Today In Issues:
FDD Research & Analysis
The Must-Reads
Iranian Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi taken to hospital after arrest, family says White House sends angry message to Israel over killing of Hamas commander For Ukraine’s allies in Europe, a bad deal with Russia is worse than no deal Bloomberg’s Marc Champion: Ukraine’s peace deal is stuck on territory for good reason UK police charge two men with belonging to Hezbollah, attending terrorism training WSJ Editorial: ISIS rears its head once more South Korea eyes standalone US deal to build nuclear submarines India summons Bangladesh envoy over security concerns in Dhaka Gunmen in Sydney massacre were motivated by Islamic State, officials say WSJ Editorial: Europe wakes itself up on defense Trump orders blockade of sanctioned oil tankers in and out of Venezuela Trump expands travel ban to 39 countries after shooting of Guard membersIn The News
Israel
President Trump was frustrated at an Israeli operation to kill a top Hamas commander without giving the U.S. prior notice, fearing it could disrupt a fragile cease-fire in Gaza that he considers one of his major achievements, U.S. officials and a person familiar with the matter said. – Wall Street Journal
Appeals judges at the International Criminal Court on Monday rejected one in a series of legal challenges brought by Israel against the court’s probe into its conduct of the Gaza war. On appeal, judges refused to overturn a lower court decision that the prosecution’s investigation into alleged crimes under its jurisdiction could include events following the deadly attack on Israel by militant Palestinian group Hamas on October 7, 2023. – Reuters
An Israeli settler shot dead a 16-year-old Palestinian in the town of Tuqu’ on Tuesday after the funeral of another teenager, the town’s mayor said. –Reuters
The host broadcaster of the next Eurovision Song Contest, Austria’s ORF, will not ban the Palestinian flag from the audience or drown out booing during Israel’s performance as has happened at previous shows, organisers said on Tuesday. – Reuters
Pakistan’s most powerful military chief in decades faces the toughest test of his newly amassed powers as Washington pushes Islamabad to contribute troops to the Gaza stabilisation force, a move analysts say could spark domestic backlash. – Reuters
Israel on Tuesday blocked a private Canadian delegation that included six members of Parliament from entering the occupied West Bank. – Associated Press
The IDF conducted multiple operations against terrorist threats present along the Yellow Line in Gaza on Monday and Tuesday, according to statements released by the IDF. – Jerusalem Post
Turkey was not invited to a Tuesday conference organized by US Central Command (CENTCOM) in Qatar regarding the International Stabilization Force (ISF) that is set to be deployed in the Gaza Strip. – Jerusalem Post
Editorial: Israel should say this plainly: It is at war with Hamas, not with civilians. A state that insists on that distinction must behave like it believes it. Facilitating lawful departures for those with documentation, while maintaining security vetting, is a demonstration of Israeli strength. In a conflict where lies travel fast, Israel should lean into what it can control: being secure, effective, and humane at the same time. This initiative is a practical way to prove it, and Israel should expand it now. – Jerusalem Post
Harley Lippman writes: The Jewish community should not be left to defend its institutions alone. Private security cannot be the primary line of defense against ideological violence. Protecting citizens from terrorism is a core responsibility of the state. Antisemitism has changed. It is no longer confined to the margins, and it no longer limits itself to words. It has adopted the tools of terror. Our response must be equally serious. – Jerusalem Post
Iran
Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi was taken to a hospital emergency room twice after her arrest last week by Iranian security forces, her family said Tuesday, following what they described as severe beatings during her detention in the northeastern city of Mashhad. – Associated Press
Iran’s judiciary said on Tuesday that a dual national arrested during June’s 12-day war with Israel, and who has since been put on trial for espionage, holds Swedish citizenship. – Agence France-Presse
Mossad chief David Barnea said on Tuesday that Israel must “ensure” Iran doesn’t restart its nuclear program, six months after the IDF struck the Islamic Republic’s atomic facilities during a 12-day war. – Agence France-Presse
Iranian authorities are refusing to allow an independent medical examination of Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi after she was beaten during her arrest last week, her family said on Tuesday. – Times of Israel
Russia and Ukraine
European leaders rallying support for Kyiv say they are working to defend a democratic country, safeguard international law and counter Russian aggression. But there is another motivation rooted in self-interest: Europe believes a deal that favors Moscow risks a wider war that could engulf the whole continent. – Wall Street Journal
The U.S.-European peace plan to deter future Russian attacks on Ukraine calls for a more robust Ukrainian military, the deployment of European forces inside the country and increased use of American intelligence, according to officials familiar with drafts that detail the proposal. – New York Times
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine expressed a tense and wary optimism on Tuesday about proposed guarantees for Ukraine’s future security, so long as they were detailed and confirmed by the U.S. Congress. But what might make them acceptable to Ukraine, he suggested, would prompt Russia to reject them. – New York Times
