U.S. National Security and Military News Review http://feed.informer.com/digests/YQWYIQS6AN/feeder U.S. National Security and Military News Review Respective post owners and feed distributors Fri, 27 Dec 2013 05:08:25 -0500 Feed Informer http://feed.informer.com/ An Accuser’s Story Suggests How Trump Might Appear in the Epstein Files https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/20/us/politics/epstein-employee-trump-investigation.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:acd4fda0-cd7b-b27f-a600-9c7b959414e8 Sun, 20 Jul 2025 18:31:04 -0400 A former Jeffrey Epstein employee said that she told the F.B.I. in 1996 and 2006 about what she considered a troubling encounter with Donald J. Trump. United States Politics and Government Federal Bureau of Investigation Epstein, Jeffrey E (1953- ) Trump, Donald J Farmer, Maria Farmer, Annie Maxwell, Ghislaine Bondi, Pamela J Mike Baker and Michael S. Schmidt Jake Larson, D-Day Veteran and TikTok Star, Dies at 102 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/20/us/papa-jake-larson-dies-ww2.html NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:1aea3fd9-3d6d-8503-7119-9c1c36bb0bed Sun, 20 Jul 2025 14:15:20 -0400 Mr. Larson, the last survivor of a unit that stormed Omaha Beach in 1944, shared his memories on social media where he amassed a wide following. Larson, Jake (1922-2025) Deaths (Obituaries) World War II (1939-45) United States Defense and Military Forces United States Army Normandy (France) TikTok (ByteDance) Veterans Social Media Adeel Hassan Justin Fulcher, a Top Aide to Pete Hegseth, Leaves the Pentagon https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/20/us/politics/hegseth-aide-resigns-pentagon-justin-fulcher.html NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:8dbbd3ad-932a-7861-14fc-e8e3ba492147 Sun, 20 Jul 2025 10:36:07 -0400 Justin Fulcher, an adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, said in a statement that he had planned to work in the federal government for only six months. United States Defense and Military Forces United States Politics and Government Defense Department Hegseth, Pete Justin Fulcher Appointments and Executive Changes Julian E. Barnes Air Force will buy more KC-46s, skip competition https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/07/air-force-will-buy-more-kc-46s-skip-competition/406850/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:113a7316-eea5-b254-c198-7df0c20d57bb Sun, 20 Jul 2025 08:19:35 -0400 The service is mulling whether to move away from fixed-priced on the next buy. <![CDATA[<p><strong>ROYAL AIR FORCE FAIRFORD, England</strong>&mdash;After years of uncertainty about the Air Force&rsquo;s tanker plans, the service has decided to buy more KC-46s instead of launching a new competition for its next tanker buy.&nbsp;</p> <p>This decision ends speculation that the service might launch a contest, likely between Boeing and Airbus, for an interim tanker buy of 75 aircraft to replace the aging KC-135 fleet. Instead, the Air Force will purchase more of the troubled but already-in-production KC-46 as a &ldquo;bridge&rdquo; solution until it figures out its long-term tanking needs.</p> <p>&ldquo;The Air Force approved the acquisition strategy for the KC-46 extension program. That acquisition strategy approves up to 75 additional KC-46s. Now, there are obviously details to be worked out in the pricing and all the management there, but the acquisition strategy has been approved for up to 75 KC-46s in the KC-46 extension plan as part of KC-135 recapitalization,&rdquo; Air Force Chief Gen. David Allvin told <em>Defense One</em> on the sidelines of the Royal International Air Tattoo.</p> <p>The decision to stick with Boeing&rsquo;s KC-46 likely stems from budget pressures, since continuing Pegasus production would cost less than putting research and development money into a new program. The new contract will come after Boeing finishes delivering tankers under the current program of record, for 188 aircraft.</p> <p>While a strategy has been approved, the Air Force stressed that details like contract type and cost still need to be worked out. Boeing has been building the KC-46 under a fixed-price contract, which has resulted in <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/business/2023/04/boeing-losses-building-kc-46-tanker-now-top-7-billion/385685/">billions</a> of dollars in losses for the company. If the service changes the current contract, it could move some parts of the program&mdash;such as <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/business/2024/07/theres-new-problem-boeings-kc-46-tanker/398453/">needed fixes</a> or upgrades to the tanker&mdash;to a cost-plus arrangement, under which Boeing would be reimbursed for work.&nbsp;</p> <p>The decision to buy additional KC-46s was looking more and more likely after the service included funds for a &ldquo;Tanker Production Extension&rdquo; program in its 2026 budget request. That program would use the KC-46 as &ldquo;the most affordable requirements basis&rdquo; for the extension effort, according to budget documents.&nbsp;</p> <p>For two decades, the Air Force had planned to build its tanker fleet under a <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/business/2021/06/air-force-begins-search-new-refueling-tanker-lawmakers-push-airbus/174787/">three-pronged plan</a>: buy a commercial modified tanker, launch a competition for another commercial modified tanker to be the &ldquo;bridge buy,&rdquo; and eventually build a next-generation aircraft. The first step of the plan was the KC-46.</p> <p>Then, in 2023, service officials <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2023/03/air-force-slashes-bridge-tanker-plan-sets-deadline-clean-sheet-aerial-refueler/383677/">announced</a> they would cut the second part of the plan&mdash; the bridge tanker buy&mdash;down from 160 to 75 aircraft, and accelerate the next-gen tanker program, called &ldquo;Next Generation Air Refueling System.&rdquo;</p> <p>The service had once hoped to field the stealthy new tanker by the end of the 2030s, but that timeline looks increasingly <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2025/03/uncertain-future-next-tankers-may-keep-air-force-refuelers-flying-past-their-100th-birthday/403920/">unlikely</a>, since the Air Force cut NGAS funding down to $13 million in the 2026 budget request and has instead focused its attention on the sixth-gen fighter program, the F-47.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Allvin stressed that NGAS is not one platform, but rather a family of systems that may or may not include a brand-new tanker. And, he said, some of the funds in the 2026 NGAS budget line will go to look at how the service can make its current tankers more survivable.&nbsp;</p> <p>Meanwhile, the Air Force continues to work through problems with the KC-46 program, which has been plagued by a number of &quot;category one&rdquo; <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/business/2024/07/theres-new-problem-boeings-kc-46-tanker/398453/">deficiencies</a>&mdash;problems with the potential to cause a crash or loss of life&mdash;and <a href="https://breakingdefense.com/2025/03/air-force-pauses-deliveries-of-boeings-kc-46-tanker/#:~:text=27%20by%20the%20service's%20KC,an%20Air%20Force%20spokesperson%20said.">delivery pauses</a>.</p> <p>Allvin said he&rsquo;s &ldquo;comfortable&rdquo; with Boeing&rsquo;s progress on the deficiencies, and that the tanker is still functioning &ldquo;very well&rdquo; in operations, referring to the tanker&rsquo;s role in Operation Midnight Hammer, where KC-46s helped refuel B-2s that struck Iran&rsquo;s nuclear development sites in June.&nbsp;</p> <p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not saying we&rsquo;re totally out of the woods, but I believe we are making good progress clearing those deficiencies, and the aircraft is performing very well operationally,&rdquo; Allvin said.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> ]]> Policy Audrey Decker A U.S. Air Force KC-46 takes on gas over the Atlantic Ocean in 2020. U.S. Air Force / Peter Borys Inside the Reindustrialize Summit and Its Push to Revive U.S. Manufacturing https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/20/us/manufacturing-tech-trump-reindustrialize.html NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:94411a7d-398c-7d34-fc91-912d07b50cfb Sun, 20 Jul 2025 05:00:50 -0400 Trump cabinet officials mingled with tech investors and manufacturers in an effort to supercharge factories. Conventions, Fairs and Trade Shows Factories and Manufacturing United States Defense and Military Forces Computers and the Internet Venture Capital Robots and Robotics Defense Contracts Anduril Industries Inc Palantir Technologies Reindustrialize Falon Donohue Aaron Slodov Detroit (Mich) United States Politics and Government Farah Stockman and Nic Antaya WINNING: Lessons From Iran and Russia Attacks http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htwin/articles/2025072005910.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:3d2bc4ba-4a21-837e-a3ee-42a16a7da895 Sun, 20 Jul 2025 00:59:14 -0400 CHINA: Taiwan Has Problems http://www.strategypage.com/qnd/china/articles/2025072005732.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:cbbeb66f-de6a-23f0-8364-ca366b090898 Sun, 20 Jul 2025 00:57:37 -0400 What to Know About the Fallout Around the Epstein Files and the Trump Administration https://www.nytimes.com/article/jeffrey-epstein-files-trump.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:56e57e36-b6b2-be03-ee02-f8d1106739ae Sat, 19 Jul 2025 21:27:44 -0400 Here’s what to know about the disturbing facts and unsubstantiated suspicions that make Jeffrey Epstein, a registered sex offender, a politically potent obsession. United States Politics and Government Sex Crimes Conspiracy Theories Federal Bureau of Investigation Miami Herald Bondi, Pamela J Epstein, Jeffrey E (1953- ) Maxwell, Ghislaine Patel, Kashyap Trump, Donald J Florida Devlin Barrett Digest of Recent Articles on Just Security (July 14-18, 2025) https://www.justsecurity.org/117008/digest-recent-articles-just-security-july-14-18-2025/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=digest-recent-articles-just-security-july-14-18-2025 Just Security urn:uuid:d7b1e880-68ae-39e7-0fb4-5a2dc07388e7 Sat, 19 Jul 2025 06:34:32 -0400 <p>Just Security Editorial Board • Series: Governing the quantum revolution • AI &#038; cyber • Trump executive actions • U.S. diplomacy • United States / Syria • U.S. national security / Courts • United Nations / Gender apartheid • International Court of Justice • Podcast</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117008/digest-recent-articles-just-security-july-14-18-2025/">Digest of Recent Articles on Just Security (July 14-18, 2025)</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <h2>Just Security Editorial Board</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117195/mark-nevitt-editorial-board-member/">A Warm Welcome to Mark Nevitt as a Just Security Editorial Board Member!</a><br /> <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Tess Bridgeman" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/bridgemantess/" rel="author">Tess Bridgeman</a>, <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Ryan Goodman" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/goodmanryan/" rel="author">Ryan Goodman</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Megan Corrarino" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/corrarinomegan/" rel="author">Megan Corrarino</a></li> </ul> <h2>Series: Governing the Quantum Revolution</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/116473/security-stakes-global-quantum-race/">The Security Stakes in the Global Quantum Race</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Argyri Panezi" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/paneziargyri/" rel="author">Argyri Panezi</a></li> </ul> <h2>AI &amp; Cyber</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/116896/what-it-takes-stop-next-salt-typhoon/">What It Takes to Stop the Next Salt Typhoon</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Morgan Peirce" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/peircemorgan/" rel="author">Morgan Peirce</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117234/trump-ai-action-plan-what-to-look-for/">The Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan Is Coming. Here’s What to Look For.