The Assembly adopted the draft resolution by a recorded vote of 93 in favour to 24 against, with 58 abstentions, signaling the international community’s strong censure of Moscow’s aggressive actions towards a neighbouring State.
Archiv: (nation) states / countries
In terms of population, 73.73% of the world did not vote in favor of suspending Russia 🇷🇺 from the UN Human Rights Council. The figure is even higher when you factor in the 18 countries that didn’t vote.
How isolated is Russia, really?
Though the United States, the European Union and other allies have imposed sanctions on Russian oligarchs and armed enemies of the Kremlin, most of the world’s population lives in countries that have not.
Even in the United Nations votes, condemners did not represent a majority of the global population — abstainers and supporters of Russia did.
Do people want to be free? Or do they prefer security at any price?
The present emergency has raised a question that we thought was answered: do people value safety more than freedom? The great political argument of the twentieth century between a totalitarianism that promised lifelong protection, and open democracy which took the riskier path of liberty seemed to have been settled when communism collapsed and its Western acolytes, for the most part, gave up the fight. Or at least re-framed their position in a way that could accommodate the winning side.
Israel gets top marks for combating international bribery
For the second successive year, Transparency International ranks Israel in its highest category for enforcement against bribery of foreign officials.
Military appointed to key posts in Mali’s interim govt
At least four central cabinet posts—defence, security, territorial administration and national reconciliation—went to colonels in the army, according to a decree read live on state television by the president’s secretary-general Sekou Traore.
The pandemic shows WHO lacks authority to force governments to divulge information, experts say
The coronavirus pandemic has exposed the inherent weaknesses of the World Health Organization, which has no authority to force foreign governments to divulge medical information or open doors to its hospitals and labs, public health experts and foreign diplomats say.
COVID-19 Civic Freedom Tracker
This tracker monitors government responses to the pandemic that affect civic freedoms and human rights, focusing on emergency laws.
coronavirus-icon
How EFF Evaluates Government Demands for New Surveillance Powers
Even in the midst of a crisis, the public must carefully evaluate such government demands, because surveillance invades privacy, deters free speech, and unfairly burdens vulnerable groups. It also metastasizes behind closed doors. And new surveillance powers tend to stick around. For example, nearly two decades after the 9/11 attacks, the NSA is still conducting dragnet Internet surveillance.
Thus, when governments demand new surveillance powers—especially now, in the midst of a crisis like the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak—EFF has three questions:
– First, has the government shown its surveillance would be effective at solving the problem?
– Second, if the government shows efficacy, we ask: Would the surveillance do too much harm to our freedoms?
– Third, if the government shows efficacy, and the harm to our freedoms is not excessive, we ask: Are there sufficient guardrails around the surveillance?
People’s Skepticism About Covid-19 Is The Fault Of The Lying Mass Media
“This pandemic will be more consequential than 9/11. It probably already is. People just don’t realize it, because they still think—still feel—that once this is all over we’ll go back to the way things used to be. We won’t,” says The Bulwark, whose founder Bill Kristol was also the founder of the wildly influential think tank Project for a New American Century (PNAC). PNAC famously argued a year before the 9/11 attacks that the massive worldwide increase in US military interventionism they were promoting at the time would not be possible without “some catastrophic and catalysing event – like a new Pearl Harbor”. All of which miraculously came to pass.
In the battle against coronavirus, personal privacy is at risk
When Declan Chan arrived in Hong Kong from Zurich on March 17 after six weeks overseas, city officials made him put on a plain-looking white wristband and download an app called StayHomeSafe before he exited the airport.
He was told to register on the app once he got home, which would start a 14-day countdown, and walk to all four corners of his apartment so it could capture the location and confines of his home.
Italy and UK rely on help from Cuba, China, Venezuela to fight coronavirus – as US steps up brutal sanctions
Italy requested doctors from China, Cuba, and Venezuela to contain the coronavirus, while Cuba rescued a ship of British citizens. Meanwhile, US sanctions worsen the toll of the Covid-19 crisis in Iran and Venezuela.
What coronavirus revealed about national mindsets across the world — and how Cuba came out on top
Diplomats from the British Foreign Office had urged US officials to allow the ship to dock on American soil but were met with obstacles. Cuban officials instead accepted the request, stating that there must be “a shared effort to confront and stop the spread of the pandemic”. After all, these are still humans suffering, regardless of the passport they hold.
Cuba itself has only had five confirmed cases of Covid-19, and the ship docking could threaten to increase that number exponentially.