For months, European countries have struggled to agree on a bold proposal to finance Ukraine and its war effort. Now, as the United States is racing ahead to try to end the war started by Russia nearly four years ago, European leaders are working feverishly to finalize that funding plan. – New York Times
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Russia’s position on the deployment of any European troops to Ukraine under a possible future U.S.-brokered peace deal was widely known but that the subject could be discussed. – Reuters
Debris from a downed Ukrainian drone briefly set fire to processing equipment and a pipeline at an oil refinery in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region overnight, authorities there said on Wednesday. There were no casualties reported at the Slavyansk refinery, which Kyiv has repeatedly targeted since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. – Reuters
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and 34 other countries formally approved plans Tuesday to create a compensation body to pay for damages to Ukraine caused by the Russian invasion, but questions remain about where the money will come from. – Associated Press
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says proposals being negotiated with U.S. officials for a deal to end the fighting in Russia’s nearly 4-year-old invasion of his country could be finalized within days, after which American envoys will present them to the Kremlin before possible further meetings in the U.S. next weekend. – Associated Press
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that German troops could participate in a coalition to secure a demilitarized zone in Ukraine after a possible peace agreement under rules that would permit them to “retaliate against corresponding Russian incursions and attacks.” – Bloomberg
The US is preparing a fresh round of sanctions on Russia’s energy sector to increase the pressure on Moscow should President Vladimir Putin reject a peace agreement with Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter. – Bloomberg
The Security Service of Ukraine has claimed the first strike of a Russian submarine using an underwater strike drone in footage seemingly sourced from compromised enemy security cameras. – Defense News
Marc Champion writes: I sincerely doubt Putin would sign up to any deal that provides this kind of assurance. As he so often says, it would not deal with the “root causes” of the conflict, which are that he wants control over all of Ukraine and a sphere of influence beyond. And that is precisely why his willingness to accept terms that prevent him from either restarting the war, or continuing it in a hybrid form dressed as peace, should be the litmus test by which any settlement is judged. – Bloomberg
Douglas Rediker and Heidi Crebo-Rediker write: For years, European officials have known exactly what reforms are necessary to strengthen the European Union’s economic foundations and enable it to act as a global power. But they have also conceded that political realities within member states and the EU’s consensus-based decision-making process make substantial reforms all but impossible except in moments of crisis. European officials made a dangerous bet, effectively waiting for a crisis to force themselves to fix widely acknowledged problems. Now, they risk doing something worse: wasting a crisis by failing to act as it unfolds. – Foreign Affairs
Hezbollah
Two British-Lebanese men appeared in a London court on Tuesday, charged with belonging to the banned Iran-backed group Hezbollah and attending terrorism training camps, with one of the two accused of helping procure parts for drones. – Reuters
The IDF struck two Hezbollah terrorists in separate parts of southern Lebanon within the span of half of an hour, the military said on Tuesday afternoon. – Jerusalem Post
Senior officials from the US, France and Saudi Arabia will meet in Paris on Wednesday amid fears that Israel could embark on a new military operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon after a December 31 deadline to disarm the Iran-backed terror group passes, a diplomatic official told The Times of Israel on Tuesday. – Times of Israel
The Hezbollah terrorist organization violated the ceasefire with Israel 1,925 times over the past year, including 350 violations that went unanswered by both the IDF and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), Galei Tzahal military correspondent Doron Kadosh reported on Tuesday. – Arutz Sheva
Syria
Days later, ISIS has not claimed responsibility for the attack and multiple sources familiar with the investigation, including US and Syrian officials, tell CNN that the shooter’s ties to the terror group are less clear-cut than both governments have publicly claimed. – CNN
Editorial: This includes assisting the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces with security for the thousands of ISIS prisoners they hold. Should they ever escape, the problem would be ours as well as Syria’s. The limited U.S. presence, Mr. Barrack said, “empowers capable local Syrian partners to take the fight to these terrorists on the ground, ensuring that American forces do not have to engage in another costly, large-scale war in the Middle East.” Syria, under its new management, has joined the political coalition against ISIS. The next step is for Syria to contribute militarily—and purge its own ranks of foreign jihadist commanders. From Syria to the Philippines, it is a mistake to allow ISIS to benefit parasitically from power vacuums. – Wall Street Journal
