Despite tensions between the United States and China over the South China Sea, the two nations’ militaries train together at a very high level. Current “mil-mil” engagements are robust, with China participating in the world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC 2014, which is hosted biannually by the U.S. Pacific Command. The drills allowed China to learn a great deal about U.S. tactics, techniques and procedures (in military shorthand, “TTPs”).

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) has expressed concern about a decision by Washington to remove a ban on arms sales to Manama, which continues crackdown on pro-democracy protests.

Pakistani mourners carry the casket of Iqbal Baig, a local employee of the U.S. Embassy after his funeral prayers in Islamabad, Pakistan, Sunday, July 26, 2015. Police say gunmen have killed Baig, though a motive for the attack is still unclear. Baig was killed early Sunday morning at his home.

Israeli forces shot and killed a 53-year-old Palestinian and injured his two sons during an arrest raid in the town of Beit Ummar in northern Hebron early Thursday, witnesses said. Falah Hammad Abu Maria is the 17th Palestinian to be killed by Israeli forces this year, three of whom have been killed since the beginning of this month.

Auf dem Tempelberg, den die Araber Al-Haram Al-Scharif (Edles Heiligtum) nennen, stehen der islamische Felsendom und die Al-Aksa-Moschee, das drittwichtigste islamische Heiligtum nach Mekka und Medina. Die bloße Anwesenheit von Israelis auf dem Tempelberg wird von den Palästinensern als Provokation betrachtet.

The measure was first introduced after 33 security personnel were killed in an attack in late October at a checkpoint in northern Sinai. It was extended three months in January and again in April.

The United States government helped Boko Haram immensely by refusing to classify them as a terrorist organisation until 2014 and by refusing to sell us arms to fight them. Worst still, they imposed an international arms embargo on us so that we could not buy arms from anyone else in the international community. When asked why they are doing this to us they tell us that it is because of the Leahy Act which prohibits them from selling arms to governments that violate the human rights of their own citizens.(…)
However in this matter of arms supply to our country it appears to me that a double standard is being applied. It is almost as if they want Nigeria to be brought to her knees and that they want us to be humiliated and destroyed. All the territory that was recovered from Boko Haram by the Goodluck Jonathan administration is now being threatened again or has been retaken by Boko Haram in the last few weeks.

The Navy agreed last year to let Spain-based Iberdrola build the largest wind farm in the southeastern United States close to a radar system in Chesapeake that monitors potential threats to national security.(…)
The radar system is part of Naval Support Activity Northwest Annex in southern Chesapeake. It monitors more than 10 million square miles of air space for the military and law enforcement agencies that track drug trafficking as far away as South America.

Official figures show that the eight-month military intervention unleashed by David Cameron in support of rebels fighting Colonel Gadaffi’s regime cost £320 million. But efforts to stabilise the country following Gaddafi’s death and the collapse of his government have amounted to just £25m, which has failed to prevent Libya from sliding into chaos as feuding militias battle for control.

US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said on Saturday that she did not use a private email account to send or receive classified information while she was secretary of state, in response to a government inspector‘s letter this week. (…)
At least four emails from the private email account that Mrs Clinton used while secretary of state contained classified information, Inspector General Charles McCullough, who oversees US intelligence agencies, told members of Congress in a letter on Thursday.

(20.Juli) 2. The EU acknowledges the role played in the stabilisation of the CAR by all the international troops on the ground, the MINUSCA peacekeepers and the French troops involved in Operation Sangaris. The work begun by EUMAM RCA should help launch security sector reform, which is crucial for the country‘s recovery. This work must be continued, in coordination with other actions by the international community.

(23.Juli)Pansieri, the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, a U.N. agency based in Geneva, Switzerland, was informed of testimony in August 2014 alleging several boys, ages 9 to 15, were sexually abused by French soldiers who patrolled Bangui, Central African Republic, in a peacekeeping mission.

The UN Committee for Human Rights has slammed France for adopting a new surveillance law saying it grants “excessively broad surveillance powers” to intelligence services. The country’s Constitutional Council upheld the controversial law.