The Business of Battle: Law, National Security, and the Global Marketplace
Duke Law: Battlefields, Boardrooms, and Backyards: The New Face of National Security Law Moderator: Dr. Christopher Swift, J.D., Ph.D., Adjunct Professor of National Security Studies, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service Mr. Christopher Taylor, Chairman and CEO of Novitas Group Mr. Ron Reed, Director, National Security Law, Microsoft Corporation Mr. Jay Stephens, Sr. Vice President,…
The Diane Rehm Show: Drones And Their Use In Counterterrorism
Supporters of U.S. drone policy say it’s effective, less costly and will remain a major tool in warfare. But human rights activists and other critics say civilian casualties are still too high, the program lacks transparency and the U.S. might be setting precedents it will come to regret. Drones And Their Use In…
US drone strikes chief under scrutiny
President Obama’s choice for director of the CIA, John Brennan, was endorsed by the US Senate Thursday amid controversy over his role in the drone strike killings. VoR’s Tom Spender reports on the background to his nomination.
Romney Ignores Gulf in Iran Geography Gaffe
RIA Novosti By Carl Schreck WASHINGTON – Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has promised to bring a coherent Middle East policy to the White House should he win next month’s election. He may want to bone up on the geography of the region first. During his presidential debate Monday evening with Democratic incumbent Barack Obama,…
Will a temporary truce work in Syria?
Al-Jazeera Inside Syria The United Nations and Arab League special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi is in Damascus to persuade Bashar al-Assad, Syrian president, to comply with a four-day truce. He is proposing it begin during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, on October 26th. Brahimi’s call has drawn growing regional and international support, including from Turkey…
Details Emerge Of U.S. Charges Against Maksim Bakiev
Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty By Ainura Asankojoeva, Charles Recknagel, and Gulaiym Ashakeeva Why does the United States want to arrest the son of a former Kyrgyz president who resides in Britain? The question has been circulating ever since Maksim Bakiev, 35, was arrested in London on an extradition request from Washington late on October 12….
Drone strikes a scandal… or just a sideshow?
The Guardian By Jenny Holland Peace activists and human rights groups have been vocal in their condemnation of the US policy of drone strikes against militant targets in Pakistan and Yemen. The narrative often repeated by these groups is that drones are loathed in both countries, and are driving the population into the arms of…
U.S. Drones Navigate Murky Legal Path In Pakistan
National Public Radio By Dina Temple-Raston The U.S. has been carrying out drone strikes in Pakistan for some eight years, but it’s done so under a policy that has emerged piecemeal over that time. “It started in 2004, when drones were really an oddity,” says Daniel Markey, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign…
Benghazi Attack Raises New Questions About Al-Qaida
National Public Radio By Dina Temple-Raston For the past decade, al-Qaida has been a top-down organization. Letters seized at Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan showed that he was a hands-on manager, approving everything from operations to leadership changes in affiliate groups. But there’s early intelligence that al-Qaida may have had a small role in…
U.S. mulls going after al-Qaeda in North Africa
The Globe & Mail By Geoffrey York and Paul Koring JOHANNESBURG and WASHINGTON — The deserts of northern Mali are an endless vista of shifting sands and empty dunes. For years, it has been a nearly impenetrable haven for kidnappers, drug-traffickers, gunrunners and heavily armed militia groups. But northern Mali is also emerging as a…
Syrian War Far From Over
Well the situation in Syria continues to develop after yesterday’s suicide bombing in which three of Assad’s top security chiefs were killed. Some reports say that Assad may have left Damascus for the coast city of Latakia. Russia and China vetoed a UN Security council resolution that could have led to more sanctions against Syria,…
Expert: No Drone Backlash in Yemen
Offiziere By David Axe Lethal strikes by armed drones are America’s best and less obtrusive method of killing Islamic militants and dismantling their terror networks while minimizing civilian casualties. Or they’re a misguided and counter-productive attempt at sterilizing the dirty work of counter-terrorism — one that serves as a rallying cry for terrorist recruiters and…
AQAP In Yemen, The Causes
Russia Today The Alyona Show Well, it’s only Monday, but as usual, there’s plenty to talk about. Today we’ll focus more on foreign policy, and of course, the drug war, as Enrique Pena Nieto claims the victory in the Mexican elections. Then, new sanctions on Iranian oil have taken effect, and the population and economy…
Has the Damascus attack broken al-Assad?
Al-Jazeera Inside Syria General Daoud Rajha, the Syrian defence minister, has been killed in an attack on the National Security headquarters. The attack also killed Assef Shawkat, the Syrian interior minister and President Bashar al-Assad’s brother-in-law, and injured the national security chief. It was an attack at the heart of the Syrian government – a…
God, Homeland, Revolution, Unit
Military.com By Carl Prine PITTSBURGH, PA – It’s my very great pleasure to welcome back to Line of Departure Christopher Swift. Very great, I say, because he’s alive, and I didn’t lay good odds on his longevity when he told me he was sojourning into the heart of Yemen, including districts contested by al Qaeda,…
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s 9/11 Trial Tests Military Courts
Bloomberg News By David Glovin and David Lerman WASHINGTON – Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the accused mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, will appear before a judge in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, tomorrow to be arraigned for the second time in a case that will test whether alleged terrorists can get justice before U.S. military tribunals….