Amed Mardin writes: The US must send a clear and immediate message to Ankara and Damascus that attempts to militarily reshape northern Syria are unacceptable. Kurdish security and political representation are inseparable components of regional peace. The question is simple but vital: Will Washington read these threats as the first sign of an approaching storm and act, or will the Middle East once again pay the price of “intervention that came too late”? The answer will determine not only the fate of the Kurds but the future of the region. – Jerusalem Post
Korean Peninsula
The alleged perpetrator had improper access to virtually every South Korean adult’s personal information: names, phone numbers and even the keycode to enter residential buildings. – Wall Street Journal
South Korea’s industry minister said on Wednesday that Korea Zinc’s plan to build a U.S. smelter would help develop supply chains for critical minerals and added that Seoul could discuss whether the plan might receive support from a U.S. investment fund. – Reuters
A South Korean court found two contractors that worked on Taiwan’s submarine programme guilty of leaking designs for torpedo-launching systems, calling the case a potential “diplomatic burden” for Seoul, according to a ruling reviewed by Reuters. – Reuters
South Korea may need to pursue a separate bilateral accord with the US to secure the right to build nuclear-powered submarines, the country’s national security adviser said as he prepares to meet with senior officials including Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington. – Bloomberg
China
The guilty verdict handed down to Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai Monday — a ruling that is likely to see the 78-year old spend his final years in prison — was more than just another conviction for political crimes in a city where dissent is no longer tolerated. – Washington Post
China’s defence ministry accused the Philippines on Wednesday of distorting the facts about an incident involving the Chinese coast guard and Filipino fishermen near a South China Sea shoal, and defended Chinese actions as “reasonable and lawful”. – Reuters
China’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday, Taiwan’s defence ministry said, its first transit of the sensitive waterway since formally entering service last month. – Reuters
China on Tuesday reiterated its demand that Japan retract Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks about Taiwan, more than a month after Takaichi said an attack on the democratically governed island could be deemed an existential threat to Japan. –Reuters
China will impose tariffs of up to 19.8% on pork imports from the European Union, a drastic drop from preliminary tariffs of up to 62.4%, its Commerce Ministry said Tuesday. – Associated Press
South Asia
The Indian central bank intervened aggressively on Wednesday to boost a struggling rupee after the currency hit record lows for four consecutive trading sessions, dragged down by portfolio outflows and an ongoing U.S.-India trade stalemate. – Reuters
India’s Russian oil imports are poised to top 1 million barrels per day in December, trade and refining sources said, defying expectations for a sharp decline as refiners have resumed buying from non-sanctioned entities offering deep discounts. – Reuters
India summoned Bangladesh’s High Commissioner to New Delhi to convey its strong concerns on Wednesday over what it described as a deteriorating security situation in Bangladesh, particularly threats targeting the Indian Mission in Dhaka. – Reuters
More than 17 million people in Afghanistan are facing crisis levels of hunger in the coming winter months, the leading international authority on hunger crises and the U.N. food aid agency warned Tuesday. – Associated Press
Suspected militants opened fire on a police officer guarding a team of polio workers in northwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, killing the officer and a passerby before fleeing, police said. – Associated Press
Asia
Australia is quickly moving to tighten its already strict gun laws in the wake of Sunday’s mass shooting targeting a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach, one of Sydney’s most famous destinations, that killed 15 and injured dozens of others. – Washington Post
The attack on a Jewish celebration in Sydney was motivated by “Islamic State ideology,” Australia’s prime minister said on Tuesday as the authorities investigated whether a visit to the southern Philippines last month by the two suspected gunmen had any connection to the mass shooting. – New York Times
Japan’s space agency cancelled on Wednesday its planned H3 rocket launch carrying the Michibiki No.5 satellite system due to “facility trouble”, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said. – Reuters
Hundreds of mourners gathered in a Bondi synagogue for the funeral of Rabbi Eli Schlanger on Wednesday, a few blocks away from the beach where he was gunned down, one of the first of many services for the Hanukkah festival shooting victims. – Reuters
A man who allegedly opened fire on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s famed Bondi Beach has been charged with 59 offences, including murder and terrorism, police said on Wednesday. –Reuters
With general elections just months away and its billionaire patriarch in prison, Thailand’s embattled Pheu Thai party is turning to another member of the divisive Shinawatra family with little experience in politics to help mount a comeback. Yodchanan Wongsawat, 46, the nephew and son of former prime ministers, is Pheu Thai’s leading candidate for the top job in the February 8 general election. –Reuters
