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☆ As Georgia votes, fears of a return to Moscow’s orbit loom large
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-25 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Ulf Mauder/picture alliance/Getty ImagesMany observers fear the ruling Georgian Dream party will resort to anything to stay in power. This year, Georgian Dream pushed through a Kremlin-style “foreign agent” law, which critics say aims to shut down watchdogs who call the government to account. She described some of the statements made by Georgian Dream officials as a “copy-paste” of those from Stalin’s show trials. ‘Soviet mentality’A question puzzling many is why the formerly center-left Georgian Dream has made a sudden authoritarian pivot. Joining the EU would require cleaning up the country’s judiciary and giving up power if Georgian Dream is voted out on Saturday.

Persons: Joseph Stalin, Stalin “, ”, Stalin, Stalin’s, Ulf Mauder, Ivanishvili –, –, Vladimir Putin’s, “, everybody’s, ” Natalie Sabanadze, Sabanadze, Vano Shlamov, Ivanishvili, Mikheil Saakashvili, ” Younger, Uriel Sinai, Moscow’s, Davit, Georgia’s, Salome Zourabichvili –, Ivanishvili’s, Bera, ” Ivanishvili, Hillary Clinton, Viktor Orban, Irakli Kobakhidze, Orban, Mirian, Levan Khabeishvili –, Khabeishvili, “ Ivanishvili, He’s, Giorgi Arjevanidze, Sergei Naryshkin Organizations: CNN, Joseph, Joseph Stalin Museum, European Union, Party, Chatham House, Georgian, Getty, Kremlin, Stalin, –, Governance, NATO, EU, Hungary’s, Conservative Political, Georgia’s, Police, Western United National Movement, UNM, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service Locations: Gori, Soviet, Caucasus, Georgian, Soviet Union, Georgia, Russia, Everybody’s, London, Chatham, Tbilisi, AFP, Moscow, Georgia’s South Ossetia, Gori ., Abkhazia, Gori , Georgia, Ukraine, Europe, Budapest, Anadolu, Nuremberg, Brussels, Moldova, Belarus

The Justice Department, in an 18-page indictment Thursday, charged Vikash Yadav, 39, with three counts of murder-for-hire and money laundering. Federal prosecutors said Yadav was a “senior field officer” for New Delhi. Their New York target was an attorney and political activist who is a U.S. citizen of Indian origin, prosecutors said. Nijjar was also mentioned as a target by Yadav and was an associate of the activist he plotted to assassinate in New York, the Justice Department release said. Yadav was employed by India’s Cabinet secretariat, which also houses the country’s foreign intelligence wing, the Research and Analysis Wing, the Justice Department indictment said.

Persons: Vikash Yadav, Yadav, ”, Nikhil Gupta, Gupta, Yadav “, Christopher Wray, “, Matthew Miller, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Nijjar, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, ” Miller, Prosecutors, Narendra Modi’s, Matthew G, Olsen Organizations: DELHI, The Justice Department, New Delhi, FBI, U.S, Department, Indian Government, ”, ., The, DOJ, Associated Press, AP India, “, State Department, U.S ., Research, Embassy, India’s Ministry, Affairs, Drug Enforcement Administration, Indian, Justice Department’s National Security Division Locations: U.S, New York City, New, India, York, Czech Republic, Washington, Canada, Nijjar, New York, Indian, “ Canada, New Delhi, United States

☆ German spy chief warns that suspected sabotage almost caused a plane crash when a parcel caught fire
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-15 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The head of Germany's domestic intelligence service said a plane crash was narrowly avoided. A "lucky coincidence" meant a package caught fire on the ground instead of midflight, he said. German intelligence bosses warned of the growing threat from Russia in a parliamentary hearing. AdvertisementA plane crash was narrowly avoided when a package caught fire before being loaded on board, in what German intelligence suspects was an act of sabotage. Haldenwang said it was "only a lucky coincidence" that the package caught fire on the ground and not during the flight.

