HUMAN RIGHTS TRUMP RELIGIOUS RITES

Influential Iraqi cleric launches anti-LGBTQ campaign

LGBTQ community in Iraq fear acts of violence against them, as thousands of al-Sadr's followers pledged to stand against homosexuality on Friday.

The New Arab Staff & Agencies
03 December, 2022

al-Sadr had made similar statements previously against LGBTQ community in Iraq. 

(Photo by QASSEM AL-KAABI/AFP via Getty Images)

An influential Iraqi cleric who announced his withdrawal from politics four months ago has broken a period of relative silence to launch an anti-LGBTQ campaign.

Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr posted a statement on Twitter Wednesday calling for “believing men and women (to) unite all over the world to combat (the LGBTQ community).”

He added that this should be done "not with violence, killing or threats, but with education and awareness, with logic and ethical methods.”

The religious leader's call has stoked fears in the LGBTQ community, particularly given that al-Sadr's followers have a history of violence. After the cleric announced his resignation from politics in August amid an impasse over government formation, hundreds of his angry loyalists stormed government buildings in the capital and set off clashes that left at least 30 dead.

On Friday, following the afternoon prayer session, thousands of al-Sadr's followers lined up outside of mosques around the country to sign a pledge to “stand against (homosexuality) or (LGBTQ) by ethical, peaceful and religious means” and to demand “abolition of the homosexuality law.”

It was not clear what law the pledge was referring to. Iraq does not have a law that explicitly criminalises homosexuality, although it has one that outlaws “immodest acts," which Human Rights Watch has described as a “a vague provision that could be used to target sexual and gender minorities.”

In Kufa — a town in al-Sadr's home province of Najaf province — hundreds lined up to sign the pledge on Friday. Kazem al-Husseini, imam of a local mosque noted that al-Sadr had made similar statements previously.

“There is a fear that the West is putting pressure on the Arab and Islamic regimes to legitimize same-sex marriage in the constitutions and laws so that they try to normalize this perversion,” he said.

In Baghdad’s Sadr City, Ibrahim al-Jabri, who also signed the pledge, said he is standing against the “corruptions that came to us from Europe and elsewhere, what they call freedoms. We also have the freedom to reject falsehood, to reject corruption.”

Despite the campaign’s nominal commitment to non-violence, LGBTQ people in Iraq fear that it will lead to more harassment and abuse in a country where their identity already puts them in danger.

A Human Rights Watch report released earlier this year accused armed groups in Iraq of abducting, raping, torturing, and killing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people with impunity. The Iraqi government, it says, has failed to hold perpetrators accountable.

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M
U.S. says Swiss engineering group ABB to pay over $315 million to resolve bribery case

Kanishka Singh
Fri, December 2, 2022 

Logo of Hitachi ABB is seen in Zurich

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Swiss engineering and technology group ABB Ltd agreed to pay more than $315 million to resolve an investigation into a bribery case at a South African state-owned energy company, the U.S. Justice Department said on Friday.

The Justice Department said its resolution was coordinated with prosecutorial authorities in South Africa and Switzerland, as well as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

ABB subsidiaries also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery provisions of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), the Justice Department said in a statement.

ABB was investigated for and found guilty of improper payments and other compliance issues at the Kusile power station, in a wide-scale investigation into state corruption concluded in June 2022.

"ABB bribed a high-ranking official at South Africa's state-owned energy company in order to corruptly obtain confidential information and win lucrative contracts," the Justice Department added.

ABB and South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) also reached an agreement that the company will pay reparations for its involvement in state corruption, the crime agency said on Thursday.

"This is the department's first coordinated resolution with authorities in South Africa, where much of ABB's criminal scheme was carried out," the U.S. Justice Department said.

Between 2014 and 2017, ABB, through certain of its subsidiaries, paid bribes to a South African government official who was a high-ranking employee at the state-owned energy company, Eskom Holdings Limited, to obtain business advantages in connection with the award of multiple contracts, the Justice Department said.

In September, ABB said it was setting aside a provision of around $325 million to cover costs related to investigations surrounding the Kusile power plant in South Africa.

"We take the Kusile matter very seriously. Since it was reported, ABB has cooperated fully with all authorities and spent considerable time and effort – including launching a new code of conduct, educating employees and implementing an enhanced control system – to prevent something similar from happening again," ABB Chief Executive Björn Rosengren said on Friday.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; editing by Diane Craft and Marguerita Choy)

FOCUS: Hong Kong remains largely indifferent to China's zero-COVID protests

 By Caroline Tam, KYODO NEWS - 11 hours ago - 09:48 | World, All, Coronavirus

Despite an unprecedented show of civil disobedience in mainland China over its stringent "zero-COVID" measures, people in Hong Kong have so far demonstrated a notable lack of sympathy and support toward the situation across the border.

Over the past week, Hong Kong has seen a series of small-scale solidarity protests at local universities and on the streets, with individuals lighting candles and holding white placards in support of the demonstrations across China.

But despite this apparent show of solidarity, there was little participation from local Hong Kong citizens, as exchange students and immigrants from the mainland mainly attended the protests.