Myanmar’s junta has said that detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi is “in good health,” a day after her son told Reuters he has received little information about the 80-year-old’s condition and fears she could die without him knowing. – Reuters
The US and Japan are set to review energy projects as the potential debut investments in a landmark $550 billion joint fund that was a centerpiece of their trade deal, according to people familiar with the matter. –Bloomberg
Europe
The European Union proposed watering down rules that would have effectively banned the sale of new combustion-engine cars in the bloc from 2035, after heavy pressure from the automotive industry. – Wall Street Journal
For more than a year, the effort to push budget legislation through the divided French Parliament has contributed to one of the most turbulent phases in French politics in half a century. Three successive prime ministers have fallen since last December — including the current prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, who stepped down in October before being reappointed days later by President Emmanuel Macron. – New York Times
When a man plowed his car into a dense crowd of people celebrating their soccer club’s Premier League victory in May, injuring more than 130 people, observers feared the worst: that it was a terrorist attack. The truth of what happened in Liverpool, England, that day was more banal, although still deeply shocking. Paul Doyle, a 53-year-old British man, was overcome with road rage, prosecutors said. – New York Times
Thousands rallied across Slovakia on Tuesday to protest the latest moves by the government of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico to dismantle an independent office that protects those who report corruption and other criminal activities and amend the penal code. – Associated Press
French farmers are driving opposition to a massive transatlantic trade deal between five South American nations of the Mercosur bloc and the 27-nation European Union that officials say will likely lead to its delay. – Associated Press
European Union member states are discussing a raft of new measures against the shadow fleet to further clamp down on Russia’s circumvention of oil sanctions, according to Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal. –Bloomberg
Alleged cigarette smugglers — not hybrid threat agents — were behind the mysterious Belarusian weather balloons that recently spooked Lithuania into shutting its border and declaring a national emergency. – Politico
French defense-electronics firm Thales has developed a miniaturized sonar that can equip underwater drones to detect submarines, with plans to demonstrate the system to the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy at an event on Wednesday. – Defense News
Editorial: An unfair American caricature of Europe is that no one on the continent cares about defense. That’s true of many politicians, but more than a few—and most of the most important ones—have seen the dangers clearly for some time. The challenge is persuading European voters to sacrifice for the sake of defense. A lot is riding on whether this latest rhetorical push moves that political needle. – Wall Street Journal
Michael Rubin writes: One hundred and thirty years ago, the Dreyfus Affair highlighted antisemitism in elite French society. There was never any real evidence against Alfred Dreyfus, but investigators singled him out because, as a Jew, they did not believe him to be a real Frenchman. The blatancy of the antisemitism not only led Émile Zola to issue his famous “J’accuse” letter to the French president but also inspired young Austrian journalist Theodor Herzl to establish the modern Zionist movement. Unfortunately, antisemitism did not dissipate in France; a half-century later, many French collaborated with the Nazi regime to deport French Jews to their deaths. Australia is the canary in the coal mine, but the real explosion may soon come in Ireland, Norway, and Turkey, whose governments follow Albanese and Wong’s cynical strategy of throwing Jewish people under the bus to appease militant constituencies. – Washington Examiner
Africa
At least 104 people were killed, including 43 children, in multiple drone attacks in Sudan’s Kordofan region since December 4, the U.N. human rights office said on Tuesday. – Reuters
Nigeria’s House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to look into a dispute between the country’s downstream oil regulator and Dangote Refinery over allegations about arbitrary fuel-import licences and petrol pricing benchmarks, amid corruption claims against the regulator’s chief. – Reuters
Rwanda-backed M23 rebels said Tuesday they will withdraw from Uvira, the strategic city in eastern Congo seized last week, as fighting in the region escalated despite a U.S.-mediated peace deal. – Associated Press
Ex-Congolese rebel leader Roger Lumbala was sentenced Monday in France to 30 years in prison over atrocities committed two decades ago during the Second Congo War, in a verdict that rights groups hailed as overcoming long-standing impunity in the Congo. – Associated Press
South African authorities raided a U.S. refugee facility in Johannesburg, briefly detaining U.S. staff who have been processing white Afrikaner refugees. – The Hill
The Americas
President Trump on Tuesday ordered a “total and complete blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, in a major escalation of his pressure campaign against the country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro. – Wall Street Journal