Persons: midflight, —, Thomas Haldenwang, Haldenwang, Vladimir Putin, didn't, Bruno Kahl Organizations: Service, Bundestag, Federal, RedaktionsNetzwerk, DHL, German Press Agency, Financial Locations: German, Russia, RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland, Leipzig, Germany

☆ Russia jails French researcher Vinatier for three years in ‘foreign agent’ case
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-14 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Moscow Reuters —French researcher Laurent Vinatier was found guilty by a Moscow court on Monday of breaking Russia’s “foreign agent” laws and sentenced to three years in prison. President Emmanuel Macron has denied that Vinatier worked for the French state and has described his arrest as part of a misinformation campaign by Moscow. “The legislation on ‘foreign agents’ contributes to a systematic violation of fundamental freedoms in Russia, such as freedom of association, freedom of opinion and freedom of expression,” France’s foreign ministry said. “French authorities remain fully mobilized to provide assistance (to Vinatier),” the ministry added. I lived a Russian life and still, even the last four months, I have been living in a Russian atmosphere,” he said, referring to the period since his arrest.

Persons: Laurent Vinatier, Vinatier, Alexander Pushkin, intently, RIA, Emmanuel Macron, “, ”, Pavel Durov Organizations: Moscow Reuters —, Soviet Union, Centre, Humanitarian, Reuters, Independent Locations: Moscow, Vinatier, Ukraine, Russia, Russian, State, France, Swiss

☆ As Trump returns to assassination attempt site, Secret Service is “at a breaking point,” officials say
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-05 | by ( Sarah Fitzpatrick | Sarah Fitzpatrick Is A Senior Investigative Producer | Story Editor For Nbc News. She Previously Worked For Cbs News | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +11 min

As Donald Trump visits Butler, Pa., today for the first time since he narrowly survived an assassination attempt there, current and former Secret Service agents fear another security lapse. One law enforcement official told NBC News that the Secret Service is “stretched virtually to the breaking point.”“I hate to say it, they are going to hit rock bottom fast” said one former Secret Service agent. “The Secret Service is upside down on that, maybe operational 99% and 1% training," the former official said. Current and former officials are also concerned about a mass exodus of Secret Service personnel over the next 18 months. U.S. officials say that the challenges at the Secret Service will require a range of changes to ensure long-term stability.

Persons: Donald Trump, Butler, ”, ” Anthony Guglielmi, Paul Eckloff, Obama, President Trump, Eckloff, Camp David, ” Guglielmi, Ron Rowe, Barack Obama, “, Daniel Slim, Kamala Harris, it’s, you’re Organizations: Secret, Secret Service, NBC News, Trump, Service, Agents, United Nations General Assembly, Homeland Security, Getty, U.S . Navy Locations: Pa, “, United States, Camp, New York, AFP, U.S, ”

☆ Hezbollah pager attacks are a harbinger of a darker, more dangerous age of individualized strikes, military expert says
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-18 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewThe simultaneous detonation of thousands of pagers in Lebanon on Tuesday is a harbinger of a darker and more dangerous age of individualized attacks, according to a retired general and warfare strategist. The pagers were ordered by Hezbollah and were tampered with before they reached Lebanon, some of the officials said. "This is yet another demonstration that individuals are increasingly vulnerable to highly precise and personalized attacks," he said. Related storiesRyan cited the use of armed first-person-view drones on the battlefields in Ukraine and Russia, which he said showed the use of lethal personalized attacks had escalated in the past two years. He said the pager attack on Hezbollah "opens a dangerous Pandora's box" and makes almost everyone a "walking ticking bomb."