</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Joshua Geltzer" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/geltzerjoshua/" rel="author">Joshua Geltzer</a></li> </ul> <h2>Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions (Updated)</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/">Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Just Security" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/just-security-admin/" rel="author">Just Security</a></li> </ul> <h2>Trump Executive Actions</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/116792/international-trade-court-flawed-ruling-tariffs/">Court of International Trade’s Flawed Ruling in Striking Down Trump’s Tariffs</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Samuel Estreicher" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/estreichersamuel/" rel="author">Samuel Estreicher</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Andrew Babbitt" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/babbittandrew/" rel="author">Andrew Babbitt</a></li> </ul> <h2>U.S. Diplomacy</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/116858/us-un-ambassador-nominee-waltz/">U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nominee Waltz Faces Senate Vote as the Global Body Reels</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Richard Gowan" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/gowanrichard/" rel="author">Richard Gowan</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117144/as-georgian-regime-intensifies-crackdown-u-s-should-support-its-people/">As Georgian Regime Intensifies Crackdown, U.S. Should Support Its People</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Ambassador (ret) Ian Kelly" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/kellyian/" rel="author">Ambassador (ret) Ian Kelly</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by David J. Kramer" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/kramerdavidj/" rel="author">David J. Kramer</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117271/us-elsalvador-diplomatic-notes/">The Legal Fig Leaf: The US-El Salvador Detainee Diplomatic Notes</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Brian Finucane" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/finucanebrian/" rel="author">Brian Finucane</a></li> </ul> <h2>United States / Syria</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117191/trump-administrations-delisting-hts/">Understanding the Trump Administration’s Delisting of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Jason M. Blazakis" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/blazakisjason/" rel="author">Jason M. Blazakis</a></li> </ul> <h2>U.S. National Security / Courts</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117149/judges-classified-information-senate-confirmation/">Classified Information and State Secrets: Why the Senate Must Consider National Security Risks in Judicial Confirmations</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Noah Bookbinder" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/bookbindernoah/" rel="author">Noah Bookbinder</a>, <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Christie Wentworth" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/wentworthchristie/" rel="author">Christie Wentworth</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Danielle DeVillier" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/devillierdanielle/" rel="author">Danielle DeVillier</a></li> </ul> <h2>United Nations / Gender Apartheid</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/116780/gender-apartheid-should-be-an-international-crime/">Gender Apartheid Should Be an International Crime</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Heather Barr" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/barrheather/" rel="author">Heather Barr</a>, <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Macarena Saez" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/saezmacarena/" rel="author">Macarena Saez</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Stacey-Leigh Manuel" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/manuelstaceyleigh/" rel="author">Stacey-Leigh Manuel</a></li> </ul> <h2>International Court of Justice</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117167/judicial-integrity-political-ambition-icj/">From Bench to Ballot: Judicial Integrity and Political Ambition at the ICJ</a><br /> by <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Roy Schöndorf" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/schondorfroy/" rel="author">Roy Schöndorf</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Ava Drai" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/draiava/" rel="author">Ava Drai</a></li> </ul> <h2>Podcast</h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117252/podcast-trump-shift-ukraine-russia-weapons/">The Just Security Podcast: Trump’s Shift on Ukraine and Russia — A Conversation with Amb. Daniel Fried and Dara Massicot</a><br /> <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Viola Gienger" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/violagienger/" rel="author">Viola Gienger</a> interview with <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Dara Massicot" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/massicotdara/" rel="author">Dara Massicot</a> and <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Ambassador Daniel Fried" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/frieddaniel/" rel="author">Ambassador Daniel Fried</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117346/podcast-budget-bill-dhs-ice/">The Just Security Podcast: What Just Happened, The Budget Bill and the Future of DHS and ICE</a><br /> <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by David Aaron" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/aarondavid/" rel="author">David Aaron</a> interview with <a class="author url fn" title="Profile and articles by Steven Cash" href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/cashsteven/" rel="author">Steven Cash</a></li> </ul> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117008/digest-recent-articles-just-security-july-14-18-2025/">Digest of Recent Articles on Just Security (July 14-18, 2025)</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> Other Weekly Recap Just Security Ron Wyden, a Democrat, Won’t Let Go of the Jeffrey Epstein Case, Either https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/business/epstein-banks-wyden-trump.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:cc1462e4-e489-e9c9-0a23-5308b60c4e39 Sat, 19 Jul 2025 01:11:26 -0400 Senator Ron Wyden has found that four banks waited until Mr. Epstein’s arrest on federal charges to flag $1.5 billion in suspicious transactions. Mr. Wyden wants the documents made public. Epstein, Jeffrey E (1953- ) Wyden, Ron Trump, Donald J Sex Crimes Human Trafficking Child Abuse and Neglect Banking and Financial Institutions Suits and Litigation (Civil) Suicides and Suicide Attempts High Net Worth Individuals Ethics and Official Misconduct Deutsche Bank AG Bank of New York Mellon Corporation Bank of America Corporation JPMorgan Chase & Company Justice Department Federal Bureau of Investigation Bondi, Pamela J Virgin Islands (US) Matthew Goldstein PROCUREMENT: Curbing Drone Smugglers http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htproc/articles/2025071905225.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:b07e896b-09d3-5813-4b1f-898abd67c8d3 Sat, 19 Jul 2025 00:52:29 -0400 AIR DEFENSE: S400 in South Asia http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htada/articles/202507190514.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:8cfa7d67-790b-06c8-4eed-fc22150553bc Sat, 19 Jul 2025 00:51:08 -0400 Explosion at Los Angeles Training Center Kills 3 Sheriff’s Deputies https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/us/los-angeles-sheriff-center-explosion-deaths.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:887a3c9d-f305-929e-1ea7-f21e0a2e31ea Sat, 19 Jul 2025 00:38:51 -0400 It was not immediately clear what caused the blast at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Biscailuz Training Academy center. No one else was injured, officials said. Deaths (Fatalities) Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Federal Bureau of Investigation Los Angeles (Calif) Jesus Jiménez, Tim Arango and Shawn Hubler Gabbard Claims Obama Administration Tried to Undermine Trump in 2016 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/us/politics/gabbard-obama-trump-russia.html NYT > Cyberwarfare urn:uuid:11977657-b712-9d34-3c32-cc69029ef96a Fri, 18 Jul 2025 19:34:19 -0400 Democrats denounced a report issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence as politically motivated and error-ridden. United States International Relations Cyberwarfare and Defense Presidential Election of 2016 Espionage and Intelligence Services Russian Interference in 2016 US Elections and Ties to Trump Associates Central Intelligence Agency Gabbard, Tulsi (1981- ) Obama, Barack Putin, Vladimir V Trump, Donald J Senate Committee on Intelligence Julian E. Barnes and David E. Sanger Trump Administration Requests Release of Epstein Grand Jury Records. What’s Next? https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/us/politics/epstein-grand-jury-what-to-know.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:294fdfa4-3a9f-fbd2-cb6f-6729f668fce6 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 19:13:37 -0400 The records are at the center of President Trump’s effort to manage fallout from the Epstein case. But unsealing them is complex and requires a judge to sign off. Decisions and Verdicts Human Trafficking United States Politics and Government Sex Crimes Federal Bureau of Investigation Justice Department Bondi, Pamela J Epstein, Jeffrey E (1953- ) Maxwell, Ghislaine Trump, Donald J Mattathias Schwartz 3 Deputies Are Killed in Explosion at Los Angeles Training Center https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/us/los-angeles-sheriff-center-explosion-deaths.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:d5d50fbb-9714-9b0f-60df-ff02c67bcf18 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 12:43:02 -0400 It was not immediately clear what caused the blast at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Biscailuz Training Academy center. Deaths (Fatalities) Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Federal Bureau of Investigation Bondi, Pamela J Los Angeles (Calif) Jesus Jiménez and Ana Facio-Krajcer The Familiar Fingerprints of a Forgotten Art Heist https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/arts/de-kooning-higgins-sharp-harwood-fbi.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:01cba195-daec-3c66-8b5e-9c944a3204d2 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 09:41:44 -0400 After a valuable de Kooning was discovered behind a bedroom door, a true crime fan wondered: Is that all the thieves stole? Art Museums Robberies and Thefts Road Trips Blogs and Blogging (Internet) Content Type: Personal Profile Schachter, Lou Alter, Jerome (1930-2012) Harwood Museum of Art (Taos, NM) University of Arizona Museum of Art Federal Bureau of Investigation Taos (NM) New Mexico Michaela Towfighi The Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan Is Coming. Here’s What to Look For. https://www.justsecurity.org/117234/trump-ai-action-plan-what-to-look-for/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=trump-ai-action-plan-what-to-look-for Just Security urn:uuid:3a86e772-1c20-c67e-4cdd-ee04a3865f5c Fri, 18 Jul 2025 09:05:21 -0400 <p>From export controls to the U.S. workforce, the plan’s decisions will have major consequences for the country’s AI development &#038; deployment.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117234/trump-ai-action-plan-what-to-look-for/">The Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan Is Coming. Here’s What to Look For.</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>The Trump administration’s long-anticipated “<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/02/14/2019-02544/maintaining-american-leadership-in-artificial-intelligence">AI Action Plan</a>” is expected to be publicly <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trump-plans-executive-orders-power-ai-growth-race-with-china-2025-06-27/">released</a> next week. In response to a Request for Information issued by the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy, stakeholders <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/american-public-submits-over-10000-comments-on-white-houses-ai-action-plan/#:~:text=American%20Public%20Submits%20Over%2010%2C000%20Comments%20on%20White%20House%27s%20AI%20Action%20Plan,-The%20White%20House&amp;text=WASHINGTON%2C%20D.C.%20%E2%80%93%20Today%2C%20The,of%20the%20AI%20Action%20Plan.">submitted</a> over 10,000 public comments laying out their views on what should—and should not—be included.  That volume of feedback underscores the level of public interest in the administration’s approach to AI and the far-reaching consequences of U.S. government policy on this front.</p> <p>These six overarching questions will be critical to understanding the significance of the plan, and accompanying materials such as <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trump-plans-executive-orders-power-ai-growth-race-with-china-2025-06-27/">one or more expected executive orders</a>, once those are released:</p> <h2><b>1. What is the scope of the AI Action Plan? </b></h2> <p>There are many dimensions to AI strategy and policy, from U.S. government procurement and use of AI to supply chain resilience, export controls, and domestic and global norms about AI practices. The AI Action Plan is therefore likely to be broad in scope, providing insight into where the administration is heading on AI. That said, the Action Plan’s precise scope remains uncertain; and, the more that the Action Plan ends up covering, the harder it may prove to offer a single strategic vision that resolves tensions among aspects of multidimensional AI policy, such as fostering continued U.S. private sector leadership while keeping the most sensitive U.S.-produced technologies from reaching the hands of foreign adversaries and rivals.</p> <h2><b>2. What does the plan say about AI infrastructure and power?</b></h2> <p>AI’s rapid development requires significant investments in land and energy resources, among other inputs. The AI Action Plan will likely cover the ways to increase the availability of these raw inputs to the U.S. private sector, both domestically and abroad. So far, the Trump administration has, for example, <a href="https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-identifies-16-federal-sites-across-country-data-center-and-ai-infrastructure">continued</a> to drive implementation of an initiative kicked off by the Biden administration making available federal land for the types of data centers essential to AI model training and operation. The Action Plan can build on that effort by outlining a strategic vision for making sustainable investments in the raw requirements for AI infrastructure.