Brigade that posed with dead Afghan bombers showed signs of trouble
The Christian Science Monitor By Anna Mulrine WASHINGTON – Col. Brian Drinkwine had an inkling of trouble even before his 4th brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division left for Afghanistan. Originally slated to go to Iraq, the brigade received a change in orders: become badly-needed mentors for Afghan security forces. At the time, the brigade…
U.S. troops pose with maimed Afghan insurgent bodies
Radio New Zealand Nine to Noon Dr. Christopher Swift, a fellow at the University of Virginia’s Centre for National Security Law, and author of The Fighting Vanguard: Local Insurgencies in the Global Jihad discusses the implications of the shocking photographs that apparently show US soldiers posing with the corpses and body parts of Afghan insurgents.
Review: The Crisis in Yemen
American Diplomacy By David Jones CHAPEL HILL, NC — “The Crisis in Yemen: al-Qaeda, Saleh, and Governmental Instability” is a lecture by Christopher Swift at FPRI about circumstances in Yemen. Swift provides a coherent review of the elements of Yemen’s social, economic, and political realities. If “demography is destiny,” Yemen’s future is bleak: an exceptionally…
North Korea Rocket About Domestic Politics
Russia Today The Alyona Show Realistically is all the hype over North Korea a little overblown? And what’s going on in the meantime in Turkey where Iran is meeting with five UN Security Council members, including the US. University of Virginia Law School’s Christopher Swift discusses.
Bales Charged With 17 Murder Counts in Afghan Civilian Killings
Bloomberg News By Tony Capaccio and Gopal Ratnam WASHINGTON – U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder of Afghan civilians, the Army said in a statement yesterday. Bales, 38, also faces six charges of assault and attempted murder, the Army said. Under U.S. military law, criminal charges were…
Bales Said to Face 17 Murder Counts in Afghan Civilian Killings
Bloomberg News By Tony Capaccio and Gopal Ratnam WASHINGTON – U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales will be charged with 17 counts of murder for killing Afghan civilians, according to two U.S. officials. Charges will be released this afternoon Washington time after they are presented to Bales and his attorney at the military prison at…
Insanity Defenses Rarely Succeed in U.S. Military Courts
Bloomberg News By David Lerman and Seth Stern WASHINGTON – The lawyer representing the soldier suspected of killing 16 Afghan civilians is inviting a protracted fight in the U.S. military court system if he mounts a mental-illness defense. John Henry Browne, the civilian lawyer for Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, indicated this week he may…
AQShda terrorda ayblanayotgan o’zbekistonlik muhojirlar taqdiri, huquqshunos fikri
Voice of America By Navbahor Imamova AQShning Pensilvaniya shtati, Filadefiya shahrida o’zbekistonlik Baxtiyor Jumayev terrorchi tashkilotga moliyaviy ko’mak ko’rsatganlikda ayblanib hibsga olingan. Byuro bergan ma’lumotlarda Jumayev bu terror tashkilotiga moliyaviy yordam ko’rsatgan deya qayd etiladi. Agentlarning aytishicha, Baxtiyor Jumayev shu yilning yanvar oyida Chikago xalqaro aeroportida ushlangan 35 yoshli Jamshid Muxtorovning yaqin maslakdoshi. Muxtorov ham…
Report: Iran Biggest U.S. Threat
Russia Today The Alyona Show Testifying before Congress in an annual overview of what our 16 intelligence agencies think are the biggest threats to the US, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper referred to a report from his office that concluded that Al Qaeda has been decentralized and the number one top threat to the…
Outcry aside, history suggests minimal punishment for Marines
The Christian Science Monitor By Anna Mulrine WASHINGTON – The language of rebuke has been robust among top US military officials in the wake of a web video depicting Marines urinating on dead Taliban fighters. The Marines, for their part, have already promised two separate investigations into the incident, and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has…
U.S. Issues Threat on Straight of Hormuz
Russia Today The Alyona Show The New York Times is reporting that the Obama administration has been using Secret communication channels to warn Iran that closing the Strait of Hormuz is a “red line” and would provoke an American response. Also Foreign Policy magazine has detailed a series of CIA memos from the Bush administration…
Russia’s Syria Stance
Al Jazeera Inside Story Russia has circulated a UN Security Council draft resolution aimed at ending the crisis in Syria. It condemns the violence by both Syria’s government and the opposition, but does not mention imposing sanctions. The US and Europe welcomed the Russian move, but say the draft does not go far enough. They…
Part II: Terror & Resistance: Towards a Taxonomy of Contempoary Islamic Militancy
U.Va. Center for International Studies Seminar Series, Fall 2011
Part I: Terror & Resistance: Towards a Taxonomy of Contempoary Islamic Militancy
U.Va. Center for International Studies Seminar Series, Fall 2011
The Death of Anwar al-Awlaki
Al Jazeera Inside Story Wanted by both the US and Yemen, Anwar al-Awlaki was accused of being an al-Qaeda preacher and mentor. He was killed on Friday by a US drone strike in the province of al-Jawf, north of the Yemeni capital Sanaa. Barack Obama, the U.S. president, said the killing of Awlaki was a…
U.S. building New Bagram Prison
Russia Today The Alyona Show Salon.com’s Glenn Greenwald has pointed out that FedBizOps.Gov, the Army Corps of Engineers is soliciting names of construction firms to build a new detention facility in Parwan, Bagram, Afghanistan. The estimated cost of this project is 25 to 100 million and the contract is to be awarded on or around…
Sarkozy/Cameron Victory Lap in Libya
Russia Today The Alyona Show Today British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy made their first official visits to Tripoli and Benghazi. The Western leaders told Muammar Qaddafi, who’s still to be found, that it’s time to go, and urged Libyans to avoid vengeance and retaliation, as the toughest times are still…
What’s Next in Libya?