Persons: —, Israel, Washington, pagers, Mick Ryan, Ryan, Yousef Munayyer, Munayyer Organizations: Service, Wireless, Business, US State Department, New York Times, Sky News, US Air Force, Arab Center Washington DC Locations: pagers, Lebanon, Iran, Australian, Ukraine, Russia, Vietnam

☆ Russia expels six U.K. diplomats as tensions rise over Ukraine missiles
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-14 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Russia announced the expulsions hours before British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House, a crucial step towards winning the go-ahead for Kyiv to use long-range missiles against targets in Russia. Neither Biden nor Starmer addressed long-range missiles in brief comments in front of reporters. Sources say the meeting is another step in talks to allow Ukraine to use Western long-range missiles against targets in Russia, something Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been demanding for months. The six UK diplomats were named on Russian state TV, which also showed photographs of them. The FSB said Russia would ask other British diplomats to go home early if they were found to be engaged in similar activity.

Persons: Keir Starmer, Joe Biden, “, ” Biden, Starmer, Biden, ” Starmer, Vladimir Putin, Putin, ”, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, John Kirby, Kirby, Maria Zakharova, ” Zakharova Organizations: British, White, Ukraine, FSB, Soviet KGB, Russian Federation, Federal Security Service, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, British Embassy, British Foreign, Biden, United Nations General Assembly, House, The New York Times, Russian Foreign Ministry Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Britain, Russia, Kyiv, United States, Russian, Western, Washington, London, Iran, Soviet, British, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Europe, Vienna

☆ Dozens killed in strikes in southern Gaza as preparations for cease-fire talks move forward
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-24 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Ap-Live-Blog-Byline-Image.Png | The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

At least three dozen Palestinians were killed in multiple Israeli strikes in the southern Gaza Strip, officials said Saturday, even as preparations moved ahead for high-level cease-fire talks in the Egyptian capital. The hospital received a total of 33 dead who were killed in three separate strikes in and around Khan Younis. Seventeen others were killed when a strike hit a road south of Khan Younis, including the passengers on a tuk-tuk and passers-by, Nasser Hospital said. Another strike hit a tuk-tuk east of Khan Younis, killing at least five people. First responders also recovered the bodies of 10 people from a residential block west of Khan Younis.

Persons: Khan Younis, Nasser Hospital, Mahmoud Merdawy, David Barnea, Shin, Eliezer Toledano, William Burns, Brett McGurk, Joe Biden, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Bassem Naim, Sunday’s, Merdawy Organizations: Hospital, Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, Associated Press, Health Ministry, Hamas, Qatari, CIA Locations: Gaza, Al, Aqsa, Khan, Israel, United States, Egypt, Qatar, Cairo, U.S

A third teenager has been arrested in connection with a foiled attack on now-canceled Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna. The foiled attack was planned for Thursday or Friday, according to Austria’s interior minister, Gerhard Karner. Taylor Swift fans gather in Vienna. Authorities display a photo of a man arrested in connection with a plot to attack Taylor Swift's Eras Tour in Vienna, Austria. The U.S. State Department and the broader U.S. government have been in contact with Austrian officials about the alleged plot, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Gerhard Karner, Karner, Ernst Happel, Thomas Kronsteiner, Karl Nehammer, “, ” Nehammer, it’s, ” Swift, Sadiq Khan, We’re, ” Khan, Swift, ’, Southport , England Peter Powell, ”, Omar Haijawi, Franz Ruf, Taylor, Roland Schlager, Pirchner, Matthew Miller, “ Taylor, Pedro Gomes, TAS24, Elle, Magnus Ranstorp Organizations: Austrian, Authorities, Islamic State, Investigators, Ernst, London’s Wembley, London, Manchester Arena, Getty, Islamic, of State Security, Intelligence, Ministry of, Interior, CIA, U.S . State Department, State, ” Barracuda, Barracuda Music, Estadio da Luz, Las, Strip, Swedish Defense University, Associated Press Locations: Vienna, al Qaeda, Europe, Gelsenkirchen, Austria, Ariana Grande, Manchester, England, Southport , England, AFP, Ternitz, Austrian, Lisbon, Portugal, United Kingdom, Stockholm