Part of this indifference could stem from a fear of legal repercussions under the national security law, sweeping legislation imposed by Beijing amid its crackdown on dissent in the city in 2020 following the sometimes violent anti-government protests of the previous year that saw thousands take to the streets.

The law, which criminalizes acts of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces, has sparked concerns about freedom of expression -- a fundamental right protected within the city's Basic Law -- as hundreds of demonstrators continue to be arrested and jailed for their involvement in the 2019 protests.

Photo taken Nov. 28, 2022, in Hong Kong shows demonstrators against the Chinese government's strict zero-COVID policy. (Kyodo)

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Related coverage:

China signals easing of "zero-COVID" policy following protests

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On Thursday, a Hong Kong man who had sustained a gunshot wound after being shot by police at close range during the 2019 unrest was sentenced to six years behind bars.

The legal repercussions are further exacerbated by the city's current social distancing measures, prohibiting public gatherings of more than 12 people.

Hong Kong has already seen the use of these measures to block major events in the past. In 2020, police arrested 24 pro-democracy figures on suspicion of illegal assembly after an annual vigil for the Tiananmen Square protests was banned due to public health concerns.

But also perhaps at the center of Hong Kong's lack of sympathy toward their mainland Chinese counterparts is Beijing's "one country, two systems" principle, which sought to integrate the former British colony into sovereign China while promising to preserve an array of political freedoms even after the city's handover in 1997.

In recent years, though, China has increasingly moved to undermine Hong Kong's autonomy and democracy, including the arrests of activists, lawmakers and journalists, crackdowns on pro-democracy organizations and curbed freedoms.

In 2021, Hong Kong saw a string of Beijing-imposed electoral reforms to ensure that only "patriots" govern the city, with only one opposition-leaning figure elected to the city's Legislative Council last December.

On Monday, Hong Kong leader John Lee called on Beijing to intervene in a high-profile national security case, which critics say further erodes the city's judicial independence guaranteed under the "one country, two systems" policy.

A graduate student at the University of Hong Kong, who wished to remain anonymous, told Kyodo News that people in Hong Kong and mainland China have different goals in mind, making it difficult for their aspirations to be aligned with each other.

While the demonstrators in China are fighting for individual rights, the people of Hong Kong are fighting for civil liberties, she said. "What they are after is far from what we are after."

She said the cause is still worthy of support and that she may join future protests, though she is skeptical of the movement's longevity.

"They are inherently afraid to talk about politics...As soon as China relaxes its measures, I think the event will end."

Nathan Law, a Hong Kong activist, currently exiled in London, said on Twitter that while it was important for mainland Chinese protestors to stand united in their cause, there was a deeper need for ideological transformation in order to effect real change.

"A mass movement cannot exist before a change in consciousness," he wrote. "I think the more profound question is...how to recognize that the right to decide the future of the country should be in your own hands."

How China spends more on quashing dissent than on defence

China’s public safety spending reached $210 billion in 2020. It was also as much as 7 per cent higher than its national defence spending in 2020.

Tirtho Banerjee

New Delhi,

UPDATED: Dec 3, 2022

Protests erupted in China recently against Covid lockdowns after an apartment fire killed 11 (Photo: India Today)


By Tirtho Banerjee: The recent protests in China go beyond a shrill cry to lift Covid restrictions. They are adamant appeals to give people the freedom to express and change political policies that muffle dissent.

Fervent calls like ‘Step down Xi (Jinping)’ and ‘We don’t want dictators’ had resonated across Chinese cities as public took to streets in an unprecedented show of defiance against the Communist regime. It was bottled-up frustration and anger not just against the snap lockdowns, relentless testing, strict travel caps and prolonged quarantines, but at the root was a graver issue: Chinese government’s inhuman measures to crack down on anti-government narrative.

At many places, mobile phones of people were checked for photos and messages, along with their IDs. The police ensured that banned apps that might show sympathy for the protests were nowhere there. Even as people held marches in a peaceful manner, the cops detained many of them, adding fuel to the unrest.

The blaze in Anyang city, in the central Henan Province, which claimed more than 10 lives, and the clashes between security personnel and workers at Apple’s i-Phone making-plant in Zhengzhou, catalyzed the protests. Many experts said that the Covid restrictions were a ploy to quash the outcry against larger issues like pay disparity, and poor working conditions.

READ | Unprecedented protests in China: Key questions answered

SPENDING ON “PUBLIC SAFETY”

China has always had a zero-tolerance policy against dissent. And when it comes to quelling dissidence, the Communist government leaves no stone unturned. In fact, it spends more on controlling or combating internal disturbances than on its defence.

China calls it “public safety” or internal security. And its public safety spending reached $210 billion (approximately 1.39 trillion yuan) in 2020. This was a threefold increase in the past decade. It was also as much as 7 per cent higher than its national defense spending in 2020.

Reports indicate that since 2010, the allocation for “public safety” has surpassed the country’s military spending, with a difference of roughly 166 million yuan in 2019.

The “public safety” expenditure includes state security, police, domestic surveillance, armed civil militia, and other measures to deal with public disturbances. Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Xinjiang were the top three provinces in terms of “public security” spending.