The threat of another U.S. seizure has disrupted the country’s usually bustling traffic of dark-fleet vessels ferrying the Latin American country’s oil to China and Cuba. Several tankers are idling at Venezuelan ports, and others are veering away from the region, vessel-tracking data show. – Wall Street Journal
President Trump’s push to loosen China’s influence in the Panama Canal has hit a wall now that Beijing is demanding that China’s largest shipping company get a controlling stake in a deal to sell dozens of ports to a BlackRock-led group. – Wall Street Journal
U.S. forces killed eight alleged drug smugglers in three separate boat strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Monday, raising the death toll in the Trump administration’s counternarcotics campaign to at least 95. – Washington Post
The president and his aides have insisted publicly that their lethal military operations around Venezuela and the pressure campaign against Mr. Maduro are mainly aimed at protecting Americans from drug trafficking. But Venezuela is not a drug producer, and narcotics smuggled through the country mostly go to Europe. – New York Times
As the United States ratchets up pressure against Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s authoritarian president, experts say that Trinidad and Tobago, the country closest to Venezuela’s northern coast, has already taken sides. – New York Times
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday there are no plans to release the full unedited video of the September 2 strikes on a suspected drug trafficking boat in the Caribbean that fueled concerns about the Trump administration’s plans for Venezuela. – Reuters
Costa Rica’s legislature on Tuesday blocked an effort by the country’s electoral authority to make President Rodrigo Chaves face charges that he has been using his power to meddle in upcoming elections. – Associated Press
The Trump administration on Tuesday designated another Latin American drug cartel as a foreign terrorist organization, increasing financial pressure on its members and opening the door to potential military action against them. – Associated Press
Colombian police said Tuesday that two officers were killed in the southwestern city of Cali in an attack by the National Liberation Army, a rebel group that has increasingly targeted authorities in what it says is an effort to show its opposition to the U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean. – Associated Press
Ariel Dorfman writes: What Chile needs now is a deep intellectual renewal of its progressive forces, a painful reckoning with its shortcomings and fractures. How well the Chilean opposition responds to this sobering defeat will determine whether Mr. Kast truly represents an ominous swerve toward the world’s current desolate panorama of would-be dictators, or whether he proves a mere parenthetical in Chile’s erratic but perpetual advance toward freedom and justice. The battle for the soul and identity of my adopted country is nowhere near over. – New York Times
Gregory J. Wallance writes: It is almost touching, our faith in our ability to heal other countries, but it is also arrogant. To President Obama, the mistake in Gaddafi’s ouster, which he maintains was the “right thing to do,” was not planning “for the day after.” This means that the “day after” Gaddafi fell, the U.S. and its allies, or at least the United Nations, should have been on the ground rebuilding that nation, as though it was just a matter of rolling up our sleeves and getting the job done. To paraphrase a saying about second marriages, nation-building reflects the triumph of hope over experience. Trump may yet become the next president to fall into the nation-building trap. – The Hill
North America
The United States has transferred 22 Cuban migrants to its Navy base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, people familiar with the matter said, repopulating its detention site with men it intends to deport for the first time in two months. – New York Times
Canada announced long-promised rules on Tuesday aimed at dramatically reducing methane emissions from the country’s oil and gas sector. –Reuters
Canada wants to work more closely with China to stop the chemicals used to create the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl from reaching North America, said Prime Minister Mark Carney’s point person for fighting the opioid crisis. – Bloomberg
United States
Police released new videos of the suspected gunman responsible for Saturday’s shooting at Brown University as the investigation entered a fourth day. The videos show a light-skinned man wearing dark clothing, a medical mask, beanie, and at times gloves and a cross-body bag. The man is seen pacing, walking and running through residential streets near Brown in the two hours before the attack. –Wall Street Journal
President Donald Trump on Tuesday added 20 countries to a list whose citizens face a full or partial travel ban on entering the United States, swelling the total to 39 as his administration seeks to further restrict legal immigration after an Afghan immigrant was charged in the shooting of two National Guard troops last month. – Washington Post
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth declined on Tuesday to show members of Congress the unedited video of a boat attack in September that included a second strike to kill survivors, amid bipartisan pressure for more transparency around the U.S. military’s operations in international waters. – New York Times
The U.S. Air Force said on Tuesday it was acquiring two Boeing 747-8 jumbo jets for $400 million to establish a training and sustainment program for its future presidential airlift fleet. –Reuters