☆ Iran steps up influence campaign aimed at US voters with fake news sites, Microsoft says
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-09 | by ( Sean Lyngaas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Iranian operatives have ramped up their attempts to influence and monitor the US presidential election by creating fake news outlets targeting liberal and conservative voters and by trying to hack an unnamed presidential campaign, Microsoft said in research published late Thursday. Microsoft said it notified the campaign of the hacking attempt, but declined to say publicly which campaign it was. CNN has requested comment from the Trump campaign. The Iranian, Russian and Chinese governments routinely deny allegations of election influence operations. As president, Trump ordered the killing of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, and he withdrew from a multilateral deal aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear program.

Persons: Donald Trump, ” Clint Watts, ”, Kamala Harris ’, Trump, Joe Biden’s, Russia “, China “, “, Qasem Soleimani Organizations: CNN, Iranian, Microsoft, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, CIA, FBI, National Intelligence, Russian, Ukraine, Service, Department Locations: MAGA, Iran, Savannah , Georgia, Russian, Ukrainian, Trump, Russia, U.S, China

☆ How Two Russian ‘Illegals’ Went Deep Undercover With Their Children
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-04 | by ( Andrew Higgins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Darja Stefancic, a painter in Slovenia known for technicolor landscapes, thought it strange when an obscure online art gallery run by a woman from Argentina contacted her out of the blue and asked her to join its thin roster of artists. The painter suspected a scam, and she worried that the gallery, which virtually nobody in Slovenia’s tiny, tight-knit art scene had heard of, “just wanted to cheat people.”It did — but in ways that far surpassed even her darkest suspicions. The online gallery was a front for Russian intelligence, part of an elaborate network of deep-cover sleeper spies trained to impersonate Argentines, Brazilians and other foreign nationals by Russia’s foreign intelligence agency, the SVR, around Europe. They were real-life versions of the fictional stars of “The Americans,” a television series inspired by the 2010 arrest of a ring of actual Russian sleeper agents in the United States.

Persons: Darja, “ Locations: Slovenia, Argentina, Europe, United States

Why did Russian President Vladimir Putin greet the children of just-freed Russian spies in Spanish? In “The Americans,” two Russian spies posing as a married couple in suburban America run Soviet agents and collect intelligence, unbeknownst to their young children. President Vladimir Putin meets convicted Russian spies released as part of a prisoners' swap at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow. Their children attended an international school in Ljubljana and, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, were only told on the plane to Moscow that they were Russian. “To the bulk of the Russian public, the Russian president showed that he has not yet lost the remnants of adequacy and is capable of well-calculated, rational actions,” Gallyamov said.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, “, ”, Ludwig Gisch, Maria Rosa Mayer Muños, Mikhail Voskresenskiy, Artem Viktorovich Dultsev, Anna Valerevna Dultseva, Evan Gershkovitch, Paul Whelan —, Dmitry Peskov, Peskov, ” Peskov, ” Abbas Gallyamov, ” Gallyamov, — Putin Organizations: Vnukovo, Associated Press, AP, Kremlin, KGB, Federal Security Service, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, “ Locations: Russian, Slovenia, America, Soviet, Moscow, U.S, Europe, Ljubljana, Slovenia's, Moscow’s Vnukovo

Senior officials from Israel, Egypt, Qatar and the United States met in Rome on Sunday to continue negotiations over a cease-fire in Gaza, according to three officials involved in or briefed on the talks and a statement from the Israeli government. The talks came as tensions mounted in the region amid growing violence along the border between Israel and Lebanon. Qatar hosts part of the Hamas leadership and, along with Egypt, plays a key role in mediating between the two sides. The statement did not give further details. Despite progress in recent weeks, the monthslong negotiations remain stalled over several key issues, particularly the extent to which Israeli forces would remain in Gaza during a truce, according to seven officials involved in or briefed on the talks.