2019 Military World Games
The 2019 Military World Games, officially known as the 7th CISM Military World Games, was held from October 18–27, 2019 in the capital of Hubei Province in Wuhan, China.[2][3]
The 7th Military World Games was the first international military multi-sport event to be held in China and also it was the largest military sports event ever to be held in China, with nearly 10,000 athletes from over 100 countries competed in 27 sports.
COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate Development Based on the VaxHit Bioinformatics Platform
(18.02.2020)
Israel based Vaxil Bio Ltd. announced an update to the Company’s press release dated February 13, 2020, regarding the possible identification of a novel coronavirus vaccine candidate, Vaccine Candidate.
Vaxil said in a newly published press release on February 18, 2020, the Vaccine Candidate is based on unique and patent-protected signal peptide technology, utilizing Vaxil’s proprietary VaxHit™ bioinformatics platform.
Experts warn democracies facing autocracy: Protect your institutions
Rachel Maddow looks at what has turned out to be prescient advice from Masha Gessen and Timothy Snyder about the necessity of institutions in preserving democracy, and the necessity of engaged citizens in protecting those institutions from a threatening autocracy like the Donald Trump presidency.
Capitalism Draws Fire, Despite Strong Global Economy
Worries about income inequality, jobs disappearing due to automation and environmental sustainability are all feeding wide-scale distrust in capitalism as the world knows it, according to a new study released Sunday.
Edelman, a public-relations firm, conducted its 20th annual analysis of public trust in major institutions, surveying 34,000 people in 27 countries and Hong Kong. The data reveal both skepticism about those institutions—including government, business, the media and nongovernmental organizations …
He invented the web. Now he’s warning of a looming ‚digital dystopia‘
Ahead of a conference in Berlin Monday, Berners-Lee tweeted a warning of the risks faced.
He wrote: „If we fail to defend the free and open web, we risk a digital dystopia of entrenched inequality and abuse of rights.“
In an earlier statement on his foundation’s website, he called the web „one of the defining opportunities of our time,“ adding that collaborative action must be taken „to prevent the web being misused by those who want to exploit, divide and undermine.“
Implant Teardown
The implant has access to all the database files (on the victim’s phone) used by popular end-to-end encryption apps like Whatsapp, Telegram and iMessage. We can see here screenshots of the apps on the left, and on the right the contents of the database files stolen by the implant which contain the unencrypted, plain-text of the messages sent and received using the apps:
(…)
There’s something thus far which is conspicuous only by its absence: is any of this encrypted? The short answer is no: they really do POST everything via HTTP (not HTTPS) and there is no asymmetric (or even symmetric) encryption applied to the data which is uploaded. Everything is in the clear. If you’re connected to an unencrypted WiFi network this information is being broadcast to everyone around you, to your network operator and any intermediate network hops to the command and control server.
This means that not only is the end-point of the end-to-end encryption offered by messaging apps compromised; the attackers then send all the contents of the end-to-end encrypted messages in plain text over the network to their server.
A very deep dive into iOS Exploit chains found in the wild
I recommend that these posts are read in the following order:
Google Hackers Reveal Websites Hacked Thousands of iPhone Users Silently for Years
“To be targeted might mean simply being born in a certain geographic region or being part of a certain ethnic group,” he said. “All that users can do is be conscious of the fact that mass exploitation still exists and behave accordingly; treating their mobile devices as both integral to their modern lives, yet also as devices which when compromised, can upload their every action into a database to potentially be used against them.”
Hackers are stealing years of call records from hacked cell networks
Call detail records — or CDRs — are the crown jewels of any intelligence agency’s collection efforts. These call records are highly detailed metadata logs generated by a phone provider to connect calls and messages from one person to another. Although they don’t include the recordings of calls or the contents of messages, they can offer detailed insight into a person’s life. The National Security Agency has for years controversially collected the call records of Americans from cell providers like AT&T and Verizon (which owns TechCrunch), despite the questionable legality.
International Atomic Energy Agency recognizes Palestine as a state
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) signed an agreement to recognize Palestine, as a state as it joined the international body as a observer on Tuesday. While it is not a member, it can attend meetings as an observer, an IAEA spokesperson said.
Reclaiming the State – A Progressive Vision of Sovereignty for a Post-Neoliberal World
In response to these challenging times, economist William Mitchell and political theorist Thomas Fazi reconceptualise the nation state as a vehicle for progressive change. They show how despite the ravages of neoliberalism, the state still contains resources for democratic control of a nation’s economy and finances. The populist turn provides an opening to develop an ambitious but feasible left political strategy.