The increased allocation for “public safety” is also indicative of the fact that the Chinese are piling more pressure on the government, which continues to try to control free speech at home.

If we go by the present protests, there are signs that even though the demonstrations have thinned out, the demands would stay. Wouldn’t this drive up the government spending on “public safety” further?

FROM TIANANMEN SQUARE TILL NOW

It was after the Tiananmen Square protests in June 1989 – in which hundreds were killed -- that the Chinese government realized how grave was the public angst centered around demands for more political freedom and less censorship. The internal security was ramped up, and a strategy focusing on controlling the unrest rather than using immediate force was put into place.

Ten years later, the changed strategy became apparent when more than 10,000 Chinese followers of Falun Gong meditation sect gathered on the streets outside the Communist Party headquarters in April 1999, posing a challenge to the Communist government. The government, then headed by president of China Jiang Zemin, took swift action against the demonstrators but spilled little blood.

In 2008, there was a Tibet uprising as anti-government riots rocked Lhasa and its ripples were felt in western China. Following the protests, there was a massive crackdown on dissidents. However, the situation was brought under control quickly, and without much violent action.

As many as 197 people – mostly Han Chinese civilians - were killed in Ãœrümqi riots in July 2009. Members of the Uyghur Muslim minority, who were involved in the clashes with the Han people, were sentenced to heavy jail terms and the tension defused. It was through the massive “public safety” spending that the Chinese government was able to bring about a semblance of calm and take control over the disturbance.

Following the recent protests against Covid restrictions, the shift from use of direct force to monitoring online content for anti-government messages, banned news and apps is quite discernible. China’s security mechanism has a digital challenge to face ahead. And it’s equipping itself for it. But the pertinent question is how far it’s justified and sustainable?

READ | From Shanghai to Hong Kong: Protests in China for 'freedom' from Covid lockdowns in pics and videos

WATCH | Can protests against China's zero-Covid policy pose a threat to Xi Jinping regime?

--- ENDS ---

How China got in its zero-COVID trap

1 December 2022

Authors: Dustin Lo and Yves Tiberghien, UBC

On November 27 and 28 2022, tens of thousands of citizens took part in unprecedented protests in major cities and 75 university campuses across China, demanding freedom and an end to zero-COVID policies. This followed violent clashes in Zhengzhou between fed-up iPhone workers and the police. How did it come to this?

After local prevarication in Wuhan in December 2019 and January 2020 about the seriousness of COVID-19, China resorted to an intense national mobilisation campaign to keep the virus under control. This response enabled an economic rebound in late 2020 and 2021.

But China’s zero-COVID response to the Omicron variant after March 2022 has become all-encompassing, unpredictable and economically ruinous. A logic of political control has pushed aside pragmatic health and economic policy. China’s urban public is frustrated.

The nature of the Omicron variant and the political calendar played a role in the intensification of technocratic and digital zero-COVID controls. Upholding zero-COVID policies became a performance indicator for officials in China’s political system as they jockeyed for positions before the 20th National Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) held from 16–22 October 2022.

COVID-19 was portrayed as a huge threat despite Omicron’s relatively lower pathogenicity compared to earlier variants. Public health measures ramped up, while prominent medical experts and critics of the response were silenced, including former president of China’s Medical Association Zhong Nanshan. COVID-controls became vectors for political control, no matter the mental health or economic costs. When local officials resort to full social control to gain political currency within the Party, as China’s State Council called out in the case of Zhengzhou, it results in policy overreaction, anxiety and uncertainty for the public.

People are repeatedly locked down without prior notice or end dates in sight, as has been the case in cities like Sanya and Guangzhou. Buildings are fenced. People obsess about the colour of their electronic health code. And close contacts (mijie) or digitally-determined potential contacts (shikongbansuizhe) are taken to remote quarantine centres (fancang) for 7–10 days under potentially harsh conditions.

Tragedies are multiplying, prominently in the cities of Lanzhou, Guiyang, Sichuan province, and, most notoriously, in Urumqi, with the death of 10 people trapped in a burning high-rise on 24 November. Individuals’ loss of control over their daily lives proliferates the tang ping (lying flat) attitude. People’s mobility on China’s National Day holiday was disrupted. Businesses cannot plan and China’s youth struggle to find jobs, with youth unemployment sitting at 19 per cent.

Former CCP Secretary of Shanghai Li Qiang presided over the city’s poorly administered lockdown in April. Instead of the policy failures tarnishing Li’s reputation, he was promoted to the second highest position on the CCP’s Politburo Standing Committee and is in line to become China’s premier in March 2023.

Omicron’s relatively greater transmissibility but lower pathogenicity ostensibly increased the costs of zero-COVID closures. Yet to local Party bureaucrats, the opportunity costs of zero-COVID measures may be lower than opening-up, and may be given different weights than they are under democratic political systems. This is because they need to follow the Party’s campaign-style implementation of zero-COVID measures to survive politically.

Other Asian neighbours turned to vaccinations and normalised life during 2022. There was a real cost to this, but one that was seen as lower than the cost of staying closed. For example, between 1 January and 8 November, cumulative deaths per million in Singapore went from 147 to 300. This happened despite a capable medical system and relatively high double vaccination and booster rates with mostly mRNA vaccines of around 90 and 79 per cent respectively.

