Tag: Region Americas

Jerusalem – Azerbaijan’s space agency, Azercosmos, acquired two multi-spectral electro-optical spy satellites from Israel Aerospace Industries as part of the Azersky-2 program. The Azeri Agency and the Tel Aviv area-based company did not disclose the satellite model or value of the contract in announcing the deal, but both have previously said the agreement is worth about $120 million, and Defense News learned that the model is the OptSat-500. This is the first announced sale of this new model of the…

Russian air defenses shot down 31 Ukrainian drones during a concerted nighttime attack by Kyiv’s forces on border regions, the country’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday, as uncertainty grew over Ukraine’s future access to weapons and ammunition from its Western allies. The drone attack appeared to be Kyiv’s largest single cross-border drone assault reported by Moscow since it launched its invasion 20 months ago. There were no immediate reports of any damage or casualties. Ukraine is pressing on with a slow-moving…

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused the new interim speaker, Patrick McHenry, of ordering her to vacate her workspace in the U.S. Capitol building on Tuesday, just hours after the chamber’s abrupt leadership shake-up. In a statement shared with NPR, Pelosi, D-Calif., said she was asked to leave her space “immediately.” “With all of the important decisions that the new Republican Leadership must address, which we are all eagerly awaiting, one of the first actions taken by the new Speaker…

India has ordered Canada to remove 41 of its 62 diplomats in the country, a Canadian official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Tuesday.Tuesday’s action by India, first reported by the Financial Times, follows both countries’ ousting each other’s senior diplomats. The expulsion follows what Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called “credible allegations” of Indian involvement in the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, an Indian expatriate living near the Canadian city of Vancouver. India denies any wrongdoing. Top officials…

OTTAWA — Canadian Sikhs are grateful to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for giving voice to their fears and standing up to India at the risk of a severe backlash from New Delhi, which he said could be linked to the killing of a Sikh separatist leader. The Indian government considered Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen who was shot to death in June in British Columbia, a terrorist because of his advocacy for Khalistan, an independent Sikh state. India forcefully…

This month, the Philippines celebrates its creative industries by dedicating a special month to their work. On top of that, the Government presented a long-awaited ‘gift’. The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) announced that local site-blocking plans are about to come to fruition. IPOPHL Director General Rowel Barba signed a memorandum that will go into effect in late November. As part of the agreement, Internet providers will voluntarily block access to known pirate sites. These plans aren’t new;…

Sept 28 (Reuters) – Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives hold their first hearing on Thursday in an impeachment inquiry into Democratic President Joe Biden after months of investigations of his son Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings. They have not found any evidence of misconduct by Biden himself. The White House says Biden has done nothing wrong and Republicans have no basis for an impeachment inquiry. Following is some of the evidence that has come to light: HUNTER’S BUSINESSES Republicans have…

WASHINGTON, Sept 28 (Reuters) – Republicans leading an impeachment inquiry of President Joe Biden detailed foreign payments to members of his family in their first hearing on Thursday, but did not provide evidence that the Democratic president had personally benefited. The initial impeachment hearing by the U.S. House of Representatives Oversight Committee served as a review of evidence that Republicans have gathered so far about foreign business ventures by Biden’s troubled son Hunter Biden, 53, which they say shows that Biden’s family…

Matthew Miller, Department Spokesperson
Today, the United States is designating a network linked to the U.S.-designated Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).  This network–comprised of five entities and two individuals based in Iran, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Hong Kong, Türkiye, and the United Arab Emirates–has been procuring sensitive parts for Iran’s one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) program.
Iran is supplying Russia with arms, including Shahed-136 UAVs, to support Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine.  One of the servomotors procured by the network designated today was recovered in the remnants of a Russia-operated Shahed-136 that was recently shot down in Ukraine.
The United States is determined to take actions against those supporting Russia’s war machine, particularly the provision of weapons that target Ukraine’s people and civil infrastructure.
For more information on today’s action, please see the Department of the Treasury’s press release .

Major international governments have signed multibillion-dollar legal contracts with drug companies in order to secure access to covid-19 vaccines. But the drug companies and governments have refused to divulge details, saying the information is “commercial in confidence.” In 2021, we got our first peek at contracts between Pfizer and various international countries after they were leaked to The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and US consumer group Public Citizen. “The contracts offer a rare glimpse into the power one pharmaceutical corporation has gained to silence…

Yaroslav Hunka was hailed as a “war hero” last week in Canada’s parliament, where he received a standing ovation. A Polish government minister has launched a bid to extradite Yaroslav Hunka, the 98-year-old Ukrainian-Canadian man who fought in a German-Nazi division during World War Two and last week received a standing ovation in Canada’s parliament. “In view of the scandalous events in the Canadian parliament, which involved honouring, in the presence of President Zelensky, a member of the criminal Nazi…

MEXICO CITY — A journalist who ran a community Facebook news page was killed in the northern Mexico border town of San Luis Rio Colorado on Monday, when he was apparently caught in the crossfire of an attack aimed at police.Jesús Gutiérrez ran Notiface Prensa Digital De San Luis, a Facebook page that included recommendations for local businesses as well as local news stories. Notiface confirmed his death, writing in a tribute “we think they killed the best journalist.” Prosecutors…

Air Canada, the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada, disclosed a cyber security incident this week in which hackers “briefly” obtained limited access to its internal systems. According to the airline, the incident resulted in the theft of a limited amount of personal information of some of its employees and “certain records.” Customer data was not affected. Hackers “briefly” obtained access Air Canada, the airline that recently came under fire for forcing its passengers to sit in vomit-covered seats or risk…

The hacker behind the recent attack on Airbus has warned that he will sell US and European military intelligence on the dark web. Known by the moniker “USDoD,” the hacker said he recently managed to enter the company’s website by exploiting employee access from Turkish Airlines. He also immediately posted the stolen data on a hacker forum. In a lengthy interview with databreaches.net, USDoD revealed that his next targets would be American defense contractors, NATO, Europol, and Interpol. He threatened…

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — A military pilot whose advanced fighter jet went temporarily missing over the weekend is heard repeatedly requesting an ambulance in a perplexing 911 call from the South Carolina home where he had parachuted to safety, according to an audio recording released Thursday to The Associated Press. The four-minute recording captures the bizarre circumstances for the three unidentified people involved: a North Charleston resident calmly explaining that a pilot just parachuted into his backyard, the pilot who doesn’t know…

  WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s prime minister said his country is no longer sending arms to Ukraine, a comment that appeared aimed at pressuring Kyiv and put Poland’s status as a major source of military equipment in doubt as a trade dispute between the neighboring states escalates. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in an interview late on Wednesday that Poland is no longer transferring weapons to Ukraine. He made the comment as his populist party faces pressure from a…