US-Iran Conflict and Implications for US Policy: CRS

Source: CRS

May 8 2020

By Kenneth Katzman (Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs), Kathleen J. McInnis (Specialist in International Security), Clayton Thomas (Analyst in Middle Eastern Affairs)

"Since May 2019, U.S.-Iran tensions have heightened significantly, and evolved into conflict after
U.S. military forces killed Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF) and one of Iran’s most important military commanders, in
a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad on January 3, 2020. The United States and Iran have appeared to be
on the brink of additional hostilities since, as attacks by Iran-backed groups on bases in Iraq

inhabited by U.S. forces have continued."

Click to Read

Libya: An Ucertain Future: Report on a Fact Finding Mission

"Organized on the initiative of the ‘Centre international de recherché and et d’etιtudes sur le terrorisme et d’aide aux victims du terrorisme’ (CIRET--AVT1) [International Center for the Study and Research into Terrorism and assistance to the victims of Terrorism] and the ‘Centre Francais de Recherche sur le Renseignement’ (CF2R2) [French Center for Intelligence Studies] and with the support of the ‘Forum pour la paix en Mιditerranιe’ [Mediterranean Peace Forum], a delegation of international experts arrived to tour Tripoli and the Tripolitana from 31^st March to 6^th April, then to Benghazi and Cyrenaica (19^th to 25^th April) in order to evaluate the Libyan situation independently, without bias and to meet representatives of both sides."

Note: This report covers the events up to 30th April 2011.

Libya Report

Israel and Turkey revive hostilities over the UN flotilla report

Πηγή: Time
KARL VICK

Friday, September 2, 2011

Well that ended well, didn't it?

Fifteen months after Israeli commandos clashed with Turkish activists on the high seas, leaving nine civilians dead and Israel's public image in further tatters, the United Nations report on what was popularly known as the Flotilla Fiasco has emerged. The Palmer Report, named for the former New Zealand premiere who chaired the fact-gathering panel, turns out to be true to the spirit of the affair, a diplomatic effort that has both countries clawing at each other's throat.

There's something for everyone in the 105 pages. Israel gets to hear its naval blockade of Gaza called legal under international law -- a narrow point that was not much in question, but a point Israel is delighted to see made. ("U.N. panel backs blockade of Gaza" was the play headline in Friday's International Herald Tribune.) The actual issue, for those feeling sympathy for the 1.5 million Palestinians trapped in the Gaza Strip, was not the military blockade of the seacoast but the "siege" of Gaza as a whole, at least on the three sides of the enclave that Israel controls. After Hamas took over the strip and kidnapped an Israeli soldier, in 2006, Israel closed down a wide array of imports to Gaza, a collective punishment intended not to starve Gazans but to "put them on a diet," as an aide to then-prime minister Ehud Olmert famously put it. The Turkish ferry Mavi Marmara was the flagship for an "humanitarian aid flotilla" that aimed to draw attention to the siege by breaking it. In the outcry that followed the botched attempt to board the vessel, Israel agreed to loosened the import strictures, conceding what one senior minister admitted was a mistaken policy from the start.

"Stopping ships for reasons of security is legal -- the civilian closure of Gaza is not," said Gisha, a nonprofit that advocates for freedom of movement in and out of Gaza, and especially between Gaza and the West Bank. "The Palmer Commission did not review Israel's overall closure of the Gaza Strip, still in place today. For it to conform to the principles of international law, Israel must remove the sweeping restrictions on export of goods, movement of people between Gaza and the West Bank and entrance of construction materials."