In contrast, China’s mortality rate is 3.7 deaths per million. Its double vaccination rate (with non-mRNA vaccines) was 89 per cent in November, but booster vaccine doses have only been given to 57 per cent of the eligible population, leaving China vulnerable to future virus waves. The low public trust in China’s vaccines and an unwillingness to import foreign mRNA vaccines leaves China stuck in an Omicron trap.

Six further observations can be made about the politics of China’s pandemic management in 2022. First, the COVID-19 pandemic has become a justification for movement away from China’s past era of reform and opening. Second, COVID-19 controls were not materially relaxed following the CPC’s 20th National Party Congress. Although China’s National Health Commission released a memo on optimising COVID-19 response measures, there have been few major changes in COVID-19 management so far.

Third, 2022 has exposed China’s deficits in healthcare, welfare and mental health supports. It has also demonstrated China’s capacity in surveillance, digital control and policing. Fourth, the international appeal of China’s human security discourse that emphasises human life over individual freedom remains doubtful considering the painful human experiences China’s people endure.

Fifth, 2022 has seen a fragmentation and localisation of China’s economy, as local officials implement zero-COVID measures in an ‘overly-firm manner’ (zuofeng guoying) to signal political loyalty towards China’s President Xi Jinping. Human exchanges have been reduced between China and the world (despite a slight loosening in quarantine policies for people entering China), and within China. Local languages are making a resurgence. Sixth and overall, export-oriented cities like Shenzhen have faced lighter restrictions than financial centres like Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Demonstrators hold up blank sheets of paper during a protest in Beijing on November 28. Image: Screengrab / CNN

At the close of 2022, despite the zero-COVID measures, Omicron is spreading across China. The Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party’s Politburo reaffirmed its policy approach, but citizens are exhausted. Their anger finally spilled over on November 27–28 in an outburst of social medial rebellion and protests across China, taking the party leadership by surprise. China’s economy is underperforming compared to the rest of Asia for the first time since 1990. Whether China can find a pragmatic and peaceful way out of its zero-COVID approach remains an open question.

Dustin Lo is a MA candidate in political science and research assistant at the University of British Columbia.

Yves Tiberghien is Professor of Political Science and Director Emeritus of the Institute of Asian Research at the University of British Columbia. He is also a Distinguished Fellow at the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada.

This article is part of an EAF special feature series on 2022 in review and the year ahead.

This article, was first published by East Asia Forum, which is based out of the Crawford School of Public Policy within the College of Asia and the Pacific at the Australian National University.

Why NASA’s X-34 Mach 8 Spaceplane Failed

By Brent M. Eastwood

X-34. Image Credit: NASA.


Before the X-37B record-setting spaceplane that can orbit the earth for years, NASA had a precursor craft that planned to accomplish cheap spaceflight with a reusability feature. Hatched in the 1990s, the X-34 was a technology demonstrator that didn’t make it to fruition, but some of its best aspects were incorporated into the X-37B.

Get Into Space Faster and Cheaper than the Space Shuttle

The program started in 1996 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. NASA wanted a craft that could reach space more frequently than the Space Shuttle. It would have a much smaller payload, but it would still be able to conduct valuable experiments in space with a quicker turnaround. Space payloads are expensive. Each payload can cost $10,000 per pound. The X-34 would have reduced that price to $1,000 a pound. Cost for each flight would be a dirt cheap $500,000 per mission.

High Speed Would Enable It to Reach Orbit

The other interesting feature of the X-34 was its speed. It was designed and intended to go MACH 8 and then reach an altitude of 50 miles. The spaceplane would orbit and then return to earth in a runway landing similar to the Space Shuttle. NASA only built two X-34 prototypes despite the lofty ambitions and innovative ideas of the program. The X-34 was 58 feet long and had a wingspan of nearly 28 feet.

It Had Some Interesting Specs

The unmanned X-34 had many features that were ahead of its time. It boasted GPS enabled inertial navigation system, reusable fuel tanks, thermal protection systems for bad weather, an automatic landing system, and inexpensive avionics.

It was transferred to NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, California in the late 1990s. It had passed ground testing flights and was ready to be evaluated in captive carry flight. The spaceplane was carried into the air in 1999 by an Orbital Sciences Corporation Lockheed L-1011. If the captive carry tests went well, then the X-34 would have a follow on test when it would light up its pump-fed liquid fuel Fastrac rocket motor for the trip into orbit. There were two more captive carry test flights that year, but then the X-34 was grounded for good.

The original idea was to get quick feedback from the tests and take the lessons learned and integrate those features into other prototypes. Program analysts also wanted to see which type of management styles were optimum for reusable space vehicles. NASA thought it could someday make test flights every two weeks. But this never materialized.

Testing Program Had Difficulties


There were problems in the testing program. The auto-landing feature did not work correctly. The avionics were poor. By the year 2000, NASA and Orbital Sciences determined they needed to re-jigger the entire system of evaluation or cancel the program outright. They tried more ground tests and even planned to move it to White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Another prototype would be built and sent to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico as well.