</p> <h2><b>3. What does the plan say about the human costs of AI development?</b></h2> <p>AI’s emergence brings enormous opportunities for innovation, efficiency, and more, yet even its most enthusiastic proponents acknowledge that there are also costs. Those include costs for the people whose jobs will be eliminated or at least dramatically overhauled by increasingly sophisticated AI models and greater reliance on those models in workplaces across a range of sectors. It will therefore be key to understand how the Action Plan imagines preparing the American workforce to evolve with major AI breakthroughs and prepare for potentially significant upheavals.</p> <h2><b>4. Where does the plan land on export controls?</b></h2> <p>So far, there has been a lively debate between those who want to keep the most cutting-edge AI technology developed by the U.S. private sector out of the hands of the country’s global rivals and those who want to see that private sector’s reach extend as far and wide as possible—in part to try to crowd U.S. rivals out of the market. The Trump administration’s previous <a href="https://www.bis.gov/press-release/department-commerce-announces-recission-biden-era-artificial-intelligence-diffusion-rule-strengthens-chip">revocation</a> of the “<a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/106545/the-future-of-the-ai-diffusion-framework/">AI Diffusion Rule</a>,” paired with <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/113944/what-comes-next-after-trumps-ai-deals-in-the-gulf/">big AI deals</a> announced <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-secures-historic-600-billion-investment-commitment-in-saudi-arabia/">with Saudi Arabia</a> and <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-secures-200-billion-in-new-u-s-uae-deals-and-accelerates-previously-committed-1-4-trillion-uae-investment/">the United Arab Emirates</a> during the president’s May trip to the Middle East, marked notable wins for the latter camp. So, too, did the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/nvidia-wins-ok-to-resume-sales-of-ai-chip-to-china-after-ceo-meets-trump-68f55d71?gaa_at=eafs&amp;gaa_n=ASWzDAgx1a1M26RtUTxhmlgaW8Xjkq5d7aPzXlQGvJ8MhCoPpEQv7M9aOj_e&amp;gaa_ts=6877f039&amp;gaa_sig=VS8H1oosbVwbmbCn-OOGDw6tnbgyv_M0gS5i5Lbh9NUu6bikXWC_Fv3awpXh5wrAmBHRGTvHbfGkWZy9pDSPOw%3D%3D">recent news</a> that the Commerce Department will reverse course and now permit certain high-end chips to be sold to Chinese purchasers. The Action Plan is the next key data point in understanding which side of this debate is prevailing within the administration.</p> <h2><b>5. Where does the United States fit in globally on AI?</b></h2> <p>The U.S. private sector may be at the forefront of AI development, but AI maturation is a global phenomenon. And other countries have increasingly strong views of their own on AI strategy and policy, as demonstrated by the European Union’s complex <a href="https://www.europarl.europa.eu/topics/en/article/20230601STO93804/eu-ai-act-first-regulation-on-artificial-intelligence">AI Act</a> and recently-announced <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/10/business/ai-rules-europe.html">code of practice</a>. The Action Plan is a chance for the administration to explain how its approach fits in globally and might be pursued through international forums such as the G7—or not.</p> <h2><b>6. Will the plan take a position on hot-button legal and legislative issues?</b></h2> <p>The expectation is that the Action Plan will cover a range of AI-related strategy and policy topics. But it is worth looking to see if it expresses a view on behalf of the administration on certain hot-button legislative and even legal issues. With respect to the former, the <a href="https://www.nextgov.com/artificial-intelligence/2025/07/ai-moratorium-could-return-despite-removal-big-beautiful-bill/406557/?oref=ng-skybox-post">recent push</a> in Congress to create a ten-year (then five-year) AI state law moratorium via federal preemption gained traction remarkably quickly, almost becoming federal law. Already, efforts are underway to <a href="https://buildalfa.beehiiv.com/p/an-autopsy-on-the-state-ai-moratorium?_bhlid=6f6b92704221e53c1f98d427706d267589d39fe3&amp;utm_campaign=an-autopsy-on-the-state-ai-moratorium&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_source=buildalfa.org">revive</a> the proposal for a future legislative vehicle that might see it pass. The Action Plan offers the administration a chance to weigh in on similar legislation going forward.</p> <p>When it comes to legal issues, in recent weeks federal district courts have issued three landmark decisions <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/116339/ai-copyright-wars-us-china/">grappling</a> with whether training AI models on copyrighted materials is protected as fair use under intellectual property laws. In short, two judges <a href="https://x.com/DavidSacks/status/1930049764080452038">said</a> <i>yes</i> and one said <i>no</i>. But there was a lot more nuance to what each judge said; and, regardless, the issues are almost certain to be considered by appellate courts in coming months, making the recent rulings important but far from the final word on these critical intellectual property issues. While these have largely been legal fights among private parties, the Trump administration fired the country’s top copyright official days after her office released a report suggesting that AI model training might not be protected as fair use. If the administration wants to air its legal views on this issue and others such as whether AI chatbots’ output <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/florida-judge-rules-ai-chatbots-not-protected-by-first-amendment/">qualifies</a> as First Amendment-protected speech, the Action Plan could offer an opportunity to do so.</p> <p style="text-align: center;">* * *</p> <p>There is no set formula for writing, coordinating, and releasing national strategies or action plans. What makes it in—and what does not—can be just as consequential, and just as revealing, as the content itself. Just as importantly, how something is said can signal as much about the path ahead as what is said. Given the stakes for AI development, deployment, and use, the forthcoming AI Action Plan warrants close scrutiny along all these dimensions. Where the U.S. government takes AI strategy and policy will have far-reaching consequences—for Americans&#8217; jobs, their lives, and their place in the world.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117234/trump-ai-action-plan-what-to-look-for/">The Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan Is Coming. Here’s What to Look For.</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> AI & Emerging Technology Artificial Intelligence (AI) Executive Branch Featured Articles Big Tech corporations Emerging technology executive branch export controls Regulation Technology Trump administration second term White House Joshua Geltzer Understanding the Trump Administration’s Delisting of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham https://www.justsecurity.org/117191/trump-administrations-delisting-hts/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=trump-administrations-delisting-hts Just Security urn:uuid:d4683b0e-a588-66fb-d553-0aaed5bb40f3 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 08:50:37 -0400 <p>On July 8, the Department of State removed Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), also known as Jabhat al-Nusrah, from the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) list. In a press release previewing the delisting, Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that the action fulfills President Donald Trump’s May 13 pledge to offer sanctions relief to the people of [&#8230;]</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117191/trump-administrations-delisting-hts/">Understanding the Trump Administration’s Delisting of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>On July 8, the Department of State <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/07/08/2025-12720/revocation-of-the-foreign-terrorist-organization-designation-of-al-nusrah-front-also-known-as-hayat">removed</a> Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), also known as Jabhat al-Nusrah, from the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) list. In a <a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2025/07/revoking-the-foreign-terrorist-organization-designation-of-hayat-tahrir-al-sham">press release</a> previewing the delisting, Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that the action fulfills President Donald Trump’s <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/trump-says-will-remove-us-sanctions-syria-2025-05-13/">May 13 pledge</a> to offer sanctions relief to the people of Syria. On June 30, the White House followed up on Trump’s promise by <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/06/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-provides-for-the-revocation-of-syria-sanctions/">announcing</a> that the United States would lift all sanctions on Syria, except for those imposed on former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group. The White House ordered the State Department to review the listing of HTS and its leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Ahmed al-Jawlani. The State Department’s FTO delisting of HTS is in direct response to the White House’s order.</p> <p>The move to delist HTS as an FTO is not without risk, especially when considering its lineage, and Jawlani’s historical direct links to two of the world’s deadliest terrorist groups: ISIS and al-Qaeda. Both organizations are still significant threats to U.S. national security interests.</p> <p>I was the head of the State Department’s Office of Counterterrorism Finance and Designations when the U.S. government first <a href="https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2012/12/201759.htm">designated</a> Nusrah Front as an alias for al-Qaeda in Iraq on Dec. 11, 2012. Nusrah was added to the list of terrorist organizations because it was a ruthless terrorist group. As described in the State Department’s <a href="https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2012/12/201759.htm">press release</a>: “Since November 2011, al-Nusrah Front has claimed nearly 600 attacks,” including “40 suicide attacks,” and “sought to portray itself as part of the legitimate Syrian opposition while it is, in fact, an attempt by [al-Qaeda in Iraq] AQI to hijack the struggles of the Syrian people.” AQI, of course, was a precursor to what would become ISIS. The State Department also explained that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (the first leader of ISIS’s so-called caliphate, which seized much of Iraq and Syria) tasked Jawlani with establishing AQI’s (ISIS) operations in Syria. In other words, Jawlani was originally Baghdadi’s point person in Syria.</p> <p>Baghdadi and Jawlani <a href="https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2013/04/al_nusrah_front_lead.php">broke up</a> in 2013, with Jawlani renewing his allegiance directly to the head of al-Qaeda and Nusrah breaking off from ISIS. The split between the two led to a global, bloody rivalry between ISIS and al-Qaeda. Then, in 2016, Jawlani and Nusrah <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/7/29/al-nusra-leader-jolani-announces-split-from-al-qaeda">disassociated</a> themselves from al-Qaeda. Like a chameleon changing its stripes, Nusrah later changed its name to HTS. This is when the group tried to hide its past.</p> <p>The State Department and the wider U.S. government national security architecture did not buy Nusrah’s rebranding. In May 2018, the State Department amended Nusrah’s terrorist listing to add HTS as an alias. I was still the head of the Counterterrorism Finance and Designations office when we made that determination. As the State Department stated in a <a href="https://2017-2021.state.gov/amendments-to-the-terrorist-designations-of-al-nusrah-front/">press release</a>, Nusrah had “launched the creation of HTS as a vehicle to advance its position in the Syrian uprising and to further its own goals as an [al Qaeda] affiliate.” My boss at the time, Ambassador Nathan Sales, who was appointed by President Trump, explained that the amended “designation serves notice that the United States is not fooled by this al-Qaeda affiliate’s attempt to rebrand itself.”</p> <p>The U.S. government adds groups to terrorist lists based on all-source information, often a compilation of classified and unclassified information. Simply put, in the case of HTS and Jawlani, who was <a href="https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2013/05/209499.htm">sanctioned by the State Department</a> pursuant to E.O. 13224 on May 16, 2013, it was very clear that they were dangerous terrorists.</p> <p>This is, in part, why Trump’s move to delist HTS is risky and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9dqp842nl8o">why the president’s photo-op</a> with Jawlani in mid-May was ill-advised. HTS and Jawlani have a lot of baggage. Of course, the downfall of the brutal Assad regime is a positive development for the Syrian people. Assad’s monstrous rule is well-documented. And HTS played an instrumental role in Assad’s ouster. The new political reality, in which HTS runs the post-Assad government, requires fresh thinking on the sanctions front. But HTS’s involvement in human rights abuses, including the <a href="https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/syrias-transitional-honeymoon-over-after-massacres-and-disinformation">targeting of minority Druze communities</a> earlier this year, as well as during <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syrian-druze-leader-urges-local-fighters-confront-incoming-government-troops-2025-07-15/">recent clashes</a>, is deeply problematic. At bottom, the decision to delist HTS as an FTO remains risky as a matter of policy.