Judge Dodges Legality of NSA Mass Spying, Citing Secrecy Claims
The Justice Department insists that our legal fight against this spying is bound by a Catch-22: no one can sue unless the court first determines that they were certainly touched by the vast surveillance mechanisms of the NSA. But, the government argued successfully, the court cannot decide whether any particular person’s email, web searches, social media or phone calls were touched by the surveillance unless the government admits it. Which, of course, it will not do.
European elites mistake nation states for populist demagoguery
De Gaulle approved of the European customs union and an economic and political cooperation of nation states. He thought that closer economic relations could eventually lead to some sort of European confederation, but he rejected the idea of Europe’s federal super state.
That means that, in today’s post-modern Europe, de Gaulle — voted by the French in 2005 as the “greatest Frenchman of all time” — could be considered a nationalist and a populist demagogue.
Brexit is a revolt against a German-run European super-state
(4.2.2019) Led by an appallingly incompetent German management, the European Union will most probably come out terminally fractured after next May’s parliamentary elections.
The political forces already at work in a number of countries will go back to nation states and a free-trading area, abandoning the pipe dream of a European statehood and sovereignty.
EU CIVIL WAR: Merkel successor REJECTS Macron’s reform calls – ‘European centralisation!‘
THE leader of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party has rejected some of Emmanuel Macron’s key proposals on how to reform the EU and warned against “European centralisation” – the latest signal Paris and Berlin are at odds over how to overhaul the bloc.
German leader in waiting gives cool response to Macron vision for Europe
If anything Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer, with an eye on May’s European elections and new far-right eurosceptic rivals, has struck a more strident tone, warning: “There is no version of a European superstate which can live up to the goal of a Europe made up of sovereign member states.”
Public Buses Across Country Quietly Adding Microphones to Record Passenger Conversations
(10.12.2012) It also raises questions about security, since the IP audio-video systems can be accessed remotely via a built-in web server (.pdf), and can be combined with GPS data to track the movement of buses and passengers throughout the city.
According to the product pamphlet for the RoadRecorder 7000 system made by SafetyVision (.pdf), „Remote connectivity to the RoadRecorder 7000 NVR can be established via the Gigabit Ethernet port or the built-in 3G modem. A robust software ecosystem including LiveTrax vehicle tracking and video streaming service combined with SafetyNet central management system allows authorized users to check health status, create custom alerts, track vehicles, automate event downloads and much more.“
Abu Dhabi announces launch of Israeli-installed mass surveillance system
(14.7.2016) Tools for the collection of data include all manner of devices, from cameras on the street to smart devices connected to the internet.
“Every person is monitored from the moment they leave their doorstep to the moment they return to it. Their work, social and behavioural patterns are recorded, analysed and archived,” a source close to the project told MEE at the time.
South Africa – E-Evidence Training
(1.3.2019) The event was a great example of collaborative working between intergovernmental organisations, 14 Focal Points, representatives from the US and U.K. Central Authorities and Service Providers.
Next we move onto the Caribbean and then Australia!
MPs repeat call for ‚Cliff’s Law‘ to stop suspects being named before charge after Gatwick drone front pages
Anna Soubry MP (pictured) said the couple “should not have been named in the media”, adding that a new law was “needed” to make it a criminal offence to name suspects before charge unless it is in the interests of justice.
The pair were pictured on the front pages of the Mail on Sunday, Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Mirror, Sunday Express and Sunday People yesterday morning, as well as on numerous news websites.
Gatwick drone investigation: Former suspects hit out at ‚disgusting‘ accusation in tearful statement
“The way we were initially perceived was disgusting although those who knew us did not doubt us for a second.
We were both released without charge or further action. We are totally overwhelmed by the support we have received from people all over the world and we would like to thank everyone single one who has done that.“
CNN RSS: Gatwick airport drones investigation focuses on damaged device
via cnnbrk cnn Retweet
Gatwick ‘drone’ sighting investigated by cops turns out to be lights on a CRANE
The Surrey Police officers were called to investigate a red light „hovering“ over a bus station in Redhill – around six miles from the airport.
But when they arrived, they found the mysterious beam was just a warning light on top of a crane.
Gatwick airport drone chaos: Army deploys tactics used in fight against Isis to tackle drones
(23.12.2018) Transport Secretary Chris Grayling would not give details of what measures had been put in place, but said some of them were “military capabilities”, adding: “There are a range of measures which are there today which should give passengers confidence that they are safe to fly.”
The first departure from Gatwick this morning was a Norwegian flight to the capital of Lapland, Rovaniemi — described as the “official Hometown of Santa Claus” — which left at 6.34am.
Gatwick airport: Suggestion that drone did not exist down to ‚poor communications‘
The conference call was joined by the Cabinet Office minister, David Lidington – Theresa May’s de facto deputy; the home secretary, Sajid Javid; the security minister, Ben Wallace; and the defence minister Stuart Andrew.