Costs Became Prohibitive

But the spacecraft had enormous cost overruns and it did not appear that it would meet its milestones for the ambitious timeline. NASA believed that the X-34 was burning too much cash and it chose to stop all funding leading to its cancellation in 2001.

What Could Be Done With These Spaceplanes?

It did not end well for the X-34. It would seem that it still could have flown again or remain a technology demonstrator to train designers and engineers on unmanned flight, but that was not the case.

After cancellation the surviving platforms went on an odyssey of different Air Force and civilian installations such as Edwards Air Force Base and Mojave Air and Space Port. The existing X-34s were ignominiously housed at a residential backyard in Lancaster, California – a disappointing end for a space program that at one point showed much promise.

Expert Biography: Serving as 1945’s Defense and National Security Editor, Dr. Brent M. Eastwood is the author of Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare. He is an Emerging Threats expert and former U.S. Army Infantry officer. You can follow him on Twitter @BMEastwood. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and Foreign Policy/ International Relations.

US, Brazil plan Biden-Lula meeting in Washington

Veteran leftist Lula (pic) defeated far-right incumbent Bolsonaro in a hard-fought election in October, returning to power after two presidential terms served from 2003 to 2011.— AFP pic

Saturday, 03 Dec 2022 

BRASÍLIA, Dec 3 — Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and US officials said yesterday he is planning to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House, likely before taking office on January 1.

“I can confirm that we are planning for a visit,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. “We look forward to welcoming president Lula here at the appropriate time.”

Another NSC spokeswoman, Adrienne Watson, said that Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, would travel to Brazil Monday to meet with Lula, as well as with members of outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration.

Veteran leftist Lula defeated far-right incumbent Bolsonaro in a hard-fought election in October, returning to power after two presidential terms served from 2003 to 2011.

Lula said he and Sullivan would “hold talks and discuss the date” for a visit to Washington — probably after December 12, the day his victory is formally ratified by Brazil’s electoral tribunal, he told a news conference in Brasilia.

US-Brazilian relations have chilled since Biden defeated former president Donald Trump, Bolsonaro’s political role model, in the 2020 US election.

But ties look set to warm under Lula.

Biden was one of the first world leaders to congratulate him on his election win.

“I think we have a lot to say to each other,” Lula said.

“The United States is facing the same problems with democracy as Brazil. The damage Trump did to American democracy is the same as what Bolsonaro did to Brazil.”

Diplomatic issues on the table will include “US-Brazilian relations, Brazil’s role in the new geopolitics (and) the unnecessary Ukraine war,” Lula said.

The Biden administration will also likely be keen to discuss climate policy, after four years of surging deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon under agribusiness ally Bolsonaro.

Lula vowed last month at the UN climate conference in Egypt — which Bolsonaro skipped — to fight for zero deforestation in Brazil’s 60-per cent share of the world’s biggest rainforest, a key resource in the fight to curb climate change.

The incoming president said he would also begin naming his cabinet ministers after December 12 — with markets particularly anxious over his pick for finance minister, amid concerns about how his government will pay for his promised social spending.

The White House said Sullivan will be accompanied by other officials from the NSC and the State Department when he visits Brasilia on Monday.

He “will meet with Brazilian Secretary for Strategic Affairs Admiral Flavio Rocha, President-elect Lula da Silva, and Senator Jaques Wagner,” NSC spokeswoman Watson said, referring to an important ally of Lula.

“During the meetings, Sullivan will discuss how the United States and Brazil can continue to work together to address common challenges, including combatting climate change, safeguarding food security, promoting inclusion and democracy, and managing regional migration.” — AFP

Understanding Teen Hackers: DHS to Examine Attacks from LAPSUS$ Gang

The Department of Homeland Security's Cyber Safety Review Board is going to review the hacking techniques from LAPSUS$ to help organizations protect themselves from similar threats.

by Michael Kan

Dec 02, 2022



To bolster the country’s cybersecurity, the Department of Homeland Security is going to examine the hacking techniques from the cybercriminal gang LAPSUS$ to find ways companies can protect themselves from similar threats.

The review means US officials will be scrutinizing a suspected group of teenage hackers. Even so, LAPSUS$ was able to breach numerous high-profile companies earlier this year including Nvidia, Microsoft, Samsung and most recently Uber and possibly Rockstar Games.

DHS is kicking off the probe through its Cyber Safety Review Board, which was launched in Feb. The board’s goal has been to “thoroughly assess past events, ask the hard questions, and drive improvements across the private and public sectors.”

The board’s first project was to examine last year’s pervasive Apache Log4j 2 vulnerability, which state-sponsored hackers were quick to exploit. The review resulted in 19 recommendations for the government and the industry to take, which included greater investment in open source software security.

The Cyber Safety Review Board selected LAPSUS$ as its next project, saying the group managed to “bypass a range of commonly-used security controls and has successfully infiltrated a number of companies across industries and geographic areas.”

In addition, the LAPSUS$ gang often resorted to cyber extortion. For example, when the group hacked Nvidia, its members began trying to sell the company's stolen information unless Nvidia paid up in cryptocurrency. Numerous ransomware gangs have been using the same tactic over the years to pressure victims into surrendering to their demands.

