Resources - News

This section includes the latest news relating to U.S. security policy around the world. Updated daily, the news provided in this searchable database highlights the most relevant security developments from around the world. 

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Colombian President Arrives In D.C. As A Peace Accord Appears Imminent, But Some Grumble At The Cost

Thursday, February 4, 2016
Today, Colombia is on the verge of signing a historic peace deal with leftist guerrillas that will end a half-century of internal war. Despite the falling price of oil, its biggest export, the Colombian economy is one of the most robust in Latin America, and the country is a prime destination for U.S. and global investors. English
Country(s): 
Colombia
Author(s): 
Karen DeYoung
Publisher / Source: 
The Washington Post

Africa: Should African Leaders Reconsider Drone Strikes?

Thursday, February 4, 2016
Drone strikes (or unmanned aerial vehicle strikes) have attracted significant media attention for their roles in the American-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as in Pakistan. What has received less attention is the increasing frequency with which drone strikes have been carried out in Africa.English
Country(s): 
Africa Regional
Author(s): 
Zachary Donnenfeld
Publisher / Source: 
All Africa
Tag(s): 
Drones

Botswana Military Spending Under Fire

Thursday, February 4, 2016
Botswana’s decision to increase its expenditure on the military has been condemned by an organization that represents the voice of private sector called Business Botswana, APA learnt on Wednesday.Responding to Finance Minister Kenneth Matambo’s announcement that the defense budget in the 2016/17 financial year will be increased, Business Botswana said such increment was unnecessary considering the current tough economic environment.English
Country(s): 
Botswana
Publisher / Source: 
Star Africa
Wire Service: 
APA
Tag(s): 
Military Operations

Nigerian Leader Says Army Will Limit Use of Force

Thursday, February 4, 2016
Nigeria's president says his country's military will only use the minimum force necessary to deal with extremists after calls for an investigation into senior commanders over abuses, including the deaths of more than 8,000 detainees.President Muhammadu Buhari told European Union lawmakers Wednesday that Nigeria's military has updated its "rules of engagement in fighting terrorism" and that care is being taken in "the treatment of captured terrorists."English
Country(s): 
Nigeria
Publisher / Source: 
Stars and Stripes
Wire Service: 
The Associated Press
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

Burundi Rebels Say Trained by Rwandan Military: U.N. Experts

Thursday, February 4, 2016
A confidential report to the United Nations Security Council accuses Rwanda of recruiting and training Burundian refugees with the goal of ousting Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza.The report by experts who monitor sanctions on Democratic Republic of Congo, which was seen by Reuters on Wednesday, contained the strongest testimony yet that Rwanda is meddling in Burundi affairs and comes amid fears that worsening political violence could escalate into mass atrocities. English
Country(s): 
Burundi
Author(s): 
Michelle Nichols
Louis Charbonneau
Publisher / Source: 
Reuters Africa
Tag(s): 
Military Cooperation

U.S. Special Forces to Take Part in Multinational Exercises in Africa

Thursday, February 4, 2016
U.S. Special Operations Forces will participate in the Flintlock training exercise in Africa later this month, the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced in a statement. Approximately 1,700 Special Operation Forces from more than 30 nations are expected to participate in the exercise, which has been conducted annually since 2005. English
Country(s): 
Senegal
Publisher / Source: 
Sputnik
Tag(s): 
Military Exercises

Iraq's Conspicuous Silence on Washington's Offer of more U.S. troops

Thursday, February 4, 2016
The United States is willing to send more troops to Iraq — but do the Iraqis really want them?English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Author(s): 
Andrew Tilghman
Publisher / Source: 
Military Times
Tag(s): 
Military Cooperation

Funding Falls Short for Task Force to Fight Nigeria's Boko Haram

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Funding for a multinational force to combat Boko Haram's deadly Islamist insurgency in West and Central Africa remains well short of its target, an African Union official said on Tuesday. So far donors, including Nigeria, Switzerland and France, have pledged about $250 million to fund the 8,700-strong regional force, the African Union's Peace and Security Council said after a meeting in Addis Ababa to discuss funding.English
Country(s): 
Nigeria
Author(s): 
Aaron Maasho
Edward McAllister
Publisher / Source: 
Reuters (UK)
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

Saudi Inquiry Into War Crime Claims in Yemen Inadequate, Say Rights Groups

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty call for independent commission to look into allegations of war crimes, such as bombing of Médecins Sans Frontières clinics.English
Country(s): 
Saudi Arabia
Publisher / Source: 
The Guardian
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