Lidington was said to have pressed for the Home Office and the Ministry of Defence to update their rapid deployment protocols for signing off requests for military assistance.
Supreme Court halts contempt order against mystery company fighting subpoena
A lower court last week upheld the subpoena after the company, which is owned by a foreign government, argued that it was immune from criminal proceedings under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and that the subpoena was unenforceable because it would require “the Corporation” to violate “Country A’s” domestic law.
Syria conflict: Macron criticises Trump’s withdrawal decision
The US said the Islamic State (IS) group had been defeated, a claim disputed by allies and US politicians.
France, a key part of the US-led coalition against IS in Syria and Iraq, said its troops would remain in Syria.
‘No Reason to Panic’ Over US Decision to Withdraw Troops From Syria Says Former Israeli General
“Trump’s declaration on US forces withdrawal from Syria is a significant step, but there’s no reason to panic,” posted Yadlin in a Twitter thread. “2000 US troops came to Syria to fight against ISIS and had no authorities to act against Iran.”
The “authorities” Yadlin appears to be referencing is the Authorization for Use of Military Force, passed by Congress that allows the United States to fight those responsible for the 9/11 attacks. It does not include Iran.
Israel confounded, confused by Syria withdrawal, Mattis resignation
Combined with the departures of Chief of Staff John Kelly and Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, Israeli officials are scrambling to determine who is left in the White House who can convince President Donald Trump to think of Israel before taking such drastic security moves, as Mattis successfully did in the past, U.S. and Israeli officials said.
“There is no question that Israeli officials are concerned about the U.S. pulling out,” said Dan Shapiro, U.S. ambassador to Israel in the Obama administration. “It was done without any meaningful consultation with them.”
What a surprise. The technology that allowed to protect Gatwick Airport & helped to identify those who launched criminal drones was developed in Israel & sold to UK. A reminder, that BDS wants you to be less protected. @Ostrov_A @HenMazzig @LahavHarkov
(22.12.2018)
#GatwickDrones Police now saying „possibility that there may not have been any genuine drone activity in the first place“, and at present there is ’no available footage of the drones‘
Gatwick drones pair ’no longer suspects‘
Det Ch Supt Jason Tingley said no footage of a drone had been obtained.
Police investigating Gatwick Airport disruption say damaged drone has been found and is being forensically examined
Gatwick disruption latest: Police find damaged drone as arrested pair are released without charge
Detective Chief Superintendent Jason Tingey, of Sussex Police, confirmed to Sky News that officers had found the damaged drone.
He said: „I can say yesterday we recovered a damaged drone close to the perimeter of Gatwick Airport… and we will be doing everything we can with regards to progressing a forensic examination of that drone.
German-owned ATC Provider Takes Control of Gatwick Tower
(1.3.2016) ATC tower services at London’s Gatwick Airport are being provided by a subsidiary company of German air navigation service provider DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung following an official transfer of responsibility on March 1. The wholly owned DFS subsidiary—Air Navigation Solutions (ANS)—replaces UK NATS as tower services provider at the country’s second-largest airport.
ISIS FIGHT GOES ON: Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson insists fight against ISIS ‘will go on’ in Afghanistan and Syria despite Donald Trump withdrawing US troops
DEFENCE Secretary Gavin Williamson has insisted the fight to secure Syria and Afghanistan would endure – despite Trump’s shock withdrawal of troops from both war zones.
US Envoy to ISIS War Resigns, Criticizes Syria Pullout
McGurk was intended to coordinate with the 79 countries involved in the US-led coalition against ISIS. It is not clear who his replacement will be, but with the administration arguing ISIS is defeated, there may be a low priority for this position.
If anybody but your favorite President, Donald J. Trump, announced that, after decimating ISIS in Syria, we were going to bring our troops back home (happy & healthy), that person would be the most popular hero in America. With me, hit hard instead by the Fake News Media. Crazy!
Trump is leaving 50,000 Syrian civilians to die
President Trump’s surprise decision to rapidly withdraw all U.S. troops from Syria is meeting with intense criticism by foreign policy experts, who denounce it as strategically stupid, reckless for national security and a blow to America’s global credibility. But inside Syria, the consequences are even more serious. For one example, 50,000 Syrian civilian refugees living under the direct protection of the U.S. military are suddenly fearing for their lives.
US envoy to anti-ISIS coalition quits over Trump’s Syria move
Taking over for now for McGurk will be his deputy, retired Lt. Gen. Terry Wolff, who served three tours of active duty in Iraq.
Jim Jeffrey, a veteran diplomat who was appointed special representative for Syria engagement in August, is expected to stay in his position, officials said.