For its part, Turkey embraced the UN finding that Israel's elite naval commandos used "excessive and unreasonable" force on board the ship, even though some 40 of the hundreds of passengers were clearly organized and violently resisted being boarded. The UN also faulted Israel for rough treatment of the other passengers, some of whom had belongings stolen after being taken into custody. The report's call for "an appropriate statement of regret" from Israel was exactly what Ankara and Jerusalem tried to negotiate for weeks this summer, along with compensation for families of the nine dead. As the talks rolled along, delaying the release of the UN report, compromise began to seem almost likely, especially after the Turkish government, which had encouraged the first flotilla, intervened to help prevent a reprise this year. Shared interests in Syria, boiling all summer, also seemed to be bringing the governments together, with eager encouragement from Washington. But in the end the government of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu could not bring itself to use the word "apologize."

"Honor is a strategic asset," said vice prime minister Moshe Ya'alon, explaining the impasse. And so the two countries -- unusually close allies just three or four years ago -- are where they found themselves last summer: Very much at sea.

China protests Pentagon report on military, labels it distortion

Πηγή: Washington Post

By Associated Press

Friday, August 26

BEIJING — China formally protested over a Pentagon report on the Chinese military Friday, calling it a major distortion that flew in the face of a warming trend in relations between the two nations and their militaries.
The United States’ annual assessment of China’s military capabilities and doctrine “seriously twists the facts and doesn’t have a leg to stand on,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement read on national television.

The Pentagon report issued Wednesday said Beijing is on track to achieve its goal of building a modern, regionally focused military by 2020, citing the development of a new stealth fighter, an aircraft carrier and a record number of space launches over the past year.

China’s response accused the U.S. of spreading illegitimate concerns about a Chinese threat to regional security and of ignoring China’s insistence that its military posture is purely defensive. Beijing said its military developments are a natural outgrowth of technological advances and not directed at any third parties, but didn’t point to any specific claims in the report.

China has made “stern representations” to the U.S. side, it said, adding that the report’s negative tenor was out of step with improvements in China’s relations with Taiwan, the self-governing U.S. ally that Beijing has sworn to bring under its control by force if necessary.

“The Chinese side expresses our strong dissatisfaction and a resolute opposition to this,” said the statement, attributed to ministry spokesman Yang Yujun.

Despite the government’s pique, it seemed unlikely that the report would disrupt relations in any significant way.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden this week concluded a cordial visit to China and both sides are looking forward to a reciprocal visit by his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, President Hu Jintao’s heir-apparent, before the end of the year.

Further military-to-military exchanges are also planned, although an upcoming U.S. decision on whether to upgrade warplanes owned by Taiwan or sell the island new ones could increase frictions. Beijing suspended military contacts last year in anger over the announcement of a U.S. deal to sell Taiwan $6.4 billion in new helicopters, anti-missile defense systems and other armaments.

The Pentagon report said China has closed critical technological gaps and is rapidly modernizing its military equipment, all with an eye toward preventing possible U.S. and allied intervention in a conflict with Taiwan. It also warns that the military expansion could increasingly stretch to the western Pacific in a move to deny U.S. and its allies access or movement there.

The Pentagon estimates that China spent more than $160 billion for its military in 2010. U.S. defense spending for that year was about $550 billion, not including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

U.S. defense officials have repeatedly called for China to be more transparent about its intentions in the military buildup, but the report also notes that Beijing continues to profess that the growth is peaceful.

The long-delayed Pentagon report comes as the sides struggle to restore relations between their militaries amid tensions over American support for Taiwan, cyberattacks blamed on China and Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea.

In 2010, the report said, a number of computer systems, including U.S. networks, were the target of intrusions that appeared to originate in China. The breaches were aimed at stealing data, but they exhibit the same skills needed for more destructive network attacks, it said.

