. Please refresh the page if you do not see a video above at that time.] The nation's top spymasters will testify before the House Intelligence Committee on their annual report of global threats faced by the United States. The U.S. spy chiefs testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday. Both hearings offer a rare opportunity for lawmakers and the public to hear directly from intelligence chiefs, whose agencies do not offer routine press briefings on their activities.

☆ China’s Refusal to Help Probes of Covid-19 Origins Leaves Critical Gap, Spy Chief Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Dustin Volz | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

‘China has not fully cooperated,’ Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said during a hearing of the Senate Intelligence Committee. WASHINGTON—The Chinese government’s refusal to cooperate on investigations into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic has hindered the U.S.’s ability to determine whether the virus emerged naturally or was the result of a lab leak, a senior U.S. intelligence official said Wednesday. “China has not fully cooperated, and that is a key critical gap that would help us understand what, exactly, happened,” Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said during a hearing of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

☆ CIA future will be defined by US technology race with China, director says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] The seal of the Central Intelligence Agency is shown at the entrance of the CIA headquarters in McLean, Virginia, U.S., September 24, 2022. REUTERS/Evelyn HocksteinWASHINGTON, March 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency’s future will be defined by America's ongoing technology race with China, agency director William Burns said on Wednesday during a Senate hearing. Burns’ remarks followed the release of the Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community, which pointed to China as the biggest national security threat facing America. “It's also the main determinant of our future as an intelligence service as well.”The CIA director was speaking during Congress’s so-called Worldwide Threats hearing, also featuring other heads of the U.S. intelligence community, including National Security Agency Director Gen. Paul Nakasone, National Intelligence Director Avril Haines, Defense Intelligence Agency director Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier and Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray. Gen. Nakasone, the NSA director, testified China's cyber operations have grown more aggressive recently.

☆ FBI chief says TikTok 'screams' of US national security concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 8 (Reuters) - China's government could use TikTok to control data on millions of American users, FBI Director Christopher Wray told a U.S. Senate hearing on Wednesday, saying the Chinese-owned video app "screams" of security concerns. "This is a tool that is ultimately within the control of the Chinese government - and it, to me, it screams out with national security concerns," Wray said. The White House backed legislation introduced on Tuesday by a dozen senators to give President Joe Biden's administration new powers to ban TikTok and other foreign-based technologies if they pose national security threats. Other top U.S. intelligence officials including Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, CIA Director William Burns and National Security Agency Director Paul Nakasone agreed at the hearing that TikTok posed a threat to U.S. national security. Nakasone on Tuesday expressed concern during Senate testimony about TikTok's data collection and potential to facilitate broad influence operations.

WASHINGTON, March 8 (Reuters) - China will maintain its cooperation with Russia to continue trying to challenge the United States despite international concerns about the invasion of Ukraine, U.S. intelligence agencies said on Wednesday. "Despite global backlash over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, China will maintain its diplomatic, defense, economic, and technology cooperation with Russia to continue trying to challenge the United States, even as it will limit public support," they said in a report released as the Senate Intelligence Committee held its annual hearing on worldwide threats to U.S. security. "The next few years are critical as strategic competition with China and Russia intensifies in particular how the world will evolve, and whether the rise of authoritarianism can be checked and reversed," Haines added. Haines described "a grinding, attritional war" in Ukraine and said U.S. intelligence does not foresee the Russian military recovering enough this year to make major territorial gains. Reporting by Patricia Zengerle, Jonathan Landay, Michael Martina; Editing by Doina Chiacu;Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Watch live: America's top spymasters testify on global threats before Senate Intelligence Committee
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

[The stream is slated to start at 10 a.m. Please refresh the page if you do not see a video above at that time.] The nation's top spymasters will testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee on their annual report of global threats faced by the United States. The open hearing will focus on the unclassified 35-page assessment dubbed "Annual Threat Assessment" and feature testimony from the Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, CIA Director William Burns, FBI Director Christopher Wray, NSA Director Gen. Paul Nakasone and DIA Director Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier. The hearing offers a rare opportunity for lawmakers and the public to hear directly from intelligence chiefs, whose agencies do not offer routine press briefings on their activities.