Persons: David Barnea Locations: Israel, Egypt, Qatar, United States, Rome, Gaza, Lebanon

☆ CIA Director Bill Burns says Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is facing growing pressure from his own commanders to end Gaza war
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-16 | by ( Alex Marquardt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The CIA has assessed that the leader of Hamas in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, is coming under increased pressure from his own military commanders to accept a ceasefire deal and end the war with Israel, CIA Director Bill Burns told a closed-door conference on Saturday, according to a source who attended. The increased pressure on Sinwar comes as Hamas and Israel have agreed to a framework deal that that President Joe Biden laid out at the end of May. That’s what US officials have said is being used as the basis to an agreement to end the fighting. Of the three most senior Hamas leaders in Gaza, Israel is believed to have found and killed just one: Marwan Issa, the second in command of the military wing. There are still “tough issues to resolve,” a source familiar with the talks told CNN after Burns’ meetings in Doha.

Persons: Yahya Sinwar, Bill Burns, Burns, Khan Younis, Burns –, Biden, –, Joe Biden, Saturday Burns, Benjamin Netanyahu, ” Biden, ”, Marwan Issa, Mohammed Deif, Deif, Israel, Netanyahu, there’s “ Organizations: CNN, CIA, Sinwar, Hamas, Allen & Company, titans, Gaza’s Ministry of Health, Israel, Associated Press Locations: Gaza, Israel, Sun Valley , Idaho, That’s, Qatar, Egypt, Israeli, Tel Aviv, Sinwar, Doha

The NATO official said they had observed “an unprecedented escalation and spread of Russia’s hybrid warfare” over the past six months, which included “physical sabotage” on the supply line of NATO weapons intended for Ukraine. “It is everything from point of production and origin, to storage, to those who are making decisions, to the actual delivery,” the senior NATO official said. Recent high-profile arrests have revealed the ad-hoc, clumsy nature of how the Kremlin’s intelligence operations have evolved since the start of the war in Ukraine. Russia is big enough to have resources to fight a war against Ukraine and also maintain its security operations against European countries… against us. There are people who take part in the war against Ukraine, and then they are rotated to some other region or area.

Persons: Blunt, ”, Donald Tusk, Dariusz Borowicz, Agencja Wyborcza.pl, Maxim, Andrzej, Jaroslaw, “, Don’t, ” Andrzej, I’d, Wagner, Volodymyr Zelensky, Sean Gallup, Paris Charles de, Vladimir Putin’s, Harrys Organizations: CNN, NATO, Polish, Reuters, Ukraine, Getty, London’s Metropolitan Police Service, Kremlin, EU, Estonian Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Europe, “, Reuters Russia, Washington , DC, Moscow, Poland, Russian, Lublin, Medyka, Ukrainian, Biala Podlaska, Warsaw, Polish, surveilling Rzeszow Jasionka, Kyiv, Berlin, Germany, Russian Ukrainian, Paris Charles, Paris Charles de Gaulle, East London, Estonia, Russia’s

☆ Talks on Gaza Cease-Fire Revive After Weeks of Deadlock
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-05 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Israeli negotiators traveled to the Gulf nation of Qatar on Friday for the first time in weeks to restart contacts over a cease-fire deal that would end the war in Gaza, following weeks of deadlock in the negotiations. An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the meeting as a preliminary discussion with more substantive talks to follow. David Barnea, the head of Israel’s Mossad foreign intelligence service, led the Israeli delegation to Doha, the Qatari capital, where he was set to meet with Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, the Qatari prime minister. Cease-fire negotiations had been stalled for weeks until Wednesday, when Hamas announced that it had exchanged some ideas with mediators on a new way forward. Both U.S. and Israeli officials said the revised Hamas position could allow for an agreement, but cautioned that a protracted and difficult series of deliberations lay ahead nonetheless.

