News – May 2025


  • UK: Homes evacuated after bomb disposal squad called

    May 22, 2025

    Bomb disposal experts were called to a village after police found “suspicious items” during a search. Cambridgeshire Police made the discovery at a property in Brick Lane, Mepal, near Ely, on Wednesday and some homes nearby were evacuated. A spokesperson said a 100m (328ft) cordon was put in place around the property, while specialist explosive ordnance ...

  • Washington, DC: Two Israeli Embassy staff members killed outside the Capital Jewish museum

    May 22, 2025

    A suspect is in custody after two Israeli embassy staff members were killed in a shooting near the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, police said. The man and woman killed on Wednesday night were a “young couple about to be engaged,” according to the Israeli ambassador to the US. The suspect was identified as Elias ...

  • Virginia: New research center aims to elevate nation’s drone defense

    May 21, 2025

    A new Virginia Tech effort will take aim at bolstering the nation’s defenses against uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), commonly called drones. A recent $5 million award from the U.S. Army Futures Command Combat Capabilities Development Command C5ISR Center will augment capabilities at the existing Counter UAS Research and Testing Center that will include an unparalleled ecosystem ...

  • Russian explosives experts demine 37,500 hectares in Kursk Region

    May 21, 2025

    Russian mine clearance specialists have inspected and demined about 37,500 hectares in the Kursk Region’s borderline areas as well as 767 kilometers of roadways and 31 residential communities, acting regional Governor Alexander Khinshtein said in a broadcast by the Rossiya-24 TV channel. “I can tell you exact figures as of yesterday: 37,500 hectares, 767 kilometers of ...

  • EU announces €80 million humanitarian aid package for Yemen

    May 21, 2025

    The Commission has announced €80 million in EU humanitarian funding for 2025 to support people in need in Yemen. Yemen continues to rank among the worst humanitarian crises in the world. One decade of conflict, economic deterioration and recurrent climate-induced events have left 19.5 million people in need. This humanitarian will target food and health services ...

  • New Zealand’s efforts bomb clearing in Laos

    May 21, 2025

    Southeast Asia’s Laos is the most heavily bombed country per capita – 80 million unexploded bombs (UXO) are scattered across the country. New Zealand has spent the last two decades helping to clear these hidden dangers. Writer Samantha Mythen has more. I sat in the make-shift movie theatre, chairs haphazardly organised across the floor. The French, ...

  • U.S. Air Force holds epic exercise to blow stuff up, calls it ‘EPIC CRAB’

    May 21, 2025

    Airmen walk away from an explosive detonation during EPIC CRAB 25 Exercise at Northwest Field, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, May 1, 2025. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Adasha Williams. In the pantheon of great names for military exercises, few can rival “EPIC CRAB,” which pays tribute to the unique culture of the ...

  • Syria: Militants kill 2 soldiers in attack on Russian air base in Latakia

    May 21, 2025

    Militants attacked a Russian air base in Syria, killing two soldiers, a Syrian government official and a local activist said Wednesday. They said that the two militants who launched the attack Tuesday on the Hmeimim air base on Syria’s coast were also killed. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation. ...

  • Pakistan: Suicide blast hits school bus in Khuzdar; three children, two teachers killed

    May 21, 2025

    A blast targeting a school bus near Zero Point on the National Highway in Khuzdar has resulted in the tragic deaths of three children and two teachers, and left 38 others injured. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the school bus was destroyed in the blast. A total of 38 injured children were rushed to ...

  • The shadow constellation: How Starlink devices are shaping conflict and crime in the Sahel

    May 20, 2025

    Violent extremist groups in the Sahel, including Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM) and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), are exploiting Starlink to enhance their operational capabilities. Criminal actors are not only trafficking Starlink devices but using them to evade law enforcement and sustain illicit economies. Their ability to do so is underpinned by an ...

  • Data-as-a-Product: A Force Multiplier for CBRN Defense

    May 20, 2025

    Biological agents have become cheaper, faster, and easier for adversaries to engineer and employ due to advancements in science and technology. Though defeating these dynamic threats can be challenging, the Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense’s (JPEO-CBRND) Joint Project Lead for CBRND Enabling Biotechnologies (JPL CBRND EB) is using the ...

  • Venezuela suspends flights from Colombia after arrests of ‘mercenaries’

    May 20, 2025

    Venezuela has suspended flights from neighbouring Colombia after authorities detained more than 30 people allegedly plotting activities to destabilise the country before Sunday’s parliamentary election. Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello announced on state television on Monday that the flight ban was “immediate” and would last for a week. Cabello said the antigovernment plans involved placing explosives ...