Jeremy Scahill’s Top 10 Takeaways on Mattis Exit and Possible US Withdrawal From Syria and Afghanistan
„This is an opportunity for progressive forces to assert an alternative vision for U.S. foreign policy.“
War In Afghanistan Ending?
Is the war in Afghanistan about to be over? Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian, hosts of The Young Turks, break it down.
The hysterical reaction to the decision to withdraw troops from Syria is astonishing & shows just how attached to war some are. Lindsey Graham & others want us to continue our regime change war in Syria and to go to war with Iran. That’s why they’re so upset.
Wow “All US State Department personnel are being evacuated from Syria within 24 hours.“ | US official. The CIA is also leaving Syria.
(19.12.2018)
Jimmy Dore Slams Liberal Hawks on Syria
Jimmy Dore is fantastic! Listen to him skewer liberal hawks on Trump’s decision to withdraw from Syria:
Trump To End Unconstitutional Syria War – Washington Heads Are Exploding
The warmongering Left has joined forces with the neocons to demand that President Trump reverse course in his recent decision to pull US troops from Syria. Neocons claim that ISIS will increase with the US absence, but it was the very US intervention in the region – that they supported – that led to the rise of extremist and terrorist groups. Meanwhile, some principled progressives are putting politics aside to praise the president’s move.
U.S. to Withdraw About 7,000 Troops From Afghanistan, Officials Say
President Trump made the decision to pull the troops — about half the number the United States has in Afghanistan now — at the same time he decided to pull American forces out of Syria, one official said.
The announcement came hours after Jim Mattis, the secretary of defense, said that he would resign from his position at the end of February after disagreeing with the president over his approach to policy in the Middle East.
79 Partners united in defeating Daesh.
The Global Coalition against Daesh was formed in September 2014 and is unique in its membership, scope and commitment.
Morocco murders: Three arrested over ‚bestial‘ tourist killings
Moroccan news outlet 2M said they were shepherds, and had been arrested in the city of Marrakesh on Thursday morning.
After the prime minister’s statement, Denmark’s PET intelligence agency said it was investigating a video circulating online, which appeared to show one of the two women being murdered.
US and UK accuse China of sustained hacking campaign
A US indictment unsealed on Thursday in unison with a series of British statements accused Chinese hackers of obtaining unauthorised access to the computers of at least 45 entities, including commercial and defence technology companies and US government agencies such as Nasa and the US navy.
‚Greatest HOAX in history!‘ Farage tears apart key factor CORRALLING UK into ‚WORST‘ deal
The architect of Brexit argued a free trade deal with the bloc would have avoided a hard border as Northern Ireland already operated on a different currency and tax system than its neighbour in the south.
Speaking to LBC, Mr Farage said: „This is the greatest hoax I have seen in modern history.
„If you had a free trade deal, you have no tariff. There’s no need for checks of any kind to be on goods going north and south of the border. The whole thing is nonsense.
Kremlin stays mum on comments by Blair-era MI6 chief ‘regretting helping Putin win power’
(1.10.2018) The Times’ Monday issue published an interview with Richard Dearlove, then chief of the Secret Intelligence Service in 1999-2004, who said he regretted that he had helped organize Tony Blair’s visit to Russia’s St. Petersburg where he attended a premier at the Mariinsky Theatre alongside Vladimir Putin just a few weeks before the presidential polls in Russia.
Secret Global Surveillance Networks: Intelligence Sharing Between Governments and the Need for Safeguards
(April 2018) In the past few decades, methods of communication have dramatically changed. The development of new technology, especially the birth of the internet, has transformed the way individuals communicate with each other and increased the amount of information that can be collected by several orders of magnitude. In particular, communications – emails, instant messages, calls, social media posts, web searches, requests to visit a website – may transit multiple countries before reaching their destination. The dispersion of communications across the internet vastly increases the opportunities for communications and data to be intercepted by foreign governments, who may then share them with other governments.
As methods of communications have dramatically changed, so too has intelligence gathering. Intelligence agencies have developed increasingly advanced ways of accessing, acquiring, storing, analysing and disseminating information. In particular, they have developed methods for acquiring communications and data traveling the internet.
The ascent of Artificial Intelligence: How will AI change the nation-state?
Most AI systems today are based on supervised and reinforced learning, where learning happens through exposing the AI system to tens of thousands of illustrative examples. This has led to a stage where the world is shifting from a time where people wrote programs to a time where machines are learning to write codes for themselves. This can be illustrated through the simplest examples of driverless cars – how machines (for example, cars) learn (for example, driving) instead of being programmed to do so.