</p> <p>There are other complications. Jawlani has distanced himself from al-Qaeda, but HTS has lingering ties to al-Qaeda-affiliated actors in Syria. And some HTS members are not as nationalist-minded as Jawlani. According to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/un-report-sees-no-active-syrian-state-links-al-qaeda-2025-07-10/"><em>Reuters</em></a>, a U.N. monitoring team report that is expected to be published this month concludes that there are no “active ties” between HTS and al-Qaeda. However, that same analysis reportedly reads: “Many tactical-level individuals [within HTS] hold more extreme views than &#8230; [Jawlani] and Interior Minister Anas Khattab, who are generally regarded as more pragmatic than ideological.”</p> <p>A previous U.N. sanctions monitoring team <a href="https://docs.un.org/en/S/2025/71/Rev.1">report</a>, published in February, noted that while HTS had spearheaded the campaign to defeat the Assad regime in late 2024, “other listed and non-listed entities were involved” as well. Those listed entities <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/106215/syria-assad-regime-what-next/">include foreign fighter groups</a> such as the Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP), Katibat al-Imam al-Bukhari (KIB), and Katibat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (KTJ), all three of which are part of al-Qaeda’s global network. Still other al-Qaeda-affiliated groups were involved in the insurgents’ successful offensive. “While [HTS’s] leadership promoted a nationalist agenda, nearly half the HTS forces were reportedly aligned with” al-Qaeda’s “ideology,” the U.N. team wrote. The analysts also reported that al-Qaeda’s “affiliates” – including Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), Al-Shabaab and Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – all “published congratulatory messages for HTS” after the fall of Damascus last December. The “de facto Taliban authorities” in Afghanistan congratulated HTS as well.</p> <p>Nonetheless, HTS’s delisting is well within legal parameters and historical FTO delisting decision-making. There are three pathways to delisting FTOs. The Secretary of State may delist an FTO if it is defunct, meaning there has been a change of circumstances since the group’s last listing or relisting. Since the advent of the FTO list in 1997, 21 groups have had their FTO listing rescinded, with <a href="https://www.state.gov/foreign-terrorist-organizations">the vast majority</a> of these organizations being defunct.</p> <p>The Secretary of State may also delist an FTO for national security reasons. This pathway has never been pursued by the State Department. Finally, there is a third discretionary pathway for delisting. Secretary of State Rubio can simply remove any group from the FTO list for any reason. It is likely that this third pathway is the one the State Department used given HTS’s checkered and deadly terrorist past, involvement in human rights abuses (which can, depending on the exact context of each abuse, be a legal basis for keeping a listing intact), and past precedent. For instance, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a discretionary decision to <a href="https://www.state.gov/foreign-terrorist-organizations">remove the Mujahedeen e-Khalq Organization (MEK)</a> from the FTO list in 2012.</p> <p>What nearly all news reporting and think-tank analysis of the HTS FTO delisting misses, however, is the fact that the group remains listed as a terrorist organization pursuant to U.S. law. As such, the Trump administration retains leverage over Jawlani, current and former HTS members, and the new Syrian regime. Secretary of State Rubio did not revoke HTS’s E.O. 13224 designation as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” (SDGT). Nor did Rubio remove Jawlani, also <a href="https://www.state.gov/executive-order-13224/#current">designated pursuant to E.O. 13224</a>, from the rolls of terrorist actors.</p> <p>Furthermore, <a href="https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/sanctions/1267/aq_sanctions_list">the U.N. maintains the listings</a> of HTS and Jawlani on its ISIS and al-Qaeda list of terrorists. It is very likely, though, that the United States, the original sponsor of the U.N.’s Nusrah and Jawlani listings, has proposed the delisting of HTS and Jawlani from the U.N. 1267 Committee. The United States, unless it wants to be non-compliant with its U.N. obligations, cannot unilaterally remove HTS’s or Jawlani’s E.O. 13224 listings. This compliance matters even more because the U.S. government is about to undergo its mutual evaluation by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in 2026. FATF reviews whether a country’s Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism architecture is compliant with FATF recommendations that protect financial systems from criminal and terrorist abuse. One aspect of that compliance is ensuring a country is meeting its U.N. 1267 obligations.</p> <p>The world should not, however, hold its breath for a U.N. 1267 delisting. Therefore, it could take time before Jawlani and HTS are removed from the E.O. 13224 list of terrorists. Russia, a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, seems unlikely to comply quickly with a U.S. proposal to remove HTS and Jawlani from the U.N. 1267 list. Assad now <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/syria-bashar-assad-russia-rebels-ryabkov-sanctuary-rcna183594">lives in Russia</a> and is a long-time ally of Vladimir Putin. In other words, Russia will need substantial political concessions before allowing HTS and Jawlani to be removed from the U.N.’s list of terrorists.</p> <p>The Trump administration’s recent Syria sanctions relief efforts, including the delisting of HTS, are only the beginning of what will be an incredibly complex set of delistings. By necessity, these moves will require high-level negotiations in New York and several capitals, Moscow included.</p> <p>The U.S. government has more room to maneuver on Syria’s listing as a State Sponsor of Terrorism (SST). In 1979, Syria was the first country <a href="https://www.state.gov/reports/country-reports-on-terrorism-2019/syria/">added</a> to the State Department’s SST list. With its change of government, Syria may be eligible for removal. That decision, however, like that of finally removing Jawlani and HTS from the E.O. 13224 terrorist lists, must result in iron-clad guarantees that the new Syrian regime will not allow ISIS or al-Qaeda to use Syrian soil as a sanctuary for their international terrorist plotting. Furthermore, the Trump administration must push hard for Syria’s new de facto government to respect the human rights and religious freedom of all Syrians.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117191/trump-administrations-delisting-hts/">Understanding the Trump Administration’s Delisting of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> Sanctions Terrorism & Violent Extremism UN Charter United Nations Al Qaeda Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) ISIS sanctions Syria Trump administration second term UN Security Council (UNSC) Jason M. Blazakis Early Edition: July 18, 2025 https://www.justsecurity.org/117356/early-edition-july-18-2025/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=early-edition-july-18-2025 Just Security urn:uuid:e82d090b-fe0f-7ef5-1c47-d57f6079e0e5 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 08:04:53 -0400 <p>Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news: ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR An Israeli strike on Gaza City’s Holy Family Catholic Church yesterday killed three people and injured ten others, including the parish priest, according to church officials. The strike also caused [&#8230;]</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117356/early-edition-july-18-2025/">Early Edition: July 18, 2025</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Signup</span><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> to receive the Early Edition in your inbox </span><a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://justsecurity.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=96b766fb1c8a55bbe9b0cdc21&amp;id=41135b9185&amp;e=bd8778e5ec" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="here- opens in new tab"><span data-preserver-spaces="true">here</span></a><span data-preserver-spaces="true">.</span></p> <p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:</span></p> <p><b><i>ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR</i></b></p> <p><strong>An Israeli strike on Gaza City’s Holy Family Catholic Church yesterday killed three people and injured ten others, including the parish priest, </strong>according to church officials. The strike also caused extensive damage to the religious complex. Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, told <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2025-07/the-parish-priest-father-gabriel-romanelli.html">Vatican News</a> that “what we know for sure is that a tank, the IDF says by mistake, but we are not sure about this, [&#8230;] hit the Church directly.” Several hundred Palestinians were sheltering at the church compound when the strike occurred. Natan Odenheimer reports for the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/world/middleeast/gaza-church-strike-israel.html">New York Times</a>; Stefano Pitrelli, Claire Parker, Mohamad El Chamaa, and Siham Shamalakh report for the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/07/17/gaza-catholic-church-holy-family-strike/">Washington Post</a>.</p> <p><b>Qatar, Egypt, and the United States on Wednesday presented Israel and Hamas with an updated Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal proposal</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> that incorporates the progress made in negotiations in the last ten days, sources say. U.S. Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler yesterday described the truce deal as “closer than it’s ever been.” Barak Ravid reports for </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/07/17/gaza-ceasefire-hostage-deal-proposal"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Axios</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">; Eric Bazail-Eimil reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/17/trump-envoy-says-hostage-deal-with-hamas-is-close-00461097?cid=apn"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Israel has demolished thousands of buildings across Gaza since its March resumption of hostilities with Hamas,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> with satellite imagery reviewed by </span><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-33fccfbe-abcc-4af1-bdd2-632b2787cf59"><span style="font-weight: 400;">BBC News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> showing entire towns and suburbs leveled in the past few weeks. An IDF spokesperson said that the “destruction of property is only performed when an imperative military necessity is demanded.” According to multiple legal experts, Israel’s actions may amount to war crimes under the Geneva Convention, which largely prohibits the destruction of infrastructure by an occupying power. Benedict Garman, Matt Murphy, and the BBC Visual Journalism team report.</span></p> <p><b>Israeli forces killed at least 27 people in attacks on Gaza yesterday,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> medics and church officials said. The number of killed reportedly includes eight men tasked with protecting aid trucks. Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Crispian Balmer report for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israeli-strikes-kill-27-gaza-three-die-church-late-pope-often-spoke-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE</i></b></p> <p><strong>President Trump yesterday called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to express “not a positive reaction” to the attack on the church,</strong> according to the White House press secretary. Shortly after the call, Netanyahu’s office said that “Israel deeply regrets that a stray ammunition hit [the church]” and that the incident is under investigation. Natan Odenheimer reports for the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/world/middleeast/gaza-church-strike-israel.html">New York Times</a>.</p> <p><b>In a </b><a href="https://lpj.org/en/news/telegram-of-his-holiness-pope-leo-xiv-regarding-the-attack-on-the"><b>statement</b></a><b>, Pope Leo XIV yesterday said he was “deeply saddened” to hear of the attack on a Gaza City church</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and renewed his call for “an immediate cease-fire” in the territory.</span></p> <p><b><i>SYRIA </i></b></p> <p><strong>Damascus is not preparing to redeploy government forces to the Sweida province, the SANA state news agency reported today,</strong> with an interior ministry spokesperson denying earlier reports of an planned redeployment. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syrian-government-denies-its-forces-preparing-redeploy-sweida-city-2025-07-18/">Reuters</a> reports.