☆ U.S. intel chiefs warn Putin is expanding his nuclear weapons arsenal as the war in Ukraine drags on
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The warning from the nation's top spymasters comes as Russia intensifies its now year-long fight in Ukraine and as Putin threatens to withdraw from a key nuclear arms treaty. "Heavy losses to its ground forces and the large-scale expenditures of precision-guided munitions during the conflict have degraded Moscow's ground and air-based conventional capabilities and increased its reliance on nuclear weapons," the intelligence community wrote. Putin, whose country boasts the largest arsenal of nuclear weapons in the world, has previously rattled the nuclear saber on the heels of Ukrainian advances on the battlefield. The West, meanwhile, has described Putin's threats of using nuclear weapons as "irresponsible" and an attempt to reassert Russia's dominance in the region. Last month, Putin upped the ante by announcing he would suspend participation in the New START treaty, a crucial nuclear arms reduction agreement.

☆ Russia will have to rely on nukes, cyberattacks, and China since its military is being thrashed in Ukraine, US intel director says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Chris Panella | John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's military losses in Ukraine will leave it reliant on "asymmetric" options, the US intel director said. Discussions on Russia's relationship with China have also been ongoing, including speculation that Beijing might be considering sending lethal aid to Russia. In late February, a top Pentagon official told lawmakers Russia had lost the war and will emerge from war in Ukraine a "shattered military power." "Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been a strategic defeat. Russia's military is going to have to be rebuilt," George Barros, a military analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, told Insider in September.

☆ The top Democrat and Republican on the House Intel committee say the FBI hasn't been forthcoming about what's exactly in the classified docs seized from Biden, Pence, and Trump
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Top House Intel committee members told NBC News the FBI hasn't told them what's in seized documents. The DOJ has seized classified documents from Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and Mike Pence. "Administration after administration is apparently sloppy and messy" with such docs, Rep. Turner said. Ohio Republican Rep. Mike Turner said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that the "FBI is not being forthcoming. The FBI also searched one of Biden's old offices last year after aides said they found classified documents there.

☆ Biden Administration Urges Congress to Renew Spy Law
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Dustin Volz | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Attorney General Merrick Garland, in a letter with Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, said the law protects the U.S. from foreign-based cyberattacks and arms traffickers. WASHINGTON—Top Biden administration officials urged Congress to renew an expiring surveillance law they say is vital to addressing a range of national security threats, launching what is expected to be a difficult campaign to persuade lawmakers to not curtail spying powers. In a letter to Tuesday to congressional leadership, Attorney General Merrick Garland and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said the law, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, protects the U.S. from foreign-based cyberattacks and arms traffickers and yields intelligence to address challenges posed by China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.

☆ Lab Leak Most Likely Origin of Covid-19 Pandemic, U.S. Agency Now Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Michael R. Gordon | Warren P. Strobel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A campus of the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan, China, in 2020. WASHINGTON—The U.S. Energy Department has concluded that the Covid pandemic most likely arose from a laboratory leak, according to a classified intelligence report recently provided to the White House and key members of Congress. The shift by the Energy Department, which previously was undecided on how the virus emerged, is noted in an update to a 2021 document by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines’s office.

☆ A Lab Leak in China Most Likely Origin of Covid Pandemic, Energy Department Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Michael R. Gordon | Warren P. Strobel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ House GOP asks Fauci and dozens of health officials to testify in investigation into Covid origins
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

House Republicans have asked former White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony to testify before Congress as they launch a new investigation into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic. "If there are oversight hearings I absolutely will cooperate fully and testify before the Congress," Fauci told reporters during his final briefing at the White House. He stepped down from his posts at the White House and at the helm of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in December. EcoHealth Alliance provided funding, which originated at NIH, to the Wuhan Institute of Virology to study coronaviruses. About $600,000 of that money went directly to the Wuhan Institute of Virology to study the threat posed by bat coronaviruses.

☆ DOJ 'actively working' to brief senators on Biden and Trump classified documents
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julie-Tsirkin-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Julie Tsirkin | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Senators of both parties voiced frustration after they left a closed-door briefing last week with National Intelligence Director Avril Haines, who declined to show them copies of the classified documents discovered at Trump’s Florida resort and Biden’s office and Delaware home. Haines also declined to discuss the sensitive material, citing ongoing special counsel investigations, according to members of the Senate Intelligence Committee who attended the classified briefing. In a joint appearance Sunday on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” Warner and Rubio called for immediate document oversight. That means we need these documents,” Warner said. Jordan this month announced the committee had opened an investigation into the Obama-era classified documents found in Biden's possession.

