News Digest (16 stories, 18.11.15)
18 November 2015
Bosnian Muslims Ponder Backlash After Paris Attacks (Balkan Insight, link):
"Bosnian Muslims do not believe the attacks in Paris will impact much on community relations in Bosnia - but are concerned about the increasingly negative perception of Islam in Europe."
Bulgaria Nationalist Leader, MP Released on Bail after 'Unlawful Arrest' (Novinite, link):
"The Sofia City Court (SCC) has ruled nationalist leader Volen Siderov and a party member Desislav Chukolov should be released on bail only several hours after having been detained on Tuesday."
EU:
A map showing European jihadists’ countries of origin (VoxEurop, link):
"This map, created by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty the day after attacks carried out by Islamic State which left at least 129 people dead in Paris and its inner suburbs, shows the countries of origin of foreign fighters in Iraq and Syria, in particularly from European countries."
EU:
Vision-Box delivers biometric enrollment solution for EU employee travel documents (biometricupdate.com, link):
"Vision-Box announced it is providing the entire biometric and biographic enrollment infrastructure for the first security eDocument being issued to European Union employees."
France to decide on Paris climate rally by Thursday (Reuters, link):
"France will decide in the next couple of days whether to let climate change activists stage a rally in Paris on Nov. 29, the eve of a U.N. summit, amid worries about security after attacks that killed 129 people, an organiser said on Tuesday."
Francois Hollande's 'war' with Isis won't stand in the way of France's arms deals with Saudi Arabia (The Independent, link):
"The country which lent its Sunni-Wahhabi creed to the Isis killers of Paris will care nothing for François Hollande’s huffing and puffing about war. The Saudis have heard it all before, this New World Order stuff, way back in 1991 when George W Bush dreamed up the sub-Hitlerian expression for the Middle East he thought he could produce: an oasis of peace, a place of weaponless wealth in which swords would be turned into ploughshares – or at least into bigger oil tankers and longer pipelines."
IRELAND:
Paris attacks: EU defence clause ‘will not affect Irish neutrality’ (The Irish Times, link):
"So far there is little indication of what the invocation of the Article might mean in practical terms, with some officials stressing that its import is more likely to be symbolic."
France 'at war' inaugurates EU's mutual defence clause (EurActiv, link):
"President François Hollande said he will invoke the European Union's ‘mutual defence clause’ for the first time to combat the perpetrators of the Paris attacks, betting on EU support over NATO in the country's fight against the Islamic State."
Kosovo Detains Three on Terrorism Charges (Balkan Insight, link):
"A Kosovo court on Tuesday placed three Kosovars in custody for 30 days on suspicion that they intended to join Islamic militants in Syria."
Paris Terror Attacks: How Can We Combat the Threat of Further Attacks? (IFSEC Global, link):
"So what can governments, intelligence agencies and the security industry do to reduce the risk of further attacks? I put this question to several security experts who offered suggestions that touched on intelligence sharing, data analytics, collaboration between relevant agencies and the role of the general public."
Spain investigating 301 people over links to jihadist terrorism (El País, link):
"The judicial inquiries deal with every aspect of terrorist activity, including recruitment of combatants for Syria, glorification of terrorist activities, and criminal association."
UK:
Flaws in universal credit system leaving vulnerable people penniless, says study (The Guardian, link):
"Built-in delay of at least 42 days before claimants receive payments leaves people struggling to pay bills and buy food, says Citizens Advice"
UK:
Jury identified serious failures by G4s at the inquest into the death of Mohamoud Ahmed Ali (Garden Court Chambers, link):
"37-year-old Mohamoud died on 1 February 2014 in HMP Parc – a prison run by G4S. He died from ‘SUDEP’ (‘sudden unexpected death from epilepsy’). Despite having suffered several episodes of apparent seizures in December 2012, January 2013, and April 2013, he was never diagnosed with epilepsy. Although Mohamoud had been referred to hospital for assessment by specialist neurologists, the jury found that the prison repeatedly failed to transport him to appointments in May, June, and July, due to a lack of G4S staff to escort him there."
UK:
Shoot to kill: what is the UK’s policy? (The Guardian, link):
"In the wake of the Paris terror attacks, the UK is debating how its security forces would respond in similar circumstances"