USA
U.S. Naval Update Map: Nov. 9, 2011
November 2, KDKA 1020 Pittsburgh – (Pennsylvania) Fight club allegations probed at SCI Fayette. A full-blown investigation is underway into a so-called “fight club” inside the Fayette State Correctional Institution in Luzerne Township, Pennsylvania. A corrections officer reached out to a KDKA Investigator claiming inmates have been seriously injured. There are 2,000 inmates at the prison. According to a letter written by a veteran corrections officer and sent to the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PDOC) there is an organized “fight club octogone” inside the facility. The letter states inmates had “missing teeth, swollen eyes, broken knuckles [and] broken hands.” The letter goes on to say the, “COs were betting on the fights and allowing the winner to run a store.” State prison officials said they have the letter and they are conducting a complete investigation. “Staff will be interviewed, inmates will be interviewed, video tape will be reviewed, I mean, it will run the whole gamut,” a PDOC spokeswoman said. The corrections officer expresses concern in the letter. “If nothing is done, it will go on and somebody will get hurt or even killed.” He also worries about his own safety. “I am in fear of my life.” Investigators said corrections officers were not in danger. Source: http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2011/11/02/fight-club-allegations-probed-at-sci- fayette/?hpt=ju_bn4
November 7, Military Times – (International) Phony U.S. military electronics traced to China. The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee is planning to crack down on counterfeit electronic parts, which more often than not originate in China and eventually make their way to U.S. military weapon systems. The committee, led by a Michigan Democrat and an Arizona Republican released the results of a months-long investigation November 7. As part of the investigation, committee staff traced the Department of Defense (DOD) supply chain back to its start for more than 100 counterfeit parts, and found that 70 percent of them originated in China. “Nearly 20 percent of the remaining cases were tracked to the U.K. and Canada — known resale points for counterfeit electronic parts from China,” a background memo from the committee said. According to a January report from the Commerce Department, counterfeit electronics in the defense industry are on the rise. In 2005, there were 3,868 incidents detected, compared with 9,356 in 2008, according to the report. The two Senators want the Pentagon to better enforce laws that protect the DOD supply chain, but they also admit those laws do not go far enough. The Senate panel is considering adding language to the defense authorization act for 2012 that would hold contractors responsible for the costs of replacing a part that is discovered to be counterfeit, the Michigan Democrat said at a November 7 press briefing.
Source: http://www.militarytimes.com/news/2011/11/defense-phony-military- electronics-traced-to-china-110711/
November 8, Memphis Commercial Appeal – (Tennessee) 200,000 rounds of ammunition missing from Memphis Police Academy. Up to 200,000 rounds of ammunition were missing from the Memphis Police Department (MPD) Training Academy's Firearms Training Unit in Memphis, Tennessee. The city auditor's investigation of the missing ammunition is part of an in-depth audit of MPD's Organized Crime Unit. The audit was requested by the Memphis police director shortly after he took over in April.
Source: http://www.officer.com/news/10448190/200000-rounds-of-ammunition- missing-from-memphis-police-academy
November 4, WXIA 11 Atlanta – (National) ‘Covert group’ one ingredient away from deadly toxin. Four men who were indicted in alleged terror attacks had the weapons they wanted and were one ingredient away from making the deadly toxin ricin, according to a criminal indictment, WXIA 11 Atlanta reported November 4. Two days before they were arrested, two of the defendants said they needed just one more ingredient to produce ricin, according to the indictment. One of them said he needed 1 pound of lye and was ready to begin the process of making the deadly toxin. On November 1, the day the suspects were arrested, the defendants met with an undercover agent and gave him cash and a firearm and received a silencer and what they believed were explosives. The indictment said one man had in his possession written instructions for detonating a destructive device. The four North Georgia men are accused of planning attacks on unnamed government officials with ricin and explosives. They indicated in court in Gainesville, Georgia, November 2 that they wanted a bond hearing. The hearing, along with a preliminary hearing, will be held November 9, once the defendants are appointed lawyers.