Haines also refused to discuss the sensitive material, citing ongoing special counsel investigations, according to members of the Senate Intelligence Committee who attending the classified briefing. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., was so furious after the briefing that he threatened to block presidential nominees or funding for some federal agencies until the Biden administration shows key lawmakers the classified documents. “Whether it’s blocking nominees or withholding budgetary funds, Congress will impose pain on the administration until they provide these documents. The bipartisan leaders of the Senate Intelligence panel emerged together from the secure briefing room and rejected the administration’s argument. “I’m not saying anything bad about the three [Biden, Trump and Pence], but classified information in the wrong hands can create problems for our country, put people at risk.

A "small number" of classified documents were discovered last week at former Vice President Mike Pence’s Indiana home, according to two letters Pence’s counsel sent to the National Archives obtained by NBC News on Tuesday. Pence's team “immediately” secured the classified documents in a locked safe, Jacob said. The transfer was facilitated by Pence’s personal attorney, who has experience in handling classified documents and was involved with the Jan. 16 discovery. Pence spokesman Devin O’Malley later told NBC News that “no potential classified documents” were found at the offices of Pence’s organization Advancing American Freedom after Pence’s team searched the offices and the former vice president’s home in Indiana. In a statement Tuesday, Comer said Pence reached out to the panel about classified documents found at his Indiana residence.

☆ Top U.S. spy agency says more security assistance from allies is crucial for Ukraine to prevail
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Members of Ukraine's 95th Air Assault Brigade defend an area near the front line of fighting on Jan. 12, 2023, outside Kremina, Ukraine. WASHINGTON – The director of America's top spy agency described Russia's war in Ukraine as a "grinding conflict" that will require the West to continue to provide security assistance packages in order for Kyiv to prevail. "It will be extremely important for Ukraine to receive essential military assistance and economic assistance moving forward in order for them to be able to continue to manage what they have been heroically doing," she added. The U.S. has contributed the lion's share of security assistance to the fight. The upcoming military assistance, the 30th such tranche, brings U.S. commitment to Ukraine's fight to more than $26 billion since the beginning of the Biden administration.

WASHINGTON — Aides to President Joe Biden have discovered at least one additional batch of classified documents in a location separate from the Washington office he used after leaving the Obama administration, according to a person familiar with the matter. The initial discovery of classified documents in an office used by Biden after his vice presidency was first reported on Monday by CBS News. It also was not immediately clear when the additional documents were discovered and if the search for any other classified materials Biden may have from the Obama administration is complete. Two sources familiar with the matter said less than a dozen documents with classified markings were found at the office. Trump's possession of over 100 documents with classified markings despite have been subpoenaed for their return is the subject of a federal criminal investigation by the Justice Department.

☆ Biden aides find second batch of classified documents at new location, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Aides to U.S. President Joe Biden have discovered at least one more batch of classified documents in a location separate from a think tank office he used after serving as vice president, news outlets reported on Wednesday, citing unnamed sources. The NBC News report said the classification level, number and precise location of the additional documents was not immediately clear. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. A spokesperson for Senator Marco Rubio, the committee's Republican vice chair, said Rubio and Warner had written to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, asking for access to the classified documents. The Justice Department is separately probing Trump's handling of highly sensitive classified documents that he retained at his Florida resort after leaving the White House in January 2021.

☆ Biden 'surprised' about finding of classified documents, vows cooperation
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Jarrett Renshaw | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Biden told reporters at a joint news conference with the leaders of Mexico and Canada that he takes classified documents seriously. A Democrat, Biden has faced criticism from Republicans after his Justice Department launched an investigation last year into Republican former President Donald Trump's handling of classified documents discovered at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. Investigators tried to get Trump to return any remaining classified records through a grand jury subpoena and a visit to his Mar-a-Lago estate. On that visit, Trump's advisers returned a few dozen additional classified records, and attested that no other classified material remained in the residence. And as soon as they did, they realized there were several classified documents in that box.

☆ Biden classified documents: White House won't say why it didn't disclose earlier that records were found
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

U.S. President Joe Biden shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a bilateral meeting at the North American Leaders' Summit in Mexico City, Mexico, January 10, 2023. "Why didn't the 'Justice' Department announce the Highly Classified documents found in the Biden Office before the Election?" Trump wrote in a post on his social media site, Truth Social. U.S. President Joe Biden attends a news conference at Waldorf Astoria in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia July 15, 2022. Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters"This discovery of classified information would put President Biden in potential violation of laws protecting national security, including the Espionage Act and Presidential Records Act," Turner wrote.

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