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  • Germany's trains hit by series of firebombs

    German authorities are working to secure the nation’s rail lines after fifteen firebombs were discovered in seven different locations; hundreds of trains have been delayed due to partial shut-downs of railways; no one has been injured in any of the arson attacks; Germany’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office, which is responsible for terrorism-related crimes, has taken control of the investigation; a left-wing organization claimed responsibility for the firebombs citing opposition to Germany’s role in the Afghanistan War

  • Karzai: Taliban cannot move a finger without Pakistan

    Last week, Afghan President Hamid Karzai sharply criticized Pakistan stating that the Taliban would not be able to “move a finger without Pakistani support”; Karzai added that it was a “serious shortcoming” that the Taliban were able to launch large, deadly attacks, explaining that “these problems come from abroad,” citing Pakistan’s involvement with the Taliban; “On the overall policy of Pakistan toward Afghanistan and towards Taliban, definitely, the Taliban will not be able to move a finger without Pakistani support,” Karzai said

  • Indian official: Pakistan trying to bleed India dry through a thousand cuts

    On Tuesday a top Indian official condemned Pakistan stating that the country was trying to bleed India dry through a thousand cuts by threatening to attack Indian businesses; “This (Jihadi) brand of terrorism is primarily sponsored by our neighboring country in the west whose—- policy is to conduct war against India by all other means and bleed us through a thousand cuts. This naturally includes the targeting of anything…with a view to damaging, degrading or destroying the engines of economic growth and critical centers of power and strength of our country,” said U K Bansal, the internal security secretary of the Union Home Ministry; Bansal’s comments came as part of a speech in New Delhi

  • Pakistan upholds death sentence for killer of Governor Salmaan Taseer

    On Tuesday a Pakistani court upheld the death sentence for Malik Mumtaz Hussain Qadri, the assassin of Salmaan Taseer, the governor of Punjab, the largest Pakistani province; Qadri confessed to the killing of Taseer citing the governor’s criticism of the country’s controversial blasphemy law as the reason; Qadri appealed the death sentence arguing that the anti-terrorism court that originally conducted his trial did not have the authority to sentence him to death; the Islamabad High Court upheld the original ruling

  • One of Gaddafi's sons captured

    Mo’tassim Gaddafi, one of embattled Libyan dictator’s Muammar Gaddafi’s sons, was captured on Wednesday in Sirte; rebels say he was capture while trying to escape the town; he was taken to Benghazi where he was questioned; Mo’tassim was Libya’s former national security advisor

  • Turkey vows to continue cross-border counterterrorism operations

    On Wednesday, Turkey’s deputy premier Besir Atalay said that the country would continue cross-border counterterror operations in Iraq against the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK), an extremist organization; speaking on Turkey’s NTV channel, Atalay said the government would not leave any security vacuum for the PKK to operate and that northern Iraq would not be a base for terrorism anymore

  • New London police commissioner criticizes response to summer riots

    Bernard Hogan-Howe, the new head of London’s Metropolitan Police, criticized the agency for its failure to deploy enough officers in time during the August riots; Hogan-Howe added that Scotland Yard is currently reviewing its use of intelligence, resources, and tactics to ensure a more flexible response to future riots; Hogan-Howe’s comments come as part of testimony before the Commons Home Affairs Committee

  • U.K. debuts new "passenger friendly" airport checkpoint at Gatwick

    On Tuesday, the U.K.’s aviation minister said that due to the “real and ongoing threat of terrorism” airport security must remain at elevated levels; speaking at Gatwick airport during the unveiling of a new security checkpoint, Theresa Villiers noted that while security levels must remain high, it must also be done in a “more passenger-friendly way”; “It’s entirely possible to do two things at once - maintain the highest levels of security and deliver them in a passenger-friendly way,” she said; Gatwick’s new security checkpoint area features nineteen passenger lanes that can process almost 5,000 people an hour with each passenger taking less than five minutes to be searched

  • Indian police: revenge, jealousy drive terrorism hoaxes

    Indian police are urging lawmakers to pass stricter laws that punish individuals who make fake terrorist threats via e-mail or phone; authorities say the majority of hoaxes are generated by jealous lovers or teenagers playing pranks; law enforcement agencies have been forced to devote a large portion of their time and resources to verify the authenticity of fake threats

  • India urges UN to adopt anti-terror convention

    Last week, India urged the United Nations to adopt the Comprehensive Convention against International Terrorism; speaking to the UN General Assembly, India’s deputy chairman Rahman Khan argued that the UN’s global counterterrorism strategy would be incomplete if it did not pass the convention; “India believes that adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) would provide a solid legal basis for the fight against terrorism. In our view the UN global counter-terrorism strategy is incomplete in the absence of such a comprehensive convention,” Khan said.