</p> <p><b>The United States did not support recent Israeli strikes on Syria, a State Department spokesperson said yesterday,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> while declining to say whether Washington supports Israel carrying out such military operations when it deems necessary. Humeyra Pamuk reports for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-did-not-support-recent-israeli-strikes-syria-state-dept-says-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>594 people have been killed during the recent sectarian violence in southern Syria,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights monitoring group said yesterday, adding that 83 members of the Druze religious minority were “summarily executed” by government forces and three Bedouin civilians were summarily killed by Druze fighters. Emir Nader reports for </span><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9395qwzgddo"><span style="font-weight: 400;">BBC News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>An armored convoy carrying several Western diplomats was passing by Syria’s defense ministry when Israel struck the building with several missiles on Wednesday,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> sources say. No one in the convoy was injured, the sources added. Timour Azhari reports for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/western-diplomats-were-within-metres-israeli-strikes-damascus-sources-say-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>ISRAEL-IRAN CEASEFIRE </i></b></p> <p><b>U.S. bombardment badly damaged, and potentially destroyed, Iran’s deeply buried nuclear enrichment plant at Fordow, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">according to U.S. officials familiar with a new U.S. intelligence assessment. Two other sites were not as badly damaged and may have been degraded only to a point where nuclear enrichment could resume in the next several months, the officials added. Gordon Lubold, Courtney Kube, Julie Tsirkin, Katherine Doyle, Dan De Luce, and Carol E. Lee report for </span><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/new-us-assessment-finds-american-strikes-destroyed-only-one-three-iran-rcna218761"><span style="font-weight: 400;">NBC News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Iran is making new efforts to arm its militia allies across the Middle East, a pattern of high-value weapons seizures by Syrian, Yemeni, and Lebanese forces shows.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Benoit Faucon and Adam Chamseddine report for the </span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iran-militia-allies-houthis-hezbollah-a36d7de7?mod=world_lead_pos2"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Wall Street Journal</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>France, the United Kingdom, and Germany yesterday informed Iran that they would restore the U.N. Security Council sanctions on Tehran unless it reopens talks on its nuclear programme immediately </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">and produces concrete results by the end of August. John Irish reports for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/europeans-warn-iran-un-sanctions-if-no-concrete-progress-nuclear-issue-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR</i></b></p> <p><strong>More than 100 Ukrainian drones targeted Moscow and various parts of Russia yesterday,</strong> according to the Russian defense ministry.<strong> </strong>Matthew Luxmoore and Thomas Grove report for the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/russia-says-ukrainian-drones-targeted-moscow-st-petersburg-8b2a1393?mod=world_lead_pos4" data-cke-saved-href="https://www.wsj.com/world/russia-says-ukrainian-drones-targeted-moscow-st-petersburg-8b2a1393?mod=world_lead_pos4">Wall Street Journal</a>.</p> <p><b>The European Union today approved its 18th package of sanctions against Russia, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">aiming to lower the G7&#8217;s price cap for buying Russian crude oil to $47.6 per barrel, diplomatic sources say. Andrew Gray and Lili Bayer report for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-approves-new-russia-sanctions-with-lower-oil-price-cap-2025-07-18/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Ukraine will let foreign arms companies test new weapons on the front lines of Ukraine’s war against Russia’s invasion,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Kyiv&#8217;s state-backed arms investment and procurement group Brave1 announced yesterday. Sabine Siebold reports for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/ukraine-offers-its-front-line-test-bed-foreign-weapons-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>GLOBAL AFFAIRS </i></b></p> <p><b>Leading human rights organization Cristosal has pulled 20 employees out of El Salvador amid President Nayib Bukele&#8217;s drive to crack down on critics and humanitarian organizations, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">the group’s representatives said. Emily Green reports for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/el-salvador-rights-group-flees-bukeles-deepening-crackdown-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Burkina Faso&#8217;s military rulers have disbanded the country&#8217;s electoral commission, according to the country’s state-run RTB TV, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">which reported that the interior ministry will handle elections in the future.</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Chris Ewokor and Damian Zane report for </span><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyzj2k2pmvo"><span style="font-weight: 400;">BBC News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS</i></b></p> <p><b>The Congress today approved the White House’s request to claw back $9 billion for foreign aid and public broadcasting,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> with a 216-to-213 House vote sending the measure to Trump for signature. GOP Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA) and Michael R. Turner (OH) voted against the measure. Catie Edmondson reports for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/senate-vote-trump-bill-pbs-npr-foreign-aid.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans yesterday unanimously voted to advance the nomination of Emil Bove to a lifetime federal judgeship to full Senate consideration. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">Democrats on the panel boycotted the vote after the panel’s chairman, Sen Chuck Grassley (R-IA) called the roll before every Democrat had a chance to air their objections. Carrie Johnson reports for </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/07/17/nx-s1-5467260/trump-emil-bove-judge"><span style="font-weight: 400;">NPR</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">; Glenn Thrush reports for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/emil-bove-judge-nomination-democrats.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Senate Judiciary Committee also yesterday voted to advance Jeanine Pirro’s nomination to the post of the U.S. attorney for the D.C. to the Senate floor for a final vote.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Keith L. Alexander reports for the </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/07/17/pirro-attorney-trump-martin-senators-vote/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Washington Post</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Justice Department Civil Rights Division’s head, Harmeet Dhillon, and Robert Keenan, the Division’s Senior Counsel, have requested a day-long prison sentence for Brett Hankison, a Louisville police officer convicted in connection with a raid that resulted in Breonna Taylor’s death.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> In a sentencing memo filed on Wednesday, Dhillon and Keenan also suggested that the Biden administration should not have prosecuted the officer on the civil rights charges on which he was convicted. Perry Stein and David Nakamura report for the </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/07/17/doj-sentencing-police-officer-breonna-taylor/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Washington Post</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>A grand jury has indicted a former Voice of America employee on allegations that he threatened to kill Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA)</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> along with her family members between 2023 and early 2025. Filip Timotija reports for the </span><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5406882-former-voa-employee-indicted-threats-greene/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Hill</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The U.S. Army Special Operations Command yesterday circulated an alert to retired senior military personnel who served in Iraq or Syria now living in Florida that they were the target of a possible terrorist threat. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">The notice did not specify the source of information, the kind of threat, or which terrorist group was involved. Eric Schmitt and Julian E. Barnes report for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/army-special-operations-terror-threat.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENTS</i></b></p> <p><b>In a 308-122 vote, the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday gave the final Congressional approval to major bipartisan legislation that aims to regulate a type of cryptocurrency known as stablecoins.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Veronica Stracqualursi and Morgan Rimmer report for </span><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/17/politics/genius-act-cryptocurrency-bill-house"><span style="font-weight: 400;">CNN</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Trump administration’s cuts to cybersecurity and technology staff at the State Department are more extensive than previously reported </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">and risk creating gaps in cyber, quantum, AI, and tech-focused expertise at the department, sources say. The mass firings at the State Department could significantly impact the administration’s ability to deliver on its priorities, multiple former and current officials say. Maggie Miller reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/17/cyber-tech-state-ai-00460679"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">; Jennifer Hansler, Kylie Atwood, and Annie Grayer report for </span><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/17/politics/state-department-firings-trump-priorities"><span style="font-weight: 400;">CNN</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Commerce Department yesterday announced steep tariffs on refined graphite, an essential ingredient for electric vehicle and other batteries,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> after issuing a preliminary ruling that Chinese suppliers were guilty of “dumping” the material on the U.S. market. Jack Ewing reports for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/business/trump-graphite-tariff-electric-vehicles.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS</i></b></p> <p><b>Nearly 800,000 mpox vaccines that the U.S. government had pledged to donate to African countries can no longer be shipped because they are about to expire,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. 220,000 vaccine doses have enough shelf life to be delivered to countries experiencing mpox outbreaks if the Trump administration signs off on their shipments, an Africa CDC spokesperson said. Carmen Paun reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/17/us-has-wasted-hundreds-of-thousands-of-vaccines-meant-for-africa-health-officials-there-say-00460290"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s son is working closely with the White House to impose sanctions on Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> who is set to preside over Bolsonaro’s upcoming trial on charges of leading an attempted coup, sources say. Terrence McCoy reports for the </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/07/17/brazil-trump-lula-moraes-tariffs/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Washington Post</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>U.S. embassies and consulates should “comment publicly on elections only when there is a clear and compelling U.S. foreign policy interest to do so”</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> under new guidance the State Department issued yesterday. The department has historically criticized and questioned the legitimacy of certain elections, notably in authoritarian countries. Matthew Lee reports for </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/foreign-elections-state-department-rubio-trump-9257a253aedb8a1dbfd85d91b34f31c5"><span style="font-weight: 400;">AP News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control yesterday announced it has sanctioned the top leaders of Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> over involvement in criminal activities, including illicit drug trade, human trafficking, and money laundering. </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-treasury-sanctions-leaders-venezuelan-gang-tren-de-aragua-2025-07-17/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> reports.</span></p> <p><b><i>U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS</i></b></p> <p><b>The Justice Department yesterday asked sheriffs across California to provide lists of inmates in state jails who are not U.S. citizens, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">the crimes they committed, and their scheduled release dates. The DOJ said it would pursue “all available means of obtaining the data” if the sheriffs do not voluntarily hand it over. Jesus Jiménez reports for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/doj-sheriffs-california-inmates-ice.