S. Sudan Rebels Accuse Gov’t Forces of Using Chemical Weapons

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
February 1, 2016 (ADDIS ABABA) – South Sudan’s armed opposition group, (SPLM-IO) on Monday accused forces loyal to the Juba government of allegedly using chemical weapons on their forces in Lanyi and Mundri in East county of western equatoria state. Colonel Nyarji Roman, the deputy spokesperson in the office of the SPLM-IO chairman told Sudan Tribune there was a heavy fighting between government forces and opposition forces loyal to Riek Machar in Lanyi and Mundri areas Sunday. English
Country(s): 
South Sudan
Author(s): 
Tesfa-Alem Tekle
Publisher / Source: 
Sudan Tribune
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

Zika’s Spread in Brazil is a Crisis of Inequality as Much as Health

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
It's no coincidence that most Zika-related microcephaly cases were found in the north-east of the country: of course, the weather there is hot, which is prime breeding ground for the Aedis aegypti, but it is also where most of Brazil’s poverty is concentrated.English
Country(s): 
Brazil
Author(s): 
Nicole Frioio
Publisher / Source: 
The Guardian
Tag(s): 
Security

U.S.-led Coalition Aims to Recapture ISIS 'Caliphate' in Iraq, Syria

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
The U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State aims this year to recapture Iraq’s second city Mosul, working with Iraqi government forces, and drive the jihadis out of Raqqa, their stronghold in northeast Syria, Arab and Western officials say.English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Syria
Author(s): 
Samia Nakhoul
Publisher / Source: 
Reuters
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

U.N. Panel Finds Mexico's Arrest of Organizer Nestora Salgado Illegal

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
A United Nations panel has ruled that Mexico’s 2013 arrest and continuing detention of a community police leader was illegal, raising hopes among her supporters she could be freed.English
Country(s): 
Mexico
Publisher / Source: 
The Guardian
Wire Service: 
AP
Tag(s): 
Policing

U.S. Court Clears Way for Torture Lawsuit Against Alleged Somali War Criminal

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
An appeals court ruling which denied an alleged war criminal from Somalia immunity from prosecution in a U.S. courtroom is only a partial success, a human rights group said on Monday. The decision by the fourth circuit court of appeals in Virginia has opened a path for an individual lawsuit for torture and attempted murder against Colonel Yusuf Abdi Ali, who was head of the Somali army’s Fifth Brigade during the brutal Siad Barre dictatorship of the 1980s and who fled to Canada before settling in the U.S. English
Country(s): 
Somalia
Publisher / Source: 
The Guardian (UK)
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

Petrobras Faces Class-Action Lawsuit in Bribery and Political Kickbacks Scandal

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
A US judge has ordered Petrobras, the state-run Brazilian oil company, to face class-action litigation by investors seeking to recoup billions of dollars in losses stemming from a bribery and political kickback scandal.English
Country(s): 
Brazil
Publisher / Source: 
The Guardian
Wire Service: 
Reuters
Tag(s): 
Corruption

U.S. Lawmaker Urges Aliyev To Free Azerbaijani Journalist Ismayilova

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
A senior U.S. lawmaker has urged Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev to release imprisoned investigative reporter and RFE/RL contributor Khadija Ismayilova and other journalists, warning that their continued detention "will harm relations between our two countries." English
Country(s): 
Azerbaijan
Publisher / Source: 
RFE/RL

Honduras Pursues 'AA Brothers' Cartel

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Raids over the weekend resulted in the arrest of two alleged leaders of a powerful drug trafficking network, the culmination of a six-month investigation that may only have scratched the surface of the group's activities in Honduras.English
Country(s): 
Honduras
Author(s): 
Quenton King
Publisher / Source: 
InSight Crime
Tag(s): 
Drug Trade

Why Does Colombia Want the FARC Off the U.S. Terrorist List?

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Santos made the request during a January 28 interview with the Associated Press (AP) at the presidential palace in Bogotá, saying it would be appropriate for the United States to remove the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – FARC) from a State Department list of terrorist organizations once a peace deal is signed.English
Country(s): 
Colombia
Author(s): 
Michael Lohmuller
Publisher / Source: 
InSight Crime
Tag(s): 
Conflict

Anti-ISIS Coalition to Intensify Efforts, John Kerry Says

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday that members of the American-led coalition fighting the Islamic State had agreed at a meeting here to intensify their efforts to defeat the group, but he ruled out sending United States forces to intervene in Libya, where the Sunni extremists are pressing to claim territory. English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Syria
Author(s): 
Julie Herschfeld Davis
Publisher / Source: 
The New York Times
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

Carter Again Slams Anti-ISIS Partners on Lack of Assistance

Wednesday, February 3, 2016
U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter called out members of “our so-called coalition” Tuesday for not doing more to fight the Islamic State group, commonly known as ISIL or ISIS.English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Syria
Author(s): 
Aaron Mehta
Publisher / Source: 
Defense News
Tag(s): 
Terrorism
Military Cooperation

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