Persons: David Barnea, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Organizations: Doha, Hamas, U.S Locations: Gulf, Qatar, Gaza, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani

☆ Russian spies only need $3 a month to dupe someone online: report
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-05 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

According to the report, one of the operations in Project Kylo would have cost the Russian spies around $3 a month to manipulate one Western internet user. "It is precisely the fear for the future, uncertainty about tomorrow, the inability to make long-term plans, the unclear fate of children and future generations," the document read. And the number of Russian spies in the West is now estimated to be at the highest it has been in decades. Russian spy activities "are as high or even higher than during the Cold War," a Western intelligence officer told The Financial Times in March. AdvertisementGerman newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported in April 2023 that Russian spies have used Tinder to target German politicians and soldiers in a bid to obtain intelligence related to the Ukraine war.

Persons: —, Der, Der Spiegel, Victor Muller, Sonntag Organizations: Service, The, Der Spiegel, Business, SVR, Der, Criminal, Financial Times, Welt Locations: Ukraine, Germany, Russian, The Hague, West

☆ America’s Antivax Disinformation Campaign in the Philippines - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-03 | by ( David Wallace-Wells | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Typically, Americans learn about the clandestine depravities undertaken abroad by their government only decades after the offenses were committed. When the Pentagon was confronted with the report, its spokeswoman didn’t just acknowledge the existence of these sorts of programs; she appeared to defend them. The Reuters report is very much worth reading in full, a showcase of American recklessness in what may already be a new age of Spy vs. Spy psyops. But we’ve had very little reporting, or reckoning, with what the American side of that information war might look like. ), to counter adversary malign influence”; that “this process is deliberate, methodical and comprehensive”; and that this work employs “a variety of platforms, including social media, to counter those malign influence attacks.” The Chinese have been, predictably, more hyperbolic: An editorial in the Chinese Communist Party-run Global Times called the social media campaign simply “brainwashing.”

Persons: Chris Bing, Joel Schectman, didn’t, we’ve, ” Organizations: Reuters, Department of Defense, Pentagon, Chinese Communist Party, Times Locations: Philippines, Central Asia, China, Russia

☆ Russia can’t fight NATO on the battlefield – so it’s waging a hybrid war instead
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-30 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

And while they might look minor in isolation, taken together these incidents amount to what security experts say is Russia’s hybrid war on the West. Thornton said Russia was resorting to a campaign of sabotage as an alternative to a full-on war with NATO, which would be disastrous for Russia. Article 5 is the cornerstone principle that an attack on one member of NATO is an attack on all members. Danylyuk said the Russian security apparatus doesn’t shy away from using criminals to do its dirty work, tapping into its links with international organized crime. Russia can only be strong if the West and NATO are weak.

Persons: –, Petr Fiala, Jens Stoltenberg, Rod Thornton, there’s, ” Thornton, Vladimir Putin, Thornton, “, ”, It’s, ” Nicole Wolkov, Andrei Averyanov, Averyanov, Sergei, Yulia Skripal, d’etat, Oleksandr Danylyuk, …, Volodymyr Zelensky’s, Danylyuk, Olga Lautman, Fiala, Sergei Skripal, Yulia, Frank Augstein, ” Lautman, Lautman, Alexander Litvinenko, Andrei Lugovoi, Theresa May, Nikolai Glushkov, Salisbury, Putin, ” “, let’s, ’ ”, that’s, Litvinenko, Skripal Organizations: CNN, Occupation, . Police, European Union, NATO, King’s College London, ”, Royal United Services Institute, Czech Police, GRU, London –, German Federal Public, Ukraine, Russian, Russia NATO, Center for, European, of Human, Duma, Metropolitan Police, Command, Soviet, West Locations: Prague, Czech, Moscow, Europe, Riga, London, Warsaw, Germany, Russia, Belarus, Russian, Spain, Lithuania, Canada, Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia –, United States, al Qaeda, France, EU, Salisbury, England, Czech Republic, Vrbetice, Montenegro, Moldova, Macedonia, Ukrainian, Poland, Salisbury , England, Finland, Estonia, Lautman, Soviet Union