The other reason DHS is conducting the review might be because law enforcement has already apprehended two suspected members of the group, one in Brazil and one in the UK. Since the arrests, the gang's activity has also been quiet.

Hence, US investigators may already have greater insight into the gang's tactics and motives. The Cyber Safety Review Board said it plans on developing “actionable recommendations” companies can take to protect themselves from similar attacks.

Jen Easterly, director for the US’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, noted the LAPSUS$ gang has also infiltrated IT systems at healthcare and government organizations. “The range of victims and diversity of tactics used demand that we understand how LAPSUS$ actors executed their malicious cyber activities so we can mitigate risk to potential future victims,” she said in a statement.

World’s oldest tortoise that has seen both world wars celebrates 190th birthday

Jonathan the tortoise is the oldest known living land animal on Earth


Jonathan, the world's oldest tortoise, has turned 190. PA

The National

Dec 02, 2022

The world’s oldest tortoise has lived through the two world wars, witnessed the rise and fall of the British Empire, and has just turned 190.

Jonathan the Seychelles giant tortoise hatched in the Georgian era and is the oldest known living land animal on Earth and the oldest chelonian ever recorded.

Born in the early 1800s, Jonathan has lived on St Helena — an island situated in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean — since 1882.

READ MORE

Search is on to find more 'extinct' Galapagos Islands giant tortoises

Jonathan’s age is an estimation but shell measurements documented from a photograph taken shortly after his arrival to St Helena show he was fully mature and at least 50 years old when he arrived from Seychelles in 1882 — although it is likely that he is even older.

Joe Hollins began caring for Jonathan when he worked as a St Helena’s veterinary surgeon and, although now retired, still helps look after the tortoise.

Mr Hollins said: “When you think, if he was hatched in 1832 — the Georgian era — my goodness, the changes in the world.

“The world wars, the rise and fall of the British Empire, the many governors, kings and queens that have passed, it’s quite extraordinary.

“And he’s just been here, enjoying himself.”

Jonathan hatched in the Georgian era and is the oldest known living land animal on Earth. Press Association

At the start of 2022 Jonathan achieved the Guinness World Records title for the world’s oldest living land animal and this month, he has also been named as the oldest documented tortoise.

Jonathan has spent the majority of his life on the British Overseas Territory, one of the world’s most remote islands. He lives on the grounds of Plantation House, the governor's residence, alongside three much younger tortoises called David, Emma and Fred.

He has witnessed more than 35 governors come and go from Plantation House and has seen the island introduce radio, telephones, TVs, internet, cars and an airport.

Mr Hollins said it was a privilege to look after the elderly animal, who he described as “magnificent”.

“I do think he’s fabulous actually, he’s a great animal,” he said.

A photo of Jonathan taken around 1886, issued by St Helena island. Press Association

“And as a vet — what greater privilege is there than to be looking after the oldest known living land animal in the world? I mean, how often does that happen?

“It is such a privilege to be able to care for this magnificent animal.”

To celebrate his 190th birthday, residents from across the island will be come together on Friday to honour Jonathan over three days at a birthday party at the governor’s residence.

Highlights will include a display of a range of posters celebrating Jonathan’s life, bearing pictures and messages from those who have visited him over the years.

On Saturday, a series of activities honouring his birthday will include a chat with the governor and his wife as they feed Jonathan his favourite vegetables.

The event will be live streamed online from Plantation House so anyone from across the world can join in with the celebrations.

An animated video and song dedicated to celebrating Jonathan’s life will premiere on Sunday, and he will be given a ‘birthday cake’ — made entirely out of his favourite healthy foods.

A special stamp will also be on sale alongside other memorabilia which islanders will be able to win during novelty tortoise-themed games.

For more information about the celebrations, visit St Helena Tourism’s Facebook page.

Updated: December 02, 2022, 12:17 p.m.

"Catastrophic failure": DOJ tried to hide report warning private border wall in Texas could collapse

The report confirms an investigation that found the privately built fencing could collapse during major flooding

By PERLA TREVIZO - JEREMY SCHWARTZ
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 2, 2022 

A construction crew works on a section of privately built border wall funded by hardline immigration group We Build The Wall on December 11, 2019 near Mission, Texas. 

(John Moore/Getty Images)

This article originally appeared on ProPublica.

Aprivate border wall built along the Rio Grande in South Texas could collapse during extreme flooding, according to a federally commissioned inspection report that the government sought to keep secret for more than a year.

The 404-page report, produced by the global engineering firm Arcadis, confirms previous reporting from ProPublica and The Texas Tribune. It also shows for the first time that the federal government independently found structural problems with the border fencing before reaching a settlement agreement with the builder, Fisher Industries, in May.

Under the agreement, which ended a nearly three-year legal battle between the International Boundary and Water Commission and Fisher Industries, the company must inspect the fence quarterly, remove bollards and maintain a gate that would allow for the release of floodwaters. It must also keep a $3 million bond, a type of insurance, to cover any expenses in case the structure fails.