Source: http://www.11alive.com/news/article/211347/3/Covert-group-one-ingredient- away-from-deadly-toxin
EUROPE
European Crisis Fertile Ground for Nationalist Parties
Dispatch: First Greece, Now Italy
Greek and Italian Politicians Back Eurozone Continuation
Crisis Rewriting the Rules in Europe
ASIA
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
RUSSIA
Russia: Armed Forces To Receive Pay Raise November 7, 2011
Military pay will increase by 150-200 percent and military pensions will rise 50-70 percent from Jan. 1, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev said Nov. 7, Zvezda TV reported. After years of planning and analyzing Russia’s budget, Russia can accommodate the increase, which will help obtain personnel needed to solve the challenges the Russia’s armed forces face, Medvedev said.
IRAN
Iran's Nuclear Program and its Nuclear Option
IRAQ
Dispatch: Sunni-Shiite Competition in Post-American Iraq
ISRAEL
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan Weekly War Update: Contested Road Reopens in Pakistan
MIDDLE EAST
The Syrian Regime, Under Pressure but Holding
Libya: Fighters Will Keep Weapons To Aid Security - Spokesman November 7, 2011
Libyan fighters will keep their weapons to aid security and prevent forces who supported former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi from regrouping, brigade leader and spokesman Abduljawad Bedeen said Nov. 7, Reuters reported. Bedeen said officials asked his group to establish security in Sabha, but that the National Transitional Council has not approved the action yet because of his fighters’ reputations as Islamists. He said many fighters want to return to civilian life, but that some may choose to become a part of the army because the unit’s main goal is to serve the country. Bedeen is a former member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group and is a spokesman for the Union of Revolutionary Forces, a group of 25,000 fighters from eastern Libya.
SOUTH OF THE BORDER
Dispatch: FARC Leader Killed in Colombia
Colombia: Cauca Requests Reinforcements Against FARC Attacks November 7, 2011
Authorities in Colombia’s department of Cauca have asked the national government for military reinforcements fearing further retaliation by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) following the killing of the group’s leader, Alfonso Cano, Colombia Reports reported Nov. 7. Cauca Governor Guillermo Gonzales told Caracol Radio that key guerrilla leaders are still thought to be located in his department. The ombudsman of the Suarez municipality where Cano was killed said he also fears retaliation by FARC given the fact that several guerrilla units are highly active.
Mexico: Army Arrests Top Arellano Felix Cartel Member November 7, 2011
Mexican authorities arrested top Arellano Felix cartel member Juan Francisco Sillas Rocha, also known as “The Wheel,” on Nov. 5, a Mexican Defense Ministry spokesman announced Nov. 7, CNN reported. According to Defense Ministry statement, Sillas was a key lieutenant in a war with the Sinaloa Cartel. An army spokesman said Sillas reported directly to the cartel’s leader, Fernando Sanchez Arellano, AP reported.
Mexico: Suspected Leader Of La Mano Con Ojos Arrested
The Attorney General’s Office in Mexico with Mexico’s Department of Public Safety arrested Alejandro “N,” the suspected leader of criminal gang La Mano con Ojos in Estado de Mexico, according to the Attorney General’s Office, El Universal reported Nov. 8.
MISC
Geopolitical Calendar: Week of Nov. 6, 2011
Somalia's al Shabaab Uniting To Face Kenyan Offensive
November 3, IDG News Service – (International) Simulated cyberattack unites EU and U.S. security experts. Almost 100 computer experts from 16 European countries jointly battled to hold off cyberattacks on the European Union’s security agencies and power plants as part of a simulated exercise November 3. The event, Cyber Atlantic 2011, was the first joint cybersecurity exercise between the European Union (EU) and the United States. Two scenarios were acted out. The first was a targeted, stealth advanced persistent threat attack aimed at extracting and publishing online secret information from EU member states’ cybersecurity agencies. Security experts at Europe’s network and information security agency said this type of attack was possible in a real-world situation. The second simulation focused on the disruption of supervisory control and data acquisition systems in power generation infrastructures. This threat is being taken very seriously by EU authorities, particularly in light of allegations the Anonymous hacker group has attempted to infiltrate French power plants, and the widespread Stuxnet attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. More than 20 EU countries were involved in the exercise, with the European Commission providing high-level direction, and DHS lending support. The aim was to explore how the EU and the United States would engage each other and cooperate in the event of cyberattacks on critical information infrastructures, and follows the first pan-European cybersecurity stress test. Lessons learned from Cyber Atlantic 2011 will be used to plan potential future joint EU-U.S. cyberexercises.
Source: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9221452/Simulated_cyberattack_unites_EU_ and_U.S._security_expert
Except where noted courtesy STRATFOR.COM
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