Russia Today The Alyona Show We take a look at what’s ahead for Libya. We’ve seen in the past with Iraq or Haiti where after celebrations the hard part often follows. One country after another has now recognized the National Transitional Council, but where are we at knowing who they are and who in Libya…
“See you in Sana’a very soon”
Al-Jazeera Inside Story Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Yemeni president, has slammed the country’s opposition and promised his supporters that he will soon return to Yemen in a speech broadcast on state television. Saleh, who is in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, vowed that he will return to the Yemeni capital Sanaa “very soon” when addressing a gathering…
Erik Prince Raises Private Army for UAE
Russia Today The Alyona Show According to the New York Times, the UAE has purchased an up to 800 strong army of mercenaries and Erik Prince, founder and former owner of Blackwater is behind it all. Considering the Arab spring that’s taken the Middle East and Northern Africa by storm this year. And apparently Prince…
Libya: We’re Still at War
Russia Today The Alyona Show The war in Libya has reached a stalemate as a delegation of the African Union has arrived in Tripoli with a cease-fire proposal including, an immediate cease fire, the delivery of humanitarian aid, and the protection of foreigners, which they said Gaddafi accepted. But the rebels are having none of…
U.S. Abandons Saleh in Yemen
Russia Today The Alyona Show The situation in Yemen is escalating, hundreds were injured by tear gas, rocks, and gunfire in the city of Taiz. Over the weekend, reports came out that the Obama administration has turned it’s back on Yemeni President, shifting positions, and deciding that he must leave office. But not in the…
Race to the Swift!
Militar.com By Carl Prine This is my second installment of “Prine of Departure,” where I go out and beg the smartest people I know to say really smart things about things I don’t understand. Two have now agreed (and only one filed a restraining order). Christopher Swift is a fellow at the University of Virginia…
Israel/Gaza: Violence Reignited?
Russia Today The Alyona Show It was the first bombing inside Jerusalem in four years, rocket fire between Israel and the Gaza strip has picked up, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he’s very determined to strike at terrorist elements. So if the situation gets worse, how will the US respond to its closest ally…
Bahrain: Domestic or Global Conflict?
Russia Today The Alyona Show After weeks of protests in Bahrain, the violence is picking up. The majority Shiite population is calling for an end to the 200 year old monarchy of Sunni leaders, for political reforms, and equal rights. But the conflict could have implications for US foreign policy, and geopolitical dominance of the…
U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan
Russia Today The Alyona Show Last year was the deadliest year for Afghan civilians since the war began, with a 15% jump in the death toll since 2009 according to a UN report released today. Hamid Karzai rejected an apology from General David Petraeus for the accidental killing of nine boys. Christopher Swift at the…
U.S. Military Assistance: A Wise Investment?
The Christian Science Monitor By Anna Mulrine, Staff Writer WASHINGTON, DC – Each September, 130 troops from more than 90 countries begin nine months of military instruction at the US Army Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kan. They make field trips to economically blighted neighborhoods and to the Truman Presidential Library, to…
Russia’s Dagestan now most violent in the Caucasus
The Saudi Gazette By Amie Ferris-Rotman Russia’s Dagestan region has overtaken its neighbors as the epicenter of violence in the North Caucasus, where the Kremlin is struggling to contain a militant insurgency. Twin suicide bombs on the Moscow metro in March killed 40 and turned the global spotlight on Dagestan. Authorities blamed the attacks on…
The War in Afghanistan
CNN International Interview with Jonathan Mann JONATHAN MANN, CNN HOST: Afghanistan’s police have not been the country’s proudest achievement. Even as the government trains new officers, it announced plans to replace more than 80 precinct and department commanders, including the Kabul chief of police. Afghanistan’s army is not the only security force that cannot stand…