THE NEW SECURITY FOUNDATION - Understanding modern security

At least 30 people were killed and more than 40 were injured after a series of suicide bomb attacks in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. Police reports say that the bombers struck near the city's prison, a hotel, a mosque and a city centre road junction. Kandahar is one of Afghanistan's largest cities and, in the past, it has been something of a stronghold for the Taliban. There have recently been several hints from US Government sources that the volatile area could be one of the next targets for operations against the Taliban.
BBC

March 12 2010

Thousands in protests against Thai Government

A mass protest, intended to paralyse Bangkok, began at 12.12 pm today, as thousands of protesters gathered in strategic locations around Thailand. The protesters, who will converge on the Thai capital for a mass rally on Sunday, say they are determined to show the world how much the Thai Government is despised by ordinary Thais. The Government has warned of unrest and is clearly nervous about the protests - 50,000 security personnel, including 30,000 troops, have been drafted into Bangkok. They have at their disposal water cannon, "sound wave" machines, tear gas and batons "to deter unruly protesters," according to government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagom.
The Times

Air cargo security confusion

Confusion surrounds a new EU air cargo security regime designed to fit the tough American homeland security rules, due to be enforced in the USA in August. Experts fear smaller European shippers and exporters will refuse to join the official list of 'known consignors'. A representative of Volkswagen said large manufacturers are questioning the cost of seeking 'authorised status' for freighting to the USA. The EU Framework Regulation 300/2008 comes into force on 29 April to replace Aviation Security Regulation 2320/2002, and is designed to make it easier for exporters and shippers in Europe to comply with the planned toughened US regime. Eckard Seebohm, head of the European Commission’s aviation security unit, expects the number of known consignors to fall sharply after 29 April, with many smaller consignors simply not bothering to work within the scheme.
International Freighting Weekly

Suicide bombers kill 'at least 39' in Pakistan

According to police sources, at least 39 people were killed and about 95 wounded earlier today by two 'suicide bombers' in the Pakistani city of Lahore. Both attacks occured within seconds of each other and targeted military vehicles as they passed through a crowded area. Earlier this week Pakistan's Taliban promised to unleash 3,000 suicide bombers across the country unless the Pakistani Government stopped its operations against the militant group.
BBC

March 11 2010

US sushi restaurant raid

US Federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against a Californian sushi restaurant for selling meat from an endangered whale.
Gary Lincenburg, an attorney for The Hump, a restaurant at Santa Monica Airport, said the restaurant's parent company accepted "responsibility for the wrongdoing charged by the U.S. attorney". He said they will pay a fine and resolve the matter in court after federal agents and animal activists co-operated in a video sting orchestrated by the associate producer of the Oscar-winning documentary film "The Cove."
Los Angeles Times

Appeal Against European Arrest Warrant

The brother of the Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams will appeal against extradition from the Irish Republic under a European arrest warrant.
The Garda Siochana were asked by European arrest warrant to arrest Liam Adams, 54, for questioning by the Police Service of Northern Ireland about child sex abuse charges in Northern Ireland.
Liam Adams walked into a garda station at Sligo in 2009 for an interview with Irish detectives about allegations that he sexually abused his daughter, Aine Tyrell. He could not be detained because the Police Service of Northern Ireland had not issued an arrest warrant.
The European arrest warrant was issued after a later application to the Irish courts by the British Home Office. Mr Adams was remanded on continuing bail after a brief appearance on March 10, at the High Court in Dublin, where the case is listed for hearing on April 21. Aine Tyrell has waived her right to anonymity.
Mr Adams told the High Court, "The media have treated my family disgracefully. I would love to go home, but not under their circumstances." Half his EUR 15,000.00 bail money has been provided by another daughter, Claire Smith.
Belfast Telegraph

March 10 2010

UN: Half food aid to Somalia goes to "corrupt cartel"

As much as half the food aid sent to Somalia is diverted from the needy to corrupt contractors, Islamist militants and local UN staff, according to a special report for the UN Security Council. The report recommends an immediate investigation by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon into the World Food Programme's Somalia operations. It suggests that the food distribution system should be rebuilt from scratch to break what it describes as a "corrupt cartel" of Somali distributors.
New York Times

The all American way

For almost a decade, with one tender after another, the Pentagon has been looking for a replacement for its refuelling aircraft for the Air Force. After the withdrawal of the transatlantic consortium, consisting of the American defence company Northrop Grumann and the European aerospace concern EADS, from the endless competition for the billion dollar contract, the US defence ministry is once again at the beginning of the process.
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