The U.S. Justice Department on Tuesday sued the Virgin Islands Police Department for what it described as “unconstitutional practices” that resulted in denials of gun permits, in what marked its first major case since creating a new specialized gun rights unit. –Reuters
The Trump administration is weighing an executive order that would pressure defense contractors to spend less on stock buybacks and dividends while boosting investment in infrastructure and weapons production, a person familiar with the matter said. –Bloomberg
Editorial: Reform has become more urgent as the AI boom looms. Utilities may need up to $720 billion in new power generation and transmission lines to support data centers by 2030, most of which will be subject to federal permitting. Environmental reviews can hamper solar and wind as well as fossil-fuel plants and pipelines, which is why more Democrats are backing reform. The House bill builds on proposals put forward by Sen. Joe Manchin during the Biden Presidency, when Democrats saw the need to streamline permitting. With the tax bill done, Congress has no higher priority than permitting and NEPA reform. – Wall Street Journal
Elizabeth Dent and Dennis Ross write: The Trump administration has reframed U.S. policy in the Middle East to prioritize economic cooperation, emerging technologies, diversified supply chains, and energy cooperation over traditional security frameworks. Indeed, such cooperation with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries can accelerate global industrial capacity and reinforce the strategic advantage of working with the United States and its partners. To safeguard American national security interests, however, Washington must also modernize its regulatory architecture, and sooner rather than later. Failing that, market pressure and other forces could shape the new era of cooperation in ways that are unfavorable to U.S. strategy. – Washington Institute
Cybersecurity
OpenAI is in initial discussions to raise at least $10 billion from Amazon.com Inc. and use its chips, a potential win for the online retailer’s effort to broaden its AI industry presence and compete with Nvidia Corp. – Bloomberg
Attackers associated with Russia’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) have targeted Western-based critical infrastructure with a special focus on the energy sector as part of an ongoing campaign dating back to 2021, Amazon Threat Intelligence said in a report Monday. – CyberScoop
Opexus admits it missed key red flags when it hired twins Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter, as it failed to learn about crimes the brothers pleaded guilty to in 2015, including wire fraud and conspiring to hack into the State Department — offenses committed while they were contractors for federal agencies. The federal government contractor nonetheless maintains it conducted seven-year background checks before hiring the brothers in 2023 and 2024. – CyberScoop
Retiring Comptroller General Gene Dodaro delivered a message to lawmakers Tuesday on what he believes should be one of Congress’s top priorities as he exits federal service: getting the government’s cybersecurity work in order before it’s too late. – CyberScoop
With a little more than a month left before a foundational cyber threat information sharing law expires for a second time, Congress might have to do another short-term extension as negotiations on a longer deal aren’t yet bearing fruit, a key lawmaker said Tuesday. – CyberScoop
Venezuela’s state-run oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) said a recent cyberattack has impacted its administrative system. – The Record
Defense
The U.S. Coast Guard has allowed a new workplace harassment policy to take effect that downgrades the definition of swastikas and nooses from overt hate symbols to “potentially divisive” despite an uproar over the new language that forced the service’s top officer to direct that both would remain prohibited. – Washington Post
A new weapons system that effectively transforms two light tactical vehicles into a drone hunter-killer team is now in production for the U.S. Marines as of September, the service announced this week. – Defense News
The U.S. Space Force is looking for advanced technologies for space-based interceptors that can intercept ballistic missiles during their boost phase inside the atmosphere, according to a Small Business Innovation Research solicitation. – Defense News
President Donald Trump on Monday nominated the head of Air Mobility Command, Gen. John Lamontagne, to be the Air Force’s next vice chief of staff. – Defense News
President Donald Trump has taken steps to nominate Army Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd, the deputy chief of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, to head the military’s Cyber Command and the National Security Agency. – The Record
Brian Chow writes: This path to bipartisanship directs both parties to focus not on partisan marketing but on substantive national security issues, thereby enabling voters to judge which party demonstrates a superior policy and is truly committed to cross-pollination to capture both parties’ strengths and to constructive debate to eliminate their weaknesses. By working together across party lines, the United States can signal unity to adversaries, strengthen alliances, and ensure its national security strategy endures at least over the next dozen years, even if control of the White House changes. With productive debate and collaborative resolution, America will lead the free world to be ready for war—the most reliable way to preserve peace and prosperity. –National Interest