Engineering and hydrology experts told the news organizations the bond is inadequate to cover the kind of catastrophic failure described by Arcadis and raised concerns that the federal government's decision to settle the case cuts against the report's findings.

The company modeled different scenarios using the extreme weather conditions caused by Hurricane Beulah, a 1967 storm that dumped about 30 inches of rain in some areas of the border region and caused the banks of the Rio Grande to overflow. The modeling showed that the fence "would effectively slide and/or overturn" during major flooding, and that it starts to become unstable during much smaller and more frequent floods.

According to the report, the fencing doesn't meet basic international building code and industry standards and has a foundation far shallower than border barriers built by the federal government.

"Every single conclusion in the report points to it not needing to be there and shows it is actually negatively affecting the area," said Adriana E. Martinez, a professor and geomorphologist at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. (She was not involved with the report.)

Martinez, who studies the impact of border barriers in South Texas, questioned how much more evidence the state and federal governments need to take down the fencing and prevent future construction along the Rio Grande.

Arcadis referred questions about its assessment to the Department of Justice, which represented the IBWC in the lawsuit, arguing the fence violated a treaty with Mexico that requires both countries to approve any development that can affect the international boundary. A DOJ spokesperson declined to answer specific questions about the settlement or about why the government fought the release of the report.

The news organizations obtained the report on Nov. 15 after multiple Freedom of Information Act requests and 15 months of back-and-forth with the federal government, which initially denied the request. The DOJ reversed course and released the report after ProPublica attorneys threatened legal action.

As part of the settlement, federal officials ordered that Fisher Industries and its subsidiaries destroy all copies of the Arcadis report, alleging that it contained "proprietary information."

"Reading this and seeing the settlement that came out of this, it's as though they completely disregarded the Arcadis report," said Amy Patrick, a Houston forensic structural and civil engineer and court-recognized expert on wall construction. "I can see why they were dragging their heels so much on letting it get out because (the report) basically completely dismantled this idea that the fence will be OK."

Mark Courtois, an attorney for Fisher Industries, said that the construction company "strongly disagreed with the opinions in the Arcadis report and refuted those opinions to the satisfaction of the IBWC." He said the company worked with the IBWC, which is charged with oversight of the international treaty, to "reach a mutually agreeable resolution of all matters pertaining to the fence, including any issues raised by the Arcadis report."

"Construction of the fence was completed nearly three years ago, and we continue to be confident in its design and construction," Courtois said.

Sally Spener, a spokesperson for the IBWC, denied that Fisher was able to counter the conclusions in the Arcadis report to the agency's satisfaction.

In an email to the news organizations, Spener said that the agency accepted the report's findings, which showed a far greater impact on the flow of the Rio Grande than the builder had claimed. Despite that, she added, the settlement agreement's requirements address the agency's concerns that the barrier would violate the treaty.

But the settlement agreement won't address the report's findings that the fence was built on a flawed design and featured construction shortcomings that could contribute to its collapse, said Alex Mayer, a civil engineering professor at the University of Texas at El Paso.

"It just shows the shoddiness of the whole effort. It worries me even more," Mayer said.

Tommy Fisher, president of Fisher Industries, started to construct the fence in 2019 with financial support from the online fundraising campaign We Build the Wall. The nonprofit was set up to help former President Donald Trump build his "big, beautiful wall" along the length of the border. In the end, four of the nonprofit's top leaders, including Trump's former adviser Steve Bannon, were arrested on fraud and other charges connected to the fundraising scheme.

Trump pardoned Bannon in January 2021. But in September, Bannon was indicted on state charges in New York. Bannon called the charges "nothing more than a partisan political weaponization of the criminal justice system."

The three other men, including Brian Kolfage, an Air Force veteran who led the organization, face sentencing on Jan. 31 in federal court on various fraud and tax-related charges. Kolfage and another man pleaded guilty in April. The third man was convicted in October.

Soon after construction of the fence began, the DOJ filed a lawsuit in federal court to try to halt the work, claiming that Fisher Industries was violating the treaty with Mexico. A state district judge in Hidalgo County granted the government a temporary restraining order to stop construction, but a federal judge later reversed it.

During a January 2020 court hearing, Fisher claimed that his bollard wall design would bring security to the actual border by addressing the flooding and erosion concerns that previously prevented the federal government from building near the river's edge.

The 3-mile project was completed in February 2020, making it the first border fence built directly on the riverbank in South Texas. We Build the Wall contributed about $1.5 million of the $42 million total cost, with the rest coming from Fisher, according to court testimony.

The areas around the private border fence soon started to show signs of erosion. Six hydrologists and engineers told ProPublica and the Tribune in July 2020 that the foundation of the fence was too shallow and that a series of gashes and gullies where rainwater runoff had scoured the sandy loam beneath the foundation raised stability concerns.

Following the organization's news articles, Trump tried to distance himself from the project, saying on Twitter that it had been constructed to make him look bad.

Fisher called the news organizations' reporting on engineering concerns "absolute nonsense" during a 2020 podcast interview hosted by Bannon.

"I would invite any of these engineers that so-called said this was gonna fall over, I'll meet 'em there next week. … If you don't know what you're talking about, you probably shouldn't start talking," he said. "It's working unbelievably well. There's a little erosion maintenance we have to maintain."

