Intelligence Review 

*Drug-related murders in Mexico show sign of fall during 2011, unofficial statistics reveal
Mexico may be experiencing a year-on-year drop in drug-related murders, with unofficial statistics reported in three leading Mexican newspapers on 31 December 2011 or ...
12-Jan-2012
Japanese government relaxes arms export ban
Japan's domestic defence industry has been given the opportunity to gain access to cutting-edge foreign technology, lowering weapon procurement costs, thanks to a government ...
12-Jan-2012
*Libyan leader warns of civil war after clashes
Mustafa Abdel Jalil, chairman of Libya's Transitional National Council (TNC), warned on 4 January that armed militias that remain in the country following the ...
12-Jan-2012
Bissau-Guinean government pledges inquiry into foiled 'coup' attempt
A commission of inquiry is to be set up by the government of Guinea-Bissau to investigate the attack on the army's headquarters on 26 ...
12-Jan-2012
*Taliban to open office in Qatar as US increases pressure for talks
The Taliban is ready to establish a political office outside Afghanistan in an effort to come to an understanding with other countries, the group ...
12-Jan-2012
Hungarians hold protest against new constitution
Thousands of demonstrators staged a rally against Hungary's new constitution on 2 January. The constitution came into effect on 1 January and replaces the ...
12-Jan-2012
North Caucasus militancy remains Russia's greatest security threat
The Russian Ministry of the Interior has outlined the scale of its security operations against Islamist militants in the North Caucasus over the past ...
12-Jan-2012
Maoist militants kill 10 security personnel in India
Suspected Maoist militants killed at least 10 members of the security forces in the central Indian state of Jharkhand on 4 December 2011. The ...
08-Dec-2011
*Serbian negotiators reach border deal with Kosovo as EU status deadline approaches
On 3 December 2011, Serbian President Boris Tadic confirmed that Serbian and Kosovan negotiators under the auspices of EU mediators had reached an agreement ...
08-Dec-2011
*Honduran president backs army role as police crisis continues
Honduran President Porfirio Lobo on 28 November 2011 received congressional backing to use the Honduran army for civilian policing amid a crisis in the ...
08-Dec-2011
US Congress labels Boko Haram as an 'emerging threat'
A report released on 30 November 2011 by the US House of Representatives' Committee on Homeland Security warned of the increasing threat posed by ...
08-Dec-2011
Afghanistan confirms next security transition areas
The next phase of security transition in Afghanistan was confirmed by the Afghan government on 27 November 2011. As recommended by the joint Afghan-NATO ...
08-Dec-2011
*Iran threatens to cut Hamas funds after the group fails to support the Syrian regime
According to Palestinian sources cited in the Israeli press on 5 December 2011, Iran is intensifying pressure on Hamas over its refusal to publicly...
08-Dec-2011
Russia hit by protests as Putin's party fails to shine in the elections
The ruling United Russia (Yedinaya Rossiya: ER) party on 4 December 2011 proved unable to repeat its stellar performance in 2007's legislative election. According ...
08-Dec-2011
*Italian Prime Minister stands down as crisis mounts
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi won a parliamentary vote on 8 November to pass a state financing bill, but his coalition government lost its ...
11-Nov-2011
*Kenya squares up to Eritrea over its alleged arms supply to rebels
The East African states of Kenya and Eritrea are engaged in an increasingly bitter war of words, with the former accusing the latter of ...
11-Nov-2011
Syrian opposition beg for international protection in Homs
The opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) on 7 November called on the international community to protect civilians in the country's third-largest city of Homs. ...
11-Nov-2011
Indonesian police arrest hundreds at Papua rally
Indonesian security forces on 19 October arrested about 300 people after forcefully dispersing a pro-independence congress in the eastern province of West Papua. On ...
11-Nov-2011
*Al-Hasakah facility prompts speculation about Syria's nuclear weapons facility development
Jane's has obtained GeoEye satellite imagery taken over Syria's Al-Hasakah "Cotton Spinning Company" on 21 August. In an AP report published on 1 November,...
11-Nov-2011
Colombian FARC faces uncertain future after death of overall leader
In what Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos declared as the "most crushing blow" against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in its history, ...
11-Nov-2011
Burundi accuses former rebel group of atrocities
The Burundian government has blamed a recent wave of atrocities, including the 18 September killing of 39 people at a local bar outside the ...
14-Oct-2011
*US agrees upgrade of Taiwan F-16 fighter jets
On 21 September, the United States officially notified Congress that it is planning to upgrade Taiwan's existing fleet of F-16 fighter jets and sell ...
14-Oct-2011
Spanish separatist group's legal wing 'ready to disband'
The Ekin - a policy organisation of the outlawed Basque separatist group ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna) - has decided to disband. According to Spanish ...
14-Oct-2011
*US angry at Russian and Chinese blocking of UN's Syria resolution
The US reacted angrily to Russia and China's 4 October decision to veto a UN Security Council resolution condemning the Syrian government's crackdown on ...
14-Oct-2011
UN rates murder at 'crisis point' in Central America
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) released its first comprehensive report on global murder rates on 6 October. The Global Study on ...
14-Oct-2011
*Russian-led military bloc prepares for unrest
The CIS military Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) began major exercises on 19 September in preparation for possible violent social unrest in member countries. ...
14-Oct-2011
Tensions escalate as US alleges Iranian bomb assassination plot
On 12 October, the United States accused Iran of a plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington, leading to an immediate surge ...
14-Oct-2011
*Canada reimposes contentious counter-terrorism measures
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced on 7 September that Canada would shortly reimpose a series of controversial counter-terrorism measures that were rescinded in ...
16-Sep-2011
India signs accord with northern insurgents
A Suspension of Operations agreement was signed on 3 September between the Indian government and the largest militant group in northeast India, the United ...
15-Sep-2011
Nigerian police hunt Al-Qaeda-linked suspect in UN attack
Nigerian authorities investigating the 26 August bombing of the UN building in the capital Abuja have identified a man they believe was the mastermind ...
15-Sep-2011
*North Caucasus insurgents unite to attack
On 30 August, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives when he was stopped by police officers while approaching the parliament building in Grozny, the ...
15-Sep-2011
China launches Xinjiang crackdown
China began a two-month 'strike hard' security campaign on 16 August in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR). XUAR, in northwestern China, accounts for ...
15-Sep-2011
Turkish-Israeli relations sour over Gaza
Israeli Minister of Intelligence Dan Meridor on 9 September described as "grave and serious" remarks by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Turkish ...
15-Sep-2011
US and North Korea end constructive talks in Washington
Two days of talks between the United States and North Korea were successfully concluded on 29 July. The meeting between Stephen Bosworth, the US ...
12-Aug-2011
Socio-economic protests disrupt major cities in Israel
Hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets of the country's major cities on 6 August to protest at the rising cost of ...
12-Aug-2011