Greece 2011 OSAC Crime and Safety Report

Πηγή: OSAC

Greece 2011 Crime and Safety Report Riots/Civil Unrest; Crime; Terrorism 


Overall Crime and Safety Situation

Crime Threats

Statistics suggest that violent crime in Greece is considerably less prevalent than in other European countries. Athens is safer in terms of violent crime than comparably sized metropolitan cities. However, there has been a dramatic and steady increase in security related incidents involving improvised explosive and incendiary device attacks, as well as small arms, grenades, and other infantry style weapons. A majority of the increased attacks are politically motivated incidents that usually have a specific target of interest. Armed violence and random assaults are still somewhat uncommon, but rates of street crimes, such as pick pocketing, purse snatchings, and other crimes of opportunity, appear to remain steady. Statistics for attempted and committed armed bank robberies have increased in Greece over the last two years. Reported crime statistics indicate that fraud related crimes and sexual assault crimes remain low in relation to population size. Cyber-crimes are also low in relation to population size but appear to be gradually increasing.

Police have reported a significant increase in burglaries of unoccupied homes and apartments, as well as theft from attended and unattended vehicles with valuables left in plain sight. “Smash & Grab” thefts are a recurring phenomenon. A common ploy is for a criminal to approach a vehicle from the passenger side and to smash the window and grab objects from the passenger seat. This most often occurs while someone is waiting at a traffic light or stop sign. Over the last year, there were high reported incidents of pick-pocketing and theft mainly targeting passengers utilizing the city Metro system. Many of the incidents reported were well coordinated by two or three culprits drawing the attention of the unsuspecting passenger with a call or request for assistance while personal belongings were covertly taken. Nearly all of the incidents reported occurred in the Metro system and increase around the holiday shopping seasons.

Road Safety

A combination of human factors, poor road designs, and a general disregard for safe driving practices result in hazardous conditions on Greek roadways for both pedestrians and motorists. The massive infrastructure improvements and road construction projects completed in 2004 alleviated some of the congestion in Athens, but a steady increase in the volume of traffic each year decreases the positive impact of these improvements.

The rate of serious vehicular accidents is substantially higher in Greece than in the U.S. and the rest of Europe. Greece continues to hold one of the highest rates within the European Union in per-capita traffic fatalities. Extreme caution should be used when driving in Greece, especially in Athens and other major cities. Most accidents occur between 5:00 pm and 4:00 am, with accidents peaking in August. Excessive speed, inattention, driving in the opposite direction, non-compliance with right of way, and drinking are major factors for accidents. Motorcycles and scooters normally drive between lanes and weave in and out of both moving and stopped traffic, posing significant risk to pedestrians. The severity of injuries is exacerbated by the widespread failure to use safety belts (only an estimated 26.3 percent of drivers and 14.1 percent passengers wear safety belts) and motorcycle helmets (only an estimated 29.8 percent of motorcycle drivers and 5.7 percent passengers wear helmets). The ability to deliver effective medical treatment following accidents is poor. Response time to accident scenes in Athens is significantly slower than in the U.S. due to a higher density of vehicular traffic. An International Drivers License is required by Greek law.

Political Violence

Historical Perspective

Demonstrations take place in Athens and Thessaloniki on an almost daily basis. Many demonstrations are normally organized by labor unions or student groups and are directed against the Greek Government. Protests in both cities take place around the city centers, and traffic can be seriously delayed as a result. Most protests and demonstrations are peaceful, but violent anarchist groups often attach themselves to demonstrations and clash violently with the police. A common practice of anarchist groups is to march towards the city center from the university areas and smash windows and burn vehicles and/or storefronts along the way. It is best to avoid the public university areas during these times. Police are generally forbidden from entering university campuses since the fall of the military dictatorship that suppressed a student rebellion at the Athens Polytechnic in 1973 in which at least 23 people were killed. As a result, violent anarchists use campuses as a safe base of operations.

In 2010, there was an increase in demonstrations, strikes, and work stoppages due to the economic crisis and in protest of the economic austerity measures that were implemented. This year alone, Athens was hit with seven general strikes, grounding flights, ferry cancellations, halting trains and public transportation, and the closing of government offices and schools. In addition to the austerity measures, many protests were directed toward the International Monetary Fund and the EU, as they were viewed by many Greeks to be offering an unfair lending rate on their $147 Billion debt rescue plan designed to help Greece pull its economy out of crisis.