As climate change contributes to more extreme weather, better understanding the erosion that is occurring is critical, Martinez said.

"We know that there are more extreme hurricane seasons that are occurring due to climate change, so we know that it's more likely that the fence is going to get flooded out in the Rio Grande," Martinez said. "It's just a matter of time before something happens."

The fence outside Mission is one of two private border barriers built using private funds, but it may not be the last.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has embarked on an effort to build fencing along the state's 1,200-mile border using a mixture of state funds and crowdsourced private dollars. And Trump said he would continue border wall construction while announcing last month that he would again run for the country's highest office.

Ryan Patrick, a former U.S. attorney whose office first filed the lawsuit against Fisher, said that by settling the case and requiring a bond, the government limits the risk of losing at trial. Patrick left office before the settlement was negotiated. He continues to believe that the judge should not have allowed Fisher to build the fence.

The settlement doesn't prevent someone from constructing on the floodplain in the future, he said, but it shows that the government will not give unrestricted authority to potential builders. "You are going to have long-term care and custody of that thing," he said.

Amy Patrick, who is not related to Ryan Patrick, offered a different perspective.

The structural engineer said that the government's handling of the legal case, and what she sees as an apparent indifference to its own engineering report, could set "a precedent that credible engineering will be disregarded in similar projects in the future."

US company turns air pollution into fuel, bottles and dresses

Agence France-Presse
December 02, 2022

'We can take garbage, we can take biomass, we can take off gas from an industrial plant,' said LanzaTech's Zara Summers, who previously worked for ExxonMobil 

© KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP

At LanzaTech's lab in the Chicago suburbs, a beige liquid bubbles away in dozens of glass vats.

The concoction includes billions of hungry bacteria, specialized to feed on polluted air -- the first step in a recycling system that converts greenhouse gases into usable products.

Thanks to licensing agreements, LanzaTech's novel microorganisms are already being put to commercial use by three Chinese factories, converting waste emissions into ethanol.

That ethanol is then used as a chemical building block for consumer items such as plastic bottles, athletic wear and even dresses, via tie-ins with major brands such as Zara and L'Oreal.

"I wouldn't have thought that 14 years later, we would have a cocktail dress on the market that's made out of steel emissions," said microbiologist Michael Kopke, who joined LanzaTech a year after its founding.

LanzaTech is the only American company among 15 finalists for the Earthshot Prize, an award for contributions to environmentalism launched by Britain's Prince William and broadcaster David Attenborough. Five winners will be announced Friday.

To date, LanzaTech says it has kept 200,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, while producing 50 million gallons (190 million liters) of ethanol.

That's a small drop in the bucket when it comes to the actual quantities needed to combat climate change, Kopke concedes.

But having spent 15 years developing the methodology and proving its large-scale feasibility, the company is now seeking to ramp up its ambition and multiply the number of participating factories.

"We really want to get to a point where we only use above ground carbon, and keep that in circulation," says Kopke -- in other words, avoid extracting new oil and gas.

Industry partnerships

LanzaTech, which employs about 200 people, compares its carbon recycling technology to a brewery -- but instead of taking sugar and yeast to make beer, it uses carbon pollution and bacteria to make ethanol.

The bacteria used in their process was identified decades ago in rabbit droppings.

The company placed it in industrial conditions to optimize it in those settings, "almost like an athlete that we trained," said Kopke.

Bacteria are sent out in the form of a freeze-dried powder to corporate clients in China, which have giant versions of the vats back in Chicago, several meters high.

The corporate clients that built these facilities will then reap the rewards of the sale of ethanol -- as well as the positive PR from offsetting pollution from their main businesses.

The clients in China are a steel plant and two ferroalloy plants. Six other sites are under construction, including one in Belgium for an ArcelorMittal plant, and in India with the Indian Oil Company.

Because the bacteria can ingest CO2, carbon monoxide and hydrogen, the process is extremely flexible, explains Zara Summers, LanzaTech's vice president of science.

"We can take garbage, we can take biomass, we can take off gas from an industrial plant," said Summers, who spent ten years working for ExxonMobil.

Products already on the shelves include a line of dresses at Zara. Sold at around $90, they are made of polyester, 20 percent of which comes from captured gas.

"In the future, I think the vision is there is no such thing as waste, because carbon can be reused again," said Summers.

Sustainable aviation fuel

LanzaTech has also founded a separate company, LanzaJet, to use the ethanol to create "sustainableaviation fuel" or SAF.

Increasing global SAF production is a huge challenge for the fuel-heavy aviation sector, which is seeking to green itself.

LanzaJet is aiming to achieve one billion gallons of SAF production in the United States per year by 2030.

Unlike bioethanol produced from wheat, beets or corn, fuel created from greenhouse gas emissions doesn't require the use of agricultural land.

For LanzaTech, the next challenge is to commercialize bacteria that will produce chemicals other than ethanol.

In particular, they have their sights set on directly producing ethylene, "one of the most widely used chemicals in the world," per Kopke -- thus saving energy associated with having to first convert ethanol into ethylene.