  • Germany: Explosive ordnance clearance at former Tegel Airport completed

    May 20, 2025

    The clearance of explosive ordnance on the tarmac of the former Tegel Airport has been completed much earlier than planned. Originally, around a year and a half more time was planned for this, according to the state-owned company Grün Berlin. Around seven tonnes of explosive remnants of war, mainly from the Second World War, were recovered ...

  • Michigan: Pipe bombs found in abandoned vehicle in Saginaw

    May 20, 2025

    Authorities discovered pipe bombs in an abandoned vehicle in Saginaw this week thanks, in part, to an explosive-sniffing K9, according to the Saginaw Police Department. A Saginaw officer and police dog were dispatched Monday, May 19 to Mike’s Wrecker, located at 2522 Hess Ave. in Saginaw, on reports of suspicious pipes found in an abandoned truck ...

  • US airport security agency does not rule out privatization

    May 20, 2025

    The acting head of Transportation Security Administration said on Tuesday the agency did not rule out considering a plan to privatize the government agency while defending a proposed cut for screening officers. “Nothing is off the table,” Acting TSA Administrator Ha McNeill said at U.S. House Appropriations subcommittee hearing. “If new privatization schemes make sense, then ...

  • Malaysia: Police confirm discovery of Second World War bomb in Tanjung Tokong

    May 20, 2025

    An old bomb, believed to be a still-active relic from the Second World War, was discovered at a construction site on Jalan Seri Tanjung Pinang, Tanjung Tokong. Timur Laut police chief ACP Abdul Rozak Muhammad said police received a report from the public about the bomb’s discovery at 9.42 pm. “The Bomb Disposal Unit (UPB) of ...

  • Using sound to ‘see’ unexploded munitions on the seafloor

    May 19, 2025

    More than 400 underwater sites in the United States are potentially contaminated with unexploded ordnance (UXO) — weapons that did not explode upon deployment, which continue to pose a safety concern. Corrosion and growth make UXOs difficult to observe with standard sonar imaging techniques, as the objects begin to lose resemblance to their original appearance andblend ...

  • California: Days after Palm Springs bombing at fertility clinic scene still active with investigators

    May 19, 2025

    Investigators remain on the scene working to gather evidence two days after 25-year-old Guy Edward Bartkus was identified as the suspect allegedly responsible for an explosion at a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, Calif. On Saturday, the FBI confirmed Bartkus, a resident of Twentynine Palms, as the suspect they believe set off a car bomb at ...

  • North Carolina: ‘Improvised’ explosive device, $41K in stolen property seized from Burke County house

    May 19, 2025

    An “improvised” explosive device and over $41,000 in stolen property were seized from a house in Burke County last week, according to deputies. Amid the investigation, 40-year-old Harrel Powell Jr. was arrested. Records showed he was jailed under a $70,000 secured bond and faces multiple charges, including felony possession of a weapon of mass destruction. The ...

  • Ukrainian demining personnel trained with OSCE and EU support

    May 19, 2025

    Seventeen representatives from Ukraine’s demining agencies underwent a two-and-a-half month training to obtain an international qualification in explosive ordnance disposal. Organized by the OSCE Support Programme for Ukraine with support from the European Union, the training programme concluded on 18 May and included a combination of theoretical and practical exercises in line with the International Mine ...

  • Pakistan: Car bomb in Balochistan province kills four people

    May 19, 2025

    A car bomb that has exploded near a market in Pakistan’s restive southwest has killed four people and wounded 20, according to a government official. The attack was near a market in Qillah Abdullah, a city in the province of Balochistan, Deputy Commissioner Abdullah Riaz said on Monday. The province bordering Afghanistan is plagued by ...

  • UK strikes EU trade and defence reset in ‘new era’ for relations

    May 19, 2025

    Britain agreed the most significant reset of defence and trade ties with the European Union since Brexit on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump’s upending of the global order pushed the two sides to move on from their acrimonious divorce. Nearly nine years after it voted to leave the bloc, Britain reached a wide-ranging deal with ...

  • Jammu and Kashmir: 42 unexploded Pakistani shells destroyed in Poonch

    May 19, 2025

    The Army and the Jammu & Kashmir Police Sunday carried out a “controlled operation” to safely destroy 42 unexploded Pakistani shells in the border district of Poonch. These unexploded shells were destroyed in border areas of Jhullas, Salotri, Dharati and Salani, said a statement issued Sunday by the Defence Public Relations Officer, Lt Colonel Suneel Bartwal. ...

  • UK: Third suspect arrested over fires at properties linked to PM

    May 19, 2025

    A third man was arrested Monday for a series of fires that targeted property linked to U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, police said. The unnamed 34-year-old was arrested in Chelsea, west London, on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life, Metropolitan Police said. A 26-year-old man was arrested on the same charge Saturday, ...