- Anatomy of an attack: Is Russia using cluster bombs in Ukraine?
March 4, 2022
Russia has been accused of using cluster bombs in Ukraine – and the International Criminal Court (ICC) has opened an investigation into possible war crimes. We’ve looked at social media videos and open-source material to detail the evidence around one attack in particular. On 28 February Andriy (not his real name) was having a shower in ...
- Understanding PKK, Kurdish Hezbollah and ISIS Recruitment in Southeastern Turkey
February 23, 2022
This paper provides an explanation for how the PKK, Kurdish Hezbollah, and ISIS, representing distinct ethno-nationalist, Islamist and ideologically motivated political movements, radicalize and recruit supporters in the regions of Eastern and Southeastern Turkey. In doing so, this paper contributes to ongoing theoretical debates about radicalization and recruitment. This study reveals how various regionally specific structural ...
- Rescue Board defuses World War Two-era bomb found in Kakumäe
February 22, 2022
The Rescue Board (Päästeamet) closed off the residential district of Kakumäe, just west of Tallinn, on Monday, in order to defuse an unexploded wartime aerial bomb found there the day before. “Defusing work is taking place on the Kakumäe shore in Haabersti today from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.,” the board announced on its Twitter page ...
- Hamburg: 500-kilo unexploded ordnance successfully defused
February 17, 2022
During exploratory work in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg on Rotenhäuser Damm, workers came across a 500-kilogram (1,000 lbs) unexploded Second World War bomb. The unexploded ordnance was discovered under water at a depth of ten meters. After establishing a safety zone and evacuating the area the bomb was examined by divers and successfully defused by the explosive ordnance clearance ...
- Slovakia will send mine clearance systems and healthcare material to Ukraine
February 16, 2022
Slovakia will offer Ukraine two mine clearance systems and healthcare material worth €1.7 million. The government decided on the aforementioned at its February 16 session, answering the Ukrainian call for help. In foreseeable time, Slovakia will take all necessary steps to help Ukrainian citizens to clear “large fields in the territory of Ukraine,” of mines, said Defence ...
- Europol coordinates action against bomb manuals available online
February 3, 2022
On 1 February, a large-scale Referral Action Day targeting terrorist content online took place at Europol’s headquarters. The European Union Internet Referral Unit (EU IRU) at Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre (ECTC) coordinated the referral activity, which saw the involvement of specialised counter terrorism units from France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland ...
- Greece: Bomb blasts target homes of journalist, unionist in Athens
February 1, 2022
Two separate bomb explosions have targeted a journalist and a unionist in the Greek capital, according to local media. Unidentified individuals detonated explosive devices on Tuesday morning outside the residences of Greek journalist Dimitris Kambourakis and the head of the country’s police union, Vasilis Doumas, the state-run news agency AMNA reported. Security camera footage of the attack ...
- Slovenia: Number of unexploded ordnance items found in 2021 up by 20%
January 31, 2022
The Administration for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief performed 654 interventions related to unexploded ordnance items in Slovenia last year, which means almost two per day and 30% more than last year. A total of 4,271 unexploded ordnance items were found in 2021, up by 20% on the previous year. Read more… Source: STA
- First Swiss prison sentence dished out for blowing up ATMs
December 23, 2021
The 31-year-old Romanian was extradited from Austria to Switzerland after police found his DNA at the scene of the 2019 crime in the eastern canton of St Gallen. The robbers took CHF126,600 ($134,000) in cash and caused CHF100,000 in damage, the Federal Criminal Court heard. The convicted man, who has already served 552 days in prison whilst ...
- Europe deploys Takuba task force in Mali as France draws down troops
December 16, 2021
France’s military camps in Mali are going quiet as Paris winds down its security presence in the restive West African country, but there is one notable exception. What was once a quaint army base in France’s Barkhane anti-jihadist operation is rapidly turning into a cornerstone of Takuba, the European force that is to pick up the ...
- Germany: Police seize bomb-making supplies in far-right raid
December 16, 2021
Police arrested four people and seized bomb-making supplies during raids targeting suspected far-right extremists in the western German city of Cologne on Thursday. Officers searched the homes of four men allegedly belonging to the far-right extremist scene. Police said the men were seeking to construct an explosive device. The suspects were 36 to 53 years old. Special ...
- Guerrilla tactics offer Ukraine’s best deterrent against Putin’s invasion force
December 6, 2021
While there is no consensus concerning what current Russian military activity near Ukraine means, it has led to strong statements from US officials. On December 3, the Washington Post reported that US intelligence has found the Kremlin is planning a multi-front offensive as soon as early next year involving up to 175,000 troops. The short timeline ...
- Spanish Police Arrests 5 Jihadists On Suspicion Of Preparing A Terrorist Attack
October 14, 2021
With the active support of Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre, the Spanish National Police (Policía Nacional) has arrested in Barcelona and Madrid five suspected members of an Islamic State cell. The suspects – all Algerian nationals, are believed to have been preparing a terrorist attack. The police swooped on the members of this terrorist cell ...
- Kosovo Arrests Five Suspects for Plotting Terrorist Attacks
October 11, 2021
Kosovo’s Special Prosecution on Sunday said police had arrested five persons suspected of planning terrorist actions against country’s constitutional order and security. Explosive devices, fire arms, drones and anti-tank weapons were seized during the operation, which was conducted after several months of covert investigation and surveillance, the prosecution said. Read more… Source: Balkan Insight
- Migrants Warned of Dangers of Land Mines on the Balkan Route
August 10, 2021
Migrants attempting to cross into Western Europe via the so-called Balkan route face several risks including drowning, abuse, exploitation and gender-based violence. Added to that is the risk posed by land mines. The Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre estimates that there are 180,000 unexploded mines left over from the wars of the 1990s. Over 130,000 ...
- Finnish official appointed EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator
July 26, 2021
The Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union has appointed Finnish lawyer and civil servant Ilkka Salmi as the EU’s Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, the ministry of the interior has announced in a press release. The release states that Salmi will be responsible for coordinating the council’s work in “combating terrorism, maintaining an overview of all EU ...
- ISIS risk in Europe ‘significantly’ reduced, says EU counter-terrorism coordinator
July 17, 2021
Islamic State “no longer has the capacity to send terrorists onto European soil” thanks to “action taken by the international coalition,” the EU’s counter-terrorism coordinator Gilles de Kerchove, told Le Monde in an interview published Saturday. However, he warned “the threat remains complex” including through “isolated actors, with no direct link to the organization.” De Kerchove ...
- CoESS joins EU Project to launch a Regional Certification Centre for Explosive Detection Dogs and Certification Standards
April 19, 2021
In order to strengthen the detection of threats by explosives in public areas and critical infrastructures within the EU member states, a consortium created and led by Palmyra Aviation Advisors, and including CoESS, has been awarded a project grant to create an EU certification standard and to launch a certification centre for explosive detection dogs ...