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Health and Human Services Department has confirmed to </b><a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/07/17/medicaid-data-immigration-enforcement"><b>Axios</b></a><b> it is sharing Medicaid recipients&#8217; personal data with the Homeland Security Department,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> saying that the information-sharing is lawful and focuses on ensuring benefits are not going to undocumented immigrants. Maya Goldman reports.</span></p> <p><b><i>TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS</i></b></p> <p><b>Trump yesterday signed an </b><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/07/creating-schedule-g-in-the-excepted-service/"><b>executive order</b></a><b> creating a new classification of non-career federal staffers (“Schedule G”) who can more easily be fired.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> The White House did not specify how many workers would be put into the new classification. Jarrett Renshaw reports for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/trump-reclassifies-some-federal-workers-making-them-easier-fire-2025-07-17/?taid=68797849d0e0b300013a465a&amp;utm_campaign=trueanthem&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Trump’s firings of watchdogs have created an atmosphere of fear inside inspectors general offices,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> with office leaders worried that simply doing their jobs could get them fired or prompt political blowback, sources tell the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/inspectors-general-trump.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times Daily News Roundup Weronika Galka The Just Security Podcast: What Just Happened, The Budget Bill and the Future of DHS and ICE https://www.justsecurity.org/117346/podcast-budget-bill-dhs-ice/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=podcast-budget-bill-dhs-ice Just Security urn:uuid:3de0f761-1a00-163f-ada3-8d3e16eeeb87 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 07:55:34 -0400 <p>Host David Aaron is joined by Steve Cash to discuss institutional constraints on the FBI and law enforcement agencies compared to DHS.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117346/podcast-budget-bill-dhs-ice/">The Just Security Podcast: What Just Happened, The Budget Bill and the Future of DHS and ICE</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>The massive budget bill that passed this month allocates tens of billions of dollars to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Homeland Security Investigation (HSI). The influx of funding of that scope and size will significantly expand the role DHS and immigration enforcement agencies play in American life.</p> <p>What are the the institutional constraints on the FBI and law enforcement agencies compared to those on DHS and immigration enforcement?</p> <p>To help unpack what these differences might mean for achieving policy objectives while protecting civil liberties and providing political accountability, host David Aaron is joined by Steve Cash, who comes with a wealth of high-level experience in Congress and the executive branch and who most recently served as Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.</p> <p><a href="https://justsecuritypodcast.buzzsprout.com/2074610/episodes/17524405-what-just-happened-the-budget-bill-and-the-future-of-dhs-and-ice"><img data-recalc-dims="1" fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class=" wp-image-117352 aligncenter" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-18-at-7.19.19-AM.png?resize=578%2C316&#038;ssl=1" alt="" width="578" height="316" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-18-at-7.19.19-AM.png?resize=300%2C164&amp;ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-18-at-7.19.19-AM.png?w=654&amp;ssl=1 654w" sizes="(max-width: 578px) 100vw, 578px" /></a></p> <p><b>Show Note:</b></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Just Security’s </span><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/tag/federal-bureau-of-investigation-fbi/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">FBI Archive</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Just Security’s </span><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/tag/department-of-homeland-security/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">DHS Archive</span></a></li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117346/podcast-budget-bill-dhs-ice/">The Just Security Podcast: What Just Happened, The Budget Bill and the Future of DHS and ICE</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> Congress Counterterrorism Executive Branch Intelligence & Surveillance Law Enforcement Podcast Terrorism & Violent Extremism Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Digital Surveillance Immigration Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Just Security Podcast Law enforcement Surveillance David Aaron The Pentagon will host a ‘Top Gun’ school for Ukraine-style attack drones https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2025/07/pentagon-will-host-top-gun-school-ukraine-style-attack-drones/406818/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:dbecd718-7df7-bb42-115c-216c970e28d0 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 05:26:33 -0400 The Defense Department is hoping for “American drone dominance”—but that’s easier said than done. <![CDATA[<p>Participants from across the military will converge on Camp Atterbury in Indiana next month for a &ldquo;Top Gun&rdquo; school for first-person kamikaze drones&mdash;the type that right now are helping Ukrainians defend against invading Russian forces.&nbsp;</p> <p>Since 2023, the semi-annual <a href="https://defensescoop.com/tag/t-rex/">Technology Readiness Experimentation, or T-REX</a> event has served as a showcase for new drone prototypes and other emerging weapons technologies that are useful across the services. This year&rsquo;s will also display human skill in one of the fastest growing areas of warfare: flying first-person viewer, or FPV drones. The&nbsp; demonstrations will simulate combat conditions in urban environments and elsewhere.&nbsp; It&rsquo;s all part of the newest Pentagon push to attain what military leaders are calling &ldquo;American drone dominance.&rdquo;</p> <p>The Defense Department Office of Research and Engineering, working with the Army and the Indiana National Guard, helps put on T-REX. But Alexander&nbsp;Lovett, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for prototyping and experimentation, said&nbsp;it is relevant to the Navy, Air Force, and Marines as well.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>&ldquo;The services are now standing up FPV drone schools and drone capabilities,&rdquo; Lovett said at a Pentagon event Wednesday, put on by the Research and Engineering Office. The Top Gun school portion will feature teams and drone pilots facing off against one another, &ldquo;red versus blue,&rdquo; and new counter-drone tech, he said.&nbsp;</p> <p>Cheap consumer drones in warfare aren&rsquo;t new. Russians and Ukrainians <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2015/03/ukraine-tomorrows-drone-war-alive-today/107085/">used them</a> during&nbsp; Russia&rsquo;s initial invasion in 2014,&nbsp; to collect reconnaissance data to enable artillery strikes on the ground.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/10/anti-drone/504479/">Before long</a>, militant groups like ISIS were using them to drop grenades on opposing forces.</p> <p>But in late 2023, as Ukraine&rsquo;s defense ministry stepped up its production and delivery of first-person kamikaze drones <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/04/it-is-impossible-to-outrun-them-how-drones-transformed-war-in-ukraine">and pushed out</a> wide-scale training to Ukrainian forces, the unmanned aircraft quickly went from a battlefield curiosity to a determinant of tactical victories, accounting for 70 percent of Russia&rsquo;s battlefield loses, RUSI <a href="https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/special-resources/tactical-developments-during-third-year-russo-ukrainian-war">estimated</a> in February.</p> <p>The Pentagon has taken notice. In 2023, it <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2023/08/hellscape-dod-launches-massive-drone-swarm-program-counter-china/389797/">launched</a> a pilot effort to quickly scale up the production of low-cost, highly autonomous attack drones with a program dubbed Replicator. While the project was hailed for its vision, it didn&rsquo;t achieve the scale of output that many hoped for.&nbsp;</p> <p>But last week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/07/drones-are-now-bullets-how-new-pentagon-policy-may-accelerate-robot-warfare/406686/">slate of policy changes</a> to enable military entities within the services and combatant commands to do their own purchasing, rather than go through slower and more formal channels.&nbsp;</p> <p>Wednesday, Hegseth told reporters:&nbsp;&ldquo;When it comes to drones, large, small, all classes, we need to be world class, and we will.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p>He highlighted the memo as a means to &ldquo;open the aperture for other companies and other systems to be rapidly tested and fielded by units also pushing decisions down to lower level leaders.&rdquo;</p> <p>Emil Michael, the newly-confirmed undersecretary of defense for research and engineering, pointing to the various drone models and prototypes in the Pentagon courtyard, described the display as &ldquo;the beginning of American drone dominance.&rdquo;</p> <p>At this point, dominance is an aspiration. Russia has supplied its frontline troops with nearly 1.5 million small drones, CNA analyst Sam Bendett <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/04/it-is-impossible-to-outrun-them-how-drones-transformed-war-in-ukraine">told</a> <em>The Guardian</em> in January. Thursday, he told <em>Defense One</em> the number is likely larger this year than last, but Ukraine may now be ahead, supplying its own forces with 200,000 drones a month. A larger problem is China, which dominates the market not only for small consumer drones but also the essential digital and electric components that go into them.&nbsp;</p> <p>Michael, in his remarks to reporters, pointed to other administration efforts to re-balance that. &ldquo;The percentage of components that are made in America will only increase,&rdquo; he said, though he did not say how quickly.&nbsp;</p> <p>But Russian and Chinese forces can train drone operators in settings where jamming measures are active. Michael said drone makers wishing to sell to the Pentagon learn &ldquo;the lessons from conflicts that are happening around the world&hellip;That&#39;s sort of endemic to becoming a drone manufacturer in the [United States.]&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p>Still, actually learning how to make drones work in heavily degraded communications environments means testing in settings very different from the United States. Michael seemed unfazed by those obstacles.&nbsp;</p> <p>&ldquo;If you&#39;re a smart builder, we&rsquo;ve opened the door for you to come to our test ranges. And we&#39;ve opened the door for rapid acquisition, and you could build to those specifications&hellip; That could be done easily here by people who haven&#39;t done that over there.&rdquo;</p> <p>Experts disagree with that assessment.&nbsp;</p> <p>Last month, Brandon&nbsp;Tseng, a co-founder of Shield AI, a drone company working with the United States military as well as Ukrainians, told<em> Defense One:</em>&nbsp; &ldquo;There might be two or three electronic warfare environments in a year as part of some major exercises in the USA. It&#39;s something that the USA needs to increase the number of their challenges in doing it.&rdquo;</p> <p>Outside of that, the FAA and FCC place barriers on jamming and electronic warfare testing across almost all of the United States, because jamming interferes with cell phones and other critical communications equipment. Drone and counter-drone tech developers have long-said <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2024/12/us-has-tech-down-new-jersey-drones-not-policy-officials-say/401749/">that&rsquo;s a big hindrance to their efforts</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p>In response to a different question at the Pentagon on Wednesday, Lovett essentially concurred with Tseng: &ldquo;We have limited places where we can do that, which are usually government ranges that then drives availability, and it&#39;s just a factor of life.&rdquo; He highlighted recent <a href="https://www.wiley.law/alert-FCC-Adopts-Long-Awaited-Order-Enabling-Limited-Access-to-Dedicated-Spectrum-for-Uncrewed-Aircraft-Systems">efforts to work the FCC</a> and the FAA to adjust rules and guidelines to allow for more testing and test ranges. But the process of finding safe ways to jam drones in the United States will not be quick.</p> <p>For Tseng, the secret to American drone &ldquo;dominance&rdquo; is working in a combat environment like Ukraine, where <em>actual </em>dominance is on the line every day. &ldquo;if you are not operating in Ukraine, then your stuff is not serious. That&#39;s how the European military leadership sees it. We know a lot of companies went into Ukraine. They&#39;re no longer there anymore, right? This electronic warfare environment was so harsh.&rdquo;</p> <p>Bendett told <em>Defense One:</em> &ldquo;We will never be able to truly replicate [Chinese company] DJI success, but we have to shake loose our own creativity and the ability to tap into a massive amount of efforts currently working in tactical drone developments.