News – November 2023


  • Can robot dogs programmed with AI find hidden explosive devices?

    November 16, 2023

    Forty programmers demonstrated how AI-enabled robotic dogs could carry out potentially dangerous tasks that would otherwise be undertaken by Army bomb disposal experts at the Defence AI Centre (DAIC) sponsored Hackathon on 7-9 November. The hackers worked in five teams to exploit the AI capabilities of the robotic dogs, which are able to climb stairs, avoid ...

  • India: Militants plant IED, attack Assam Rifles troop in Tengnoupal

    November 16, 2023

    Militants in Manipur ambushed a troop of Assam Rifles after planting an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Saibol area of Tengnoupal district on Thursday morning when the soldiers were conducting a regular patrol. None of the soldiers were injured because they were travelling in a mine protected vehicle, officials said adding that the IED blast was ...

  • Myanmar military admits facing ‘heavy assaults’ from anti-coup forces

    November 16, 2023

    Myanmar’s military regime has admitted it is facing “heavy assaults” by anti-coup forces who began a coordinated offensive at the end of last month, claiming to have taken control of several towns in border areas and dozens of military outposts. Spokesperson Zaw Min Tun said troops were under “heavy assaults from a significant number of armed ...

  • Cambodia: Mondulkiri becomes 14th province to be declared mine-free

    November 15, 2023

    Cambodia has taken another step closer to reaching the mine-free goal after the northeastern province of Mondulkiri was declared clear of landmines, becoming the 14th province to have gained that status. Mondulkiri is Cambodia’s largest and also the most sparsely populated province, containing an area of 14,288 square kilometres. During the Vietnam War in the late ...

  • India: 35-year-old man injured in IED blast in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum

    November 15, 2023

    A 35-year-old man was injured in an IED blast in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum district, police said on Wednesday. The incident happened in a forest near Boipaisasang village in Goilkera police station area on Tuesday, they said. The victim, identified as Madhu Taisum, was collecting firewood in the forest when the Improvised Explosive Device or IED, planted ...

  • Pakistan: Resurgent militancy

    November 15, 2023

    While Pakistan may not be witnessing the mass-casualty terror attacks – particularly against civilian targets in urban centres – that the nation saw a decade ago, the militants are making their presence felt through frequent, deadly forays targeting security personnel. Two separate attacks on Monday, one in Dera Ismail Khan, the other in North Waziristan, are ...

  • German police swoop on Hezbollah-supporting ‘extremists’

    November 15, 2023

    Several hundred German police officers carried out searches across the country on Thursday targeting an Islamist association suspected of supporting the Iran-aligned Islamist movement Hezbollah, the Interior Ministry announced. The police operation targeted the Islamic Centre of Hamburg (IZH) and five other organisations suspected of being linked to it. All are suspected of supporting Hezbollah, which ...

  • Yemen’s Houthis have launched strikes at Israel during the war in Gaza. What threat do they pose?

    November 15, 2023

    For years, the Houthi rebels controlling northern Yemen have chanted slogans at their mass rallies calling for the destruction of Israel. But they never acted on it until the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7. Since then, the Iran-backed Shiite Muslim force has launched at least six drone and missile attacks toward southern Israel, causing little ...

  • Repurposed Technology Could Help Protect Soldiers

    November 14, 2023

    Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD – An unlikely fusion of ink, ingenuity, and integrated teamwork is applying an existing technology to the challenge of sampling and detecting explosives. At the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC), a team of engineers have adapted inkjet printing technology to deposit trace amounts of explosive materials ...

  • Indiana: Police, bomb squad secure improvised explosive device from car in Columbus

    November 14, 2023

    Columbus police are investigating the discovery of a improvised explosive device, or pipe bomb, in a vehicle near the area of 13th Street and Pearl Street at about noon today. The city police department Explosive Ordinance Team, or bomb squad, was called to the scene and removed the device from the vehicle, said Lt. Matt Harris, ...

  • Countering Unmanned Aerial System Attacks a Priority

    November 14, 2023

    Army Maj. Gen. Sean A. Gainey, director, of that office spoke today at a Center for Strategic and International Studies event, “Countering Small Uncrewed Aerial Systems.” Each of the military services, in partnership with industry, is conducting experiments and doing field testing with a variety of ways to defeat UAS attacks, he said. One very promising ...

  • Zimbabwe: 87pc wartime landmines removed

    November 14, 2023

    So far 87 percent of all wartime landmines have been removed and the Government hopes to have the last out by 2025, Minister of Defence Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri told her Ministry’s strategic planning workshop being held in Mutare this week. “We are going ahead with the removal of landmines countrywide and aiming at making Zimbabwe landmine-free by ...

  • Philippines: ‘Kamandag’ troops train on bomb disposal techniques in Palawan

    November 14, 2023

    Troops participating in the “Kaagapay ng mga Mandirigma mula sa Dagat” (“Kamandag”) exercises in Palawan have engaged in proficient drills that would boost their capabilities in explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) and other combat subject matter expert exchanges (SMEEs). In a statement Tuesday, Philippine Marine Corps (PMC) public affairs office chief Capt. Jarald Rea said the EOD ...

  • Landmines: New Use Despite Global Ban

    November 14, 2023

    Russia, Myanmar, and Ukraine have used antipersonnel landmines in the past year, and armed groups used them in at least five countries, Human Rights Watch said today in releasing Landmine Monitor 2023, the annual report about the international treaty to ban landmines. The 120-page Landmine Monitor 2023 is the product of the International Campaign to Ban ...

  • SOCOM community’s collaborative efforts deliver a comprehensive CBRN protective mask

    November 13, 2023

    Modern warfighters face various biological and chemical threats on the battlefield, from disease to potential manmade poisons, and they require more protective and innovative gear to keep them safe in the varied environments they encounter. When you think of a CBRN protective mask, most people visualize one of the currently fielded masks, such as the M50 ...

  • UK: Friend of ‘IS Beatle’ jailed for terrorism offences

    November 13, 2023

    A British man who spent two years with Islamic State in Syria and knew the British militant dubbed Jihadi John, has been jailed for carrying a weapon for terrorist purposes. Aine Davis was also sentenced at the Old Bailey for fundraising after he tried to get his wife to send him 20,000 euros (£17,460). Intelligence services ...

  • Northern Ireland: Police investigating after pipe bomb thrown at property in Newry

    November 13, 2023

    Police are investigating after a pipe bomb was thrown at a property in the Watsons Road area of Newry on Sunday night. The incident happened at 7.20pm on Sunday night and the device has now been removed for further forensic examination. Police said the security alert that was in place has now ended. No injuries were ...

  • More Attacks on US Forces Following Strike on Iran-Backed Targets in Syria

    November 13, 2023

    Iranian-backed militants have attacked U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria at least four times in the past 24 hours, raising the number of attacks to 52 in less than a month, U.S. defense officials tell VOA. In the latest attack against U.S. forces on Monday, multiple one-way drones were launched at Rumalyn Landing Zone in Syria. ...