The plea deal allows Assange to avoid prison in the US and return to his native Australia. “That never came up in our conversations,” said David Stilwell, the State Department assistant secretary for the Pacific region during the Trump administration. Sessions’ focus on national security-related leaks was “probably one of the reasons why the [Assange] case had more traction,” Hickey told CNN. Hickey said he was not involved in the Assange case when he was a senior official at DOJ’s National Security Division from 2016 to 2023. Stilwell, the former State Department official under the Trump administration, pushed back on the Assange plea deal.

Persons: Julian Assange, Assange, Biden, Trump, ”, David Stilwell, Anthony Albanese, Joe Biden, General Merrick Garland, Chelsea Manning, Manning, Barack Obama, Obama, Trump’s, Jeff Sessions, Adam Hickey, ” Hickey, Hickey, “ Assange, who’s, Mayer Brown, Garland, Andrew McCabe, “, it’s, ” McCabe, Stilwell, ” Stilwell, Bradley Moss, would’ve, ” Moss, ” CNN’s Zachary Cohen, Marshall Cohen, Kevin Liptak Organizations: CNN, United, Wikileaks, State Department, Australian, Justice Department, FBI, Northern, London’s, US Justice Department, White, Pentagon, Army, Assange ., Department, Obama, Biden, DOJ’s National Security Division, Protect Journalists, Amnesty International, American Civil Liberties Union, Computer, Ecuadorian Locations: United States, Washington, London, Stockholm, Quito, Ecuador, Australia, Pacific, Virginia, London’s, Northern Mariana Islands, Iraq, Guantanamo, Washington ,

☆ China says Britain's MI6 turned two Chinese government staff to spies
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

A Chinese flag in Pudong's Lujiazui Financial District in Shanghai, China, on Sept. 18, 2023. China has alleged that the British Secret Intelligence Service MI6 turned two staff members of unnamed Chinese central state organs into spies for the British government, its State Security Ministry said in a statement on Monday. The ministry said the case against the two spies, a married couple, is under further investigation. In January, China revealed an espionage case in which it said MI6 used a foreigner in China to collect secrets and information. Britain in April charged two people with providing prejudicial information to China and last month charged three people with assisting Hong Kong's foreign intelligence service in Britain.

Persons: Hong Organizations: British Secret Intelligence Service, State Security Ministry Locations: Lujiazui, Shanghai, China, Britain

☆ A Microsoft under attack from government and tech rivals after 'preventable' hack ties executive pay to cyberthreats
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Trevor Laurence Jockims | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

The decision by Microsoft to link executive compensation to successful cybersecurity performance is another is prompting discussions at other firms. One change the tech giant is making in response: linking executive compensation more closely to cybersecurity. In recent years, many Fortune 500 companies, including Apple, have added bonus pay tied to ESG metrics. The conversations about cybersecurity-linked executive pay have started taking place at other companies since Microsoft made its move, according to Aalap Shah, managing director at executive compensation consultant Pearl Meyer. Madnick's research shows that gaps in corporate culture are often culprits in high-profile hacks, not just the Microsoft example.