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p>Allowing military units to pick their own drones, rather than wait for the Pentagon to make a decision, is a key part of that.&nbsp;</p> <p>And learning the lessons of Ukraine from actual Ukrainians is another likely key element to drone dominance, one of the organizers for the upcoming T-REX event told <em>Defense One </em>on background. To that end, members of the Ukrainian military will be be on hand to observe the experimentation. And the feedback will likely be blunt.</p> ]]> Science & Tech Patrick Tucker Ukrainian military personnel work at an FPV drone assembly center in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, May 14, 2025. Jose Colon / Anadolu via Getty Images SPECIAL OPERATIONS: Ukrainian Bridge Sabotage http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsf/articles/2025071801118.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:bda429ae-d5e8-75ed-d898-2f60e48ad5b1 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:11:21 -0400 INFORMATION WARFARE: Selling Ukraine War Lessons http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htiw/articles/202507180942.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:6128c5f6-ca4d-e442-d560-138a555acb02 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:09:45 -0400 Canada/United States : Ottawa's Château Laurier, the setting for delicate US-Canada negotiations https://www.intelligenceonline.com/government-intelligence/2025/07/18/ottawa-s-chateau-laurier-the-setting-for-delicate-us-canada-negotiations,110480850-eve Intelligence Online : Latest Issue urn:uuid:05a252af-9454-cbaf-d205-42ee86937298 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0400 It's Wednesday 18 June in Ottawa, and Canada's Minister of Finance François-Philippe Champagne is scurrying into the elegant lobby of the Château Laurier, a luxury hotel just a few steps away from the national parliament.He has good reason to be [...] China : Emposat, the Chinese telecoms group closely watched by European intelligence services https://www.intelligenceonline.com/international-dealmaking/2025/07/18/emposat-the-chinese-telecoms-group-closely-watched-by-european-intelligence-services,110480737-art Intelligence Online : Latest Issue urn:uuid:f7ab593b-28e2-eb14-22d5-17cb3e93c285 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0400 An espionage case under investigation by the public prosecutor in Saint-Gaudens in southwestern France, revealed by Intelligence Online (IO, 11/06/25), [...] Syria : Corporate intelligence specialists rush to Damascus https://www.intelligenceonline.com/corporate-intelligence/2025/07/18/corporate-intelligence-specialists-rush-to-damascus,110480777-art Intelligence Online : Latest Issue urn:uuid:da274102-19c3-1601-89bb-a72dfae5ce7a Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0400 Syria, already seen as a future source of regional growth for the security market, is also attracting considerable interest from [...] Syria : Israeli-Syrian normalisation talks take a hit https://www.intelligenceonline.com/government-intelligence/2025/07/18/israeli-syrian-normalisation-talks-take-a-hit,110480829-art Intelligence Online : Latest Issue urn:uuid:39cef4a8-5f68-5de3-67ff-11898bd27b74 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0400 Israeli strikes on 16 July on key Syrian infrastructure such as the Mezzeh military airport and a palace used for [...] France : French court to audit SGDSN and Viginum https://www.intelligenceonline.com/government-intelligence/2025/07/18/french-court-to-audit-sgdsn-and-viginum,110480720-bre Intelligence Online : Latest Issue urn:uuid:4f768e51-7934-4917-ad94-0ef8afd08676 Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0400 The Cour des Comptes is planning to carry out an audit [...] France/Jordan : ‘Intelligence-focused' diplomat to head French embassy in Jordan https://www.intelligenceonline.com/government-intelligence/2025/07/18/‘intelligence-focused--diplomat-to-head-french-embassy-in-jordan,110480723-bre Intelligence Online : Latest Issue urn:uuid:42c9c73a-6e93-2fd2-5e16-7951093ea9ee Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0400 Career diplomat Franck Gellet is set to be appointed French [...] Army Special Operations Warns Retired Members of Terror Threat https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/army-special-operations-terror-threat.html NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:5d5f3b8d-fd19-bad3-f202-186b70d4af4f Thu, 17 Jul 2025 23:17:10 -0400 The alert, issued to retired service members who served in Iraq or Syria and live in Florida, did not specify what kind of threat or which terrorist group was involved. United States Defense and Military Forces Terrorism Florida United States Special Operations Command United States Army Iraq Syria Eric Schmitt and Julian E. Barnes Marine General to Lead Naval Academy, a First https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/naval-academy-borgschulte-marines.html NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:13b660b2-68b4-3193-63a0-86b043cf904e Thu, 17 Jul 2025 22:44:23 -0400 Lt. Gen. Michael J. Borgschulte, an aviator who deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, will relieve Vice Adm. Yvette M. Davids, the academy’s first female superintendent. Academic Freedom Colleges and Universities United States Defense and Military Forces United States Naval Academy United States Navy United States Marine Corps Annapolis (Md) Hegseth, Pete Trump, Donald J John Ismay Iran’s Fordo Nuclear Site Was Badly Damaged by U.S. Strikes, New Assessment Finds https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/iran-nuclear-sites.html NYT > United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:396901fa-8f34-6a0c-d9c8-9abf33d09308 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 18:17:54 -0400 A clearer picture begins to emerge of what the Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites achieved. Iran-Israel War (2025- ) United States Defense and Military Forces Nuclear Weapons Uranium Trump, Donald J Fordo (Iran) Isfahan (Iran) Natanz (Iran) United States International Relations Stockpiling Central Intelligence Agency Defense Department Defense Intelligence Agency Julian E. Barnes, David E. Sanger and Eric Schmitt General Atomics plans robot wingman production for Europe https://www.defenseone.com/business/2025/07/general-atomics-plans-robot-wingman-production-europe/406815/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:d43564fe-b463-1c33-9c8c-70e10fe1eee0 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 17:47:44 -0400 The news follows fellow CCA builder Anduril’s announcement to partner with Rheinmetall. <![CDATA[<p>Drone builder General Atomics will develop and build a variant of its Collaborative Combat Aircraft for European militaries, the company announced Thursday.</p> <p>The company will use its German affiliate, General Atomics Aerotec Systems GmbH, in a &ldquo;teamed operation&rdquo; to build fighter jet drones in Europe, offering customized drones to other nations, the company announced ahead of the Royal International Air Tattoo, a military air show held at Fairford in central England. GA-ATS manufactures and services aircraft for the German military, and is headquartered near Munich.&nbsp;</p> <p>The news follows a similar announcement in June from General Atomics&rsquo; competitor Anduril, which announced it would team up with German defense company Rheinmetall to co-develop and produce its CCA offering for European militaries.&nbsp;</p> <p>Both General Atomics&rsquo; YFQ-42 and Anduril&rsquo;s YFQ-44 aircraft made their <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/business/2025/06/ccas-make-international-debut-companies-pitch-european-co-production/406208/">international debut</a> at the Paris Air Show&mdash;setting up a competition at home and abroad for CCA orders.&nbsp;</p> <div class="related-articles-placeholder">[[Related Posts]]</div> <p>In Paris, General Atomics told <em>Defense One</em> the U.S. Air Force has already been helping the companies pitch their CCAs to other nations&mdash;a notable change from the typical timeline it takes companies to get approval to sell abroad.&nbsp;</p> <p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re eager to combine our uncrewed aircraft system expertise with the airborne sensor and weapons system expertise of the European defense industry, starting with our own affiliate GA Aerotec Systems GmbH in Germany,&rdquo; General Atomics CEO Linden Blue said in a statement. &ldquo;With a proven CCA design already in production today, these systems will be delivered in significant quantity with high-technology European inputs to build and sustain affordable mass for NATO&rsquo;s fighter forces.&rdquo;</p> <p>General Atomics&rsquo; announcement comes as European nations plan a <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/06/nato-chief-europe-stop-worrying-about-us-just-increase-spending/406274/">massive increase</a> to defense spending in an effort to rearm and prepare for potential Russian aggression&mdash;an effort U.S. companies hope to capitalize on.</p> <p>Back at home, the companies are preparing for their CCAs&rsquo; first flight test this summer with the U.S. Air Force, after which the service will decide whether to bring one or both CCAs into production.&nbsp;</p> ]]> Business Audrey Decker Rendering of the General Atomics YFQ-42A. Courtsey General Atomics SECNAV: Robots won’t replace shipbuilders, but they could make jobs ‘easier’ https://www.defenseone.com/business/2025/07/secnav-robots-wont-replace-shipbuilders-they-could-make-jobs-easier/406810/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:435ae52d-b618-261a-3a4a-1b146d9fc084 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 17:02:59 -0400 Phelan said shipyards should equip workers with tools like automation and robotics to boost training. <![CDATA[<p><strong>DETROIT&mdash;</strong>The naval shipbuilding industry needs to lean in on robotics and automation to ease workforce challenges and boost performance, Navy Secretary John Phelan said Wednesday.</p> <p>&ldquo;We need to modernize how we train. I&#39;ve been to 10 shipyards, and I&#39;ve had one shipyard tell me how great their training was,&rdquo; Phelan said at the <a href="https://www.reindustrialize.com/">Reindustrialize</a> conference for tech and manufacturing startups and investors. &ldquo;I spent one hour with the workers who told me how bad their training was&mdash;I realized there&#39;s a big problem here. And we need to start equipping them with the tools that they need to get their job done easier.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p>Incorporating more automation and robotics could help address workforce challenges, he said.</p> <p>&ldquo;A lot of people are afraid of automation and robotics. I think it just enhances and makes the workers&#39; jobs easier. I&#39;ve seen that at a number of yards. It&#39;s not to replace jobs, it&#39;s to make [them] more efficient,&rdquo; Phelan said.</p> <p>Phelan&rsquo;s comments follow President Donald Trump&rsquo;s visit to Pittsburgh for a major energy and AI summit earlier this week. During that summit, two companies&mdash;Gecko Robotics and BPMI&mdash;<a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2025/07/new-partnership-looks-speed-delivery-nuclear-submarines-other-vessels/406752/">announced</a> a partnership that could help automate the documentation processes required for the technical oversight of naval nuclear submarine components.&nbsp;</p> <div class="related-articles-placeholder">[[Related Posts]]</div> <p>The <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/03/weld-baby-weld-white-house-create-office-shipbuilding/403482/">White House</a> has made <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/02/secnav-nominees-priorities-shipbuilding-shipbuilding-shipbuilding/403329/">shipbuilding</a> a major priority, with an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/restoring-americas-maritime-dominance/">executive order</a> that <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/04/defense-acquisition-exports-and-shipbuilding-figure-trio-new-executive-orders/404449/">called</a> for an increase in &ldquo;the number of participants and competitors within United States shipbuilding, and to reduce cost overruns and production delays for surface, subsurface, and unmanned programs.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>The Navy&rsquo;s shipbuilding programs&mdash;particularly nuclear submarines&mdash;are years behind schedule due to a confluence of challenges, including supply chain constraints and workforce shortages. To address it, the Navy has <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-25-106286">pumped</a> billions of dollars into the <a href="https://news.usni.org/2024/07/26/jay-stefany-to-lead-navys-new-maritime-industrial-base-program-office">maritime industrial base</a> to increase <a href="https://news.usni.org/2025/05/19/electric-boat-sub-workers-union-agree-to-tentative-contract-ahead-of-strike-deadline">wages</a>, attract <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/business/2024/06/inside-navys-slick-effort-find-workers-build-submarines/397147/">new entrants</a>, and improve <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/01/money-alone-wont-fix-navys-shipbuilding-woes-lawmaker-says/402279/">infrastructure</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p>The service could get $47.4 billion for shipbuilding and conversion, split between $20.8 billion in the 2026 defense base budget proposal and $26.5 billion in one-time budget reconciliation funds, according to <a href="https://www.secnav.navy.mil/fmc/fmb/Documents/26pres/SCN_Book.pdf">budget</a> documents.