Iran's President Ahmedinejad in Afghanistan for talks

Iranian President Mahmooud Ahmedinejad has arrived in Kabul for talks with his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai. A spokesman for Mr Karzai said the two presidents would discuss a possible "expansion of economic relations," including a railway line from Tajikistan through Afghanistan to Iran.
BBC

Zimbabwe: political and security threats to transition

Despite some reasonable progress in restoring political and social stability, "major threats" could still stall the reform process, says a new report by the International Crisis Group. The report says that the biggest threat to the trasition process comes from the "resistance of intransigent and still powerful security sector leaders and fractious in-fighting between and within the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU-PF) and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC)."
International Crisis Group

Biden condemns Israel over homes plan

US Vice-President Joe Biden has spoken out against a plan, approved by Israel's Interior Ministry, to build 1,600 homes on occupied Palestinian land in East Jerusalem. Biden said the plan for Ramat Shlomo, an ultra-orthodox settlement in an area of the West Bank annexed to Jerusalem "undermines the trust we need right now and runs counter to the constructive discussions I've had in Israel."
The Guardian

MOSCOW TRAFFIC POLICE UNDER PRESSURE AFTER ROAD BLOCK FIASCO AND LUKOIL DEATH CRASH

Moscow police chief Vladimir Kolokoltsev has reprimanded the head of the city's traffic police after ten private motorists were ordered to form a road block on the Moscow Outer Ring Road (MKAD) in a failed attempt to stop armed robbers fleeing from a police chase.

The motorists were unaware of what the police were planning and decided to sue the police force after the robbers crashed through the "live shield" barricade at high speed before disappearing down the ring road.

BUILDING A PEACEFUL, SECURE AND STABLE SOCIETY: THE ROLE OF ICTS

Dr Harold Elletson

The role information and communication technologies (ICTs) can play in building a peaceful, secure and stable society will be the subject of a major discussion session, organised by the New Security Foundation, at this year’s eLearning Africa conference in Lusaka, Zambia on 27 May 2010.

TRAINING NOT EQUIPMENT KEY TO
CYBER SECURITY, SAYS EXPERT

Jay Bavisi

One of the world’s leading specialists on cyber security and hacking told participants at Security and Defence Learning 2009 that “equipment-based security solutions” were “easy” to circumvent. Jay Bavisi, President of EC-Council, whose company employs “ethical hackers” to test the security systems of major organisations including, the Pentagon, said that better training was the key to eliminating the problem. He said it was vital to abandon the “equipment-based security mentality” and to focus instead on training and best practice.

TOP SECURITY TRAINERS AT BERLIN CONFERENCE

Peter-Martin
Meier

Senior figures from the Swiss Police; INTERPOL; the Scottish Police; NATO, the Ministry of Justice of Brazil and the UK Emergency Planning College will join other leading experts on security training in Berlin on December 2nd for this year’s ‘Security and Defence Learning 2009’, the fifth International Conference on Technology Assisted Learning for Security , Defence and Emergency Services.

EDUCATION ‘FORGOTTEN’ IN POST-CONFLICT AID

“Education is the forgotten aspect of post-conflict humanitarian aid and aid for refugees”, New Security Foundation Chairman Dr Harold Elletson told delegates at a ground-breaking workshop on ‘post-conflict distance learning’ during ‘eLearning Africa’ in Dakar, Senegal. Dr Elletson reminded delegates that nine years earlier in Dakar, the World Education Forum had set the target of universal primary education for every child by 2015, which was adopted as one of the UN’s millennium goals. “However, over 100 million children still don’t attend primary school. And, of these, 50 per cent are in countries which are either suffering from conflict or recovering from it.”

E-LEARNING AND POST-CONFLICT RECONSTRUCTION

How can education and training survive conflict and catastrophe?
In war zones and regions devastated by a natural disaster, the education needs of the population can easily be overlooked. Yet, experience in Afghanistan suggests that education should be a fundamental part of any reconstruction package and e-learning offers an effective, affordable solution to many problems.

SECURITY TRAINING UNDER SCRUTINY

The latest trends in security training will be under scrutiny at ‘Security And Defence Learning 2009’ in Berlin on December 2nd. A call for papers has been issued by the New Security Foundation, which hosts the conference, and key themes are likely to include the future of gaming and simulation, training for the growing cyber threat to critical infrastructure and the potential impact of new developments, such as Web 3.0 and ‘brain science,’ on security and security training.