Persons: Brad Smith, Charlie Bell, Aalap Shah, Pearl Meyer, It's, I've, Shah, —, Stuart Madnick, Madnick, Ryan Kalember, unavoidability, Jen, Kalember, ransomware, Mike Doonan, Doonan Organizations: Microsoft, U.S, Hill, Google, U.S . Department of Homeland, Initiative, Microsoft Security, Team, Companies, Fortune, Apple, MIT, Infrastructure Security Agency, CNBC, Technology, State Department Locations: China, Russia, cybersecurity, U.S

☆ Matthew Trickett: British man accused of spying for Hong Kong’s intelligence services found dead in park
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( Sharon Braithwaite | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —A man charged by British police for allegedly spying for Hong Kong’s intelligence services, has been found dead in a park outside of London. Trickett had appeared alongside two other suspects at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 13, charged with national security offences. “Trickett was on court bail, awaiting court proceedings, which required him to register at a police station regularly,” the police said. Relations between Hong Kong and its former colonial ruler Britain have soured in recent years following mass pro-democracy protests in the Chinese city in 2019 and 2020. The British government has criticized Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed crackdown on almost all opposition in the years following the protests, while Hong Kong authorities have bristled at Britain providing a safe haven for pro-democracy leaders sought by the Hong Kong police.

Persons: Hong, Matthew Trickett, Trickett, “ Trickett, Trickett’s, John Lee, Hong Kong’s, Louisa Cieciora, Lee, Lucas Lilieholm, Chris Lau, Jerome Taylor Organizations: London CNN, British, London . Police, Thames, ’, The Times, Embassy, Hong, Hong Kong, Police, Hong Kong Economic, Trade Office, Economic, Trade Locations: London, Maidenhead , Berkshire, Sunday, Westminster, Hong Kong, Britain, Hong Kong’s Beijing

☆ In Germany, Far-Right Plotters of an Improbable Coup Go on Trial
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( Christopher F. Schuetze | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Prince Heinrich XIII of Reuss, the obscure aristocrat who wanted to become German chancellor, and eight men and women who planned to bring him into power by violently overthrowing the government, went on trial on Tuesday in Frankfurt. Nearly a year and a half after a spectacular nationwide raid involving 3,000 police officers at 150 locations that the authorities say foiled a bizarre, far-right plan to seize power, the prince and the plotters will start facing justice. It is expected to be one of the most complex court cases since West Germany tried Auschwitz concentration camp commanders in the 1960s. Members of the group, who called themselves the “United Patriots,” believed the government was run by pedophilic, illegitimate politicians who had access to a network of underground military bases. The plotters believed in the existence of a secret alliance, prosecutors say, consisting of sympathetic foreign intelligence services, including ones belonging to the United States and Russia, would help the group overthrow the deep state once a signal was given.

Persons: Prince Heinrich XIII of Reuss, —, ”, pedophilic Organizations: “ United Patriots Locations: Frankfurt, West Germany, United States, Russia

Hong Kong CNN —Hong Kong’s leader responded on Tuesday after three people were charged by British police for allegedly spying on behalf of the city’s intelligence services. Relations between Hong Kong and its former colonial ruler Britain have soured in recent years following mass pro-democracy protests in the Chinese city in 2019 and 2020. The British government has criticized Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed crackdown on almost all opposition in the years following the protests, while Hong Kong authorities have bristled at Britain providing a safe haven for pro-democracy leaders sought by the Hong Kong police. Hong Kong leader Lee noted in his Tuesday news conference that one of the men charged was the office manager of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London but did not directly address a question over whether it was involved in surveillance of Hong Kong dissidents in the UK. Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee is speaking at a press conference on April 30, 2024.

Persons: Hong, Chi Leung, Peter, Wai, Matthew Trickett, Chung Biu Yuen, Hong Kong’s, John Lee, ” Lee, Chi Leung Wai, Yui Mok, Jonathan Brady, Yuen, Louisa Cieciora, Lee, Vernon Yuen, ”, Dominic Murphy Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, British, Hong, city’s Metropolitan Police, Hong Kong, Embassy, Westminster Magistrates, Administrative, Police, Hong Kong Economic, Trade Office, . Hong, Economic, Trade, Metropolitan Police, UK National Security, Crown Prosecution Service, Command, Met Police Locations: Hong Kong, Westminster, London, city’s, Britain, Hong Kong’s Beijing, . Hong Kong, England

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