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Phelan, who ran his own investment firm before filling the Navy&rsquo;s top job, has <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/04/confronted-eye-opening-costs-secnav-vows-root-out-waste/404428/">stressed</a> cost efficiency as a key priority, particularly when it comes to <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/02/secnav-nominees-priorities-shipbuilding-shipbuilding-shipbuilding/403329/">shipbuilding</a>.</p> <p>&ldquo;My goal is to make it easier to do business with the Department of the Navy. We are setting realistic, achievable schedules, and we are committing to them. We are eliminating the waste and inefficiencies that drain resources without delivering results,&rdquo; Phelan said. &ldquo;We are implementing smarter contract structures&mdash;ones that reward performance, support long-term planning, and allow for meaningful accountability and results-based outcomes. We are investing in our workforce, modernizing shipyards, and utilizing <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2025/02/3d-printed-submarine-not-likely-maybe-something-close/403390/">advanced manufacturing</a> and other technologies to improve throughput.&rdquo;</p> ]]> Business Lauren C. Williams Hector Viramontes of Marine Corps Training and Education Command, left, speaks to John Phelan, the 79th secretary of the Navy, during a visit to the TECOM Integration Center in Stafford, Virginia, June 25, 2025. U.S. Marine Corps / Cpl. Joshua Barker Maurene Comey, Prosecutor Fired by Trump, Calls Fear the ‘Tool of a Tyrant’ https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/nyregion/maurene-comey-fired-trump.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:860eb277-f9f5-ce8a-7b0d-465d9653b5e8 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 16:10:34 -0400 Maurene Comey, who helped prosecute Jeffrey Epstein and Sean Combs, was dismissed without a detailed explanation. She is the daughter of James B. Comey, a longtime adversary of President Trump. United States Politics and Government Legal Profession Appointments and Executive Changes Federal Bureau of Investigation Trump, Donald J Comey, Maurene William K. Rashbaum, Jonah E. Bromwich and Benjamin Weiser Trump’s National Guard Troops Are Questioning Their Mission in L.A. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/us/trump-national-guard-california.html United States Defense and Military Forces urn:uuid:94572986-f93f-b278-d1ab-852c5d4dc7d8 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 13:24:18 -0400 Thousands of National Guard members have served in the L.A. region since last month. Six soldiers spoke in interviews about low morale over the deployment. National Guard California Los Angeles (Calif) Illegal Immigration Demonstrations, Protests and Riots United States Defense and Military Forces Reserves (Military) Hispanic-Americans United States Politics and Government Trump, Donald J Shawn Hubler Maurene Comey, Prosecutor Fired by Trump, Calls Fear the ‘Tool of the Tyrant’ https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/nyregion/maurene-comey-fired-trump.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:cec4722f-ca36-38bb-cbbf-08954916fb17 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 12:17:40 -0400 Maurene Comey, who helped prosecute Jeffrey Epstein and Sean Combs, was dismissed without a detailed explanation. She is the daughter of James B. Comey, a longtime adversary of President Trump. United States Politics and Government Legal Profession Appointments and Executive Changes Federal Bureau of Investigation Trump, Donald J Comey, Maurene William K. Rashbaum, Jonah E. Bromwich and Benjamin Weiser The D Brief: HIMARS in Hawaii; Navy to axe admirals in shipbuilding; Israel strikes in Gaza; And a bit more. https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2025/07/the-d-brief-july-17-2025/406817/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:39f191a7-23b6-ecbb-de2a-44bc8f22d6d8 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 11:00:00 -0400 <![CDATA[<p><strong>Welcome to this Thursday edition of The&nbsp;D Brief</strong>, a newsletter dedicated to developments affecting the future of U.S. national security, brought to you by Lauren C. Williams with Ben Watson and Patrick Tucker. Share your tips and feedback&nbsp;<a href="mailto:bwatson@defenseone.com">here</a>. And if you&rsquo;re not already subscribed, you can do that&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vbmV3c2xldHRlcnMvP29yZWY9ZDEtbmF2/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B1cb5b860&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145806000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3lqChqTYzTzZN9S3oHFycf" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vbmV3c2xldHRlcnMvP29yZWY9ZDEtbmF2/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B1cb5b860">here</a>.&nbsp;<strong><em>On this day in 2014</em></strong>,&nbsp;all 298 people on board Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 were killed when Russian separatists inside Ukraine shot down the airliner with a Buk 9M38 surface-to-air missile. In May of this year, the U.N.&rsquo;s aviation agency&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvbWgxNy1jb21wZW5zYXRpb24taWNhby1jb3VuY2lsLXJ1c3NpYS11a3JhaW5lLXdhci1kNGQ3ZTgxZDA1YjQ4Y2Q3Nzk1YmViZGUyNDA0NzUwMD9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B66edf659&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145806000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1ZscWN1O-Z0iYki40yLexZ" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvbWgxNy1jb21wZW5zYXRpb24taWNhby1jb3VuY2lsLXJ1c3NpYS11a3JhaW5lLXdhci1kNGQ3ZTgxZDA1YjQ4Y2Q3Nzk1YmViZGUyNDA0NzUwMD9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B66edf659">declared</a>&nbsp;Russia was responsible for the tragedy. Europe&rsquo;s Court of Human Rights&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvdWtyYWluZS1ydXNzaWEtZXVyb3BlYW4taHVtYW4tcmlnaHRzLWNvdXJ0LW1oMTctMWJhYzM2ODQyZjhhNGNmZTBlM2U3ODdmMGZhYjBjMWY_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B2a980521&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145806000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2uKAjKQqWCekDy-1f39I0J" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvdWtyYWluZS1ydXNzaWEtZXVyb3BlYW4taHVtYW4tcmlnaHRzLWNvdXJ0LW1oMTctMWJhYzM2ODQyZjhhNGNmZTBlM2U3ODdmMGZhYjBjMWY_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B2a980521">announced</a>&nbsp;the same finding as well just last week.</p> <h3 style="color:#aaa;font-style:italic;">Around the Defense Department</h3> <p><strong>The Army&rsquo;s 25th Infantry Division is switching out Howitzers for HIMARS in Hawaii.&nbsp;</strong>A new long-range precision fires capability is heading to the Army&rsquo;s Indo-Pacific stronghold, the commander of the 25th Infantry Division told reporters Tuesday. It&rsquo;s part of the Army&rsquo;s transformation initiative to divest of old technology and field more powerful systems across the service,&nbsp;Defense One&rsquo;s Meghann Myers&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGVjaG5vbG9neS8yMDI1LzA3LzI1dGgtaWQtc3dpdGNoaW5nLW91dC1ob3dpdHplcnMtaGltYXJzLWhhd2FpaS80MDY3ODAvP29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B3ce451c4&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145806000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0Lpe4DCQG_CjkO7g-rILSd" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGVjaG5vbG9neS8yMDI1LzA3LzI1dGgtaWQtc3dpdGNoaW5nLW91dC1ob3dpdHplcnMtaGltYXJzLWhhd2FpaS80MDY3ODAvP29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B3ce451c4">reports</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>What&rsquo;s new:&nbsp;</strong></em>The division&rsquo;s artillery brigade is preparing to integrate 16 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems over the next six weeks, said Maj. Gen. Marcus Evans. Their first system arrived Monday.</p> <p><em><strong>Background:&nbsp;</strong></em>The HIMARS move shot to the top of the list once the Pentagon released its interim national defense strategy earlier this year, as a signal to China and U.S. allies that the Army is committed to having its most powerful equipment in the Indo-Pacific, Myers writes. The division will test the effectiveness of its new addition at a Joint Pacific Multinational Training Center rotation this fall, alongside new infantry squad vehicles and reconnaissance drones. More,&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGVjaG5vbG9neS8yMDI1LzA3LzI1dGgtaWQtc3dpdGNoaW5nLW91dC1ob3dpdHplcnMtaGltYXJzLWhhd2FpaS80MDY3ODAvP29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1C3ce451c4&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw37CH4QLDS-e6JZT3dtGvRk" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGVjaG5vbG9neS8yMDI1LzA3LzI1dGgtaWQtc3dpdGNoaW5nLW91dC1ob3dpdHplcnMtaGltYXJzLWhhd2FpaS80MDY3ODAvP29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1C3ce451c4">here</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Related reading:</strong></em>&nbsp;&ldquo;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGVjaG5vbG9neS8yMDI1LzA3L2FybXktd2FudHMtYXJ0aWxsZXJ5LXN5c3RlbS1jYW4tcnVuLW9mZmVuc2UtYW5kLWRlZmVuc2UvNDA2Nzg0Lz9vcmVmPWQxLWZlYXR1cmVkLXJpdmVyLXRvcA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B93699be8&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2hFyrq3jQctNoNiQfDbNeO" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGVjaG5vbG9neS8yMDI1LzA3L2FybXktd2FudHMtYXJ0aWxsZXJ5LXN5c3RlbS1jYW4tcnVuLW9mZmVuc2UtYW5kLWRlZmVuc2UvNDA2Nzg0Lz9vcmVmPWQxLWZlYXR1cmVkLXJpdmVyLXRvcA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B93699be8">The Army wants an artillery system that can run offense and defense</a>,&rdquo; Myers reported separately on Wednesday.&nbsp;</p> <p></p> <p><strong>Developing: As part of plans to cut back on general officers, the Navy may soon drop about a half dozen admirals who help build ships,</strong>&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucG9saXRpY28uY29tL25ld3MvMjAyNS8wNy8xNi9uYXZ5LXNoaXBidWlsZGluZy1oZWdzZXRoLWRlZmVuc2UtMDA0NTczOTM_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B77cb81e4&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2ri9d2PO6kPxoH6wZgXKke" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucG9saXRpY28uY29tL25ld3MvMjAyNS8wNy8xNi9uYXZ5LXNoaXBidWlsZGluZy1oZWdzZXRoLWRlZmVuc2UtMDA0NTczOTM_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B77cb81e4">Politico</a>&nbsp;reported Wednesday. That means potentially eliminating &ldquo;three-star positions atop the five major commands&mdash;Naval Sea, Naval Air, Naval Information Warfare, Naval Facilities Engineering and Naval Supply,&rdquo; Paul McLeary and Jack Detsch write. &ldquo;This would remove experts intimately involved in designing, developing and acquiring new ships and submarines at a time when all of the service&rsquo;s shipbuilding programs are facing significant delays,&rdquo; they add.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Second opinion:</strong></em>&nbsp;&ldquo;The systems commands do make some sense for reducing the officer ranks,&rdquo; especially instead of reductions at combat units, former Naval officer Bryan Clark told&nbsp;Politico.&nbsp;Read more,&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucG9saXRpY28uY29tL25ld3MvMjAyNS8wNy8xNi9uYXZ5LXNoaXBidWlsZGluZy1oZWdzZXRoLWRlZmVuc2UtMDA0NTczOTM_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1C77cb81e4&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2Da8l34ONfEX1z7kj3NDMh" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucG9saXRpY28uY29tL25ld3MvMjAyNS8wNy8xNi9uYXZ5LXNoaXBidWlsZGluZy1oZWdzZXRoLWRlZmVuc2UtMDA0NTczOTM_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1C77cb81e4">here</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p></p> <p><strong>Meanwhile, in Detroit, Navy Secretary John Phelan addressed a room full of tech startups and investors,</strong> calling on them to help jumpstart American manufacturing on Wednesday. &ldquo;While the Motor City is known for building the trucks, engines, aircraft and machinery that propelled the free world to victory in World War II, I am here today to ask for your help in an effort equally as noble, one inextricably linked to the reindustrialization in the United States&mdash;that&#39;s restoring American shipbuilding and the broader maritime industrial base,&rdquo; Phelan said during a keynote at the Reindustrialize conference.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>On site:&nbsp;</strong></em>The former businessman stressed the need for fast tech adoption to keep pace with changing warfare, reports&nbsp;Defense One&rsquo;s Lauren C. Williams with more to come. &ldquo;We need to adopt things quicker. We need to learn how to test things faster&hellip;These are all things we need to get better at, because the speed is very different,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&#39;s not that we&#39;re at war, but we should behave much more like we&#39;re constantly being tested.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Update: The Pentagon ended its deployment of about half the National Guard troops sent to Los Angeles,</strong>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2xpdmUvZG9uYWxkLXRydW1wLW5ld3MtdXBkYXRlcy03LTE1LTIwMjU_dXRtX3NvdXJjZT1jb3B5JnV0bV9tZWRpdW09c2hhcmUmb3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bdafb4eb7&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3kB0HBG6_esu5bS4uVcPH5" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2xpdmUvZG9uYWxkLXRydW1wLW5ld3MtdXBkYXRlcy03LTE1LTIwMjU_dXRtX3NvdXJjZT1jb3B5JnV0bV9tZWRpdW09c2hhcmUmb3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bdafb4eb7">Associated Press</a>&nbsp;reported Tuesday evening. Trump federalized 4,000 Guard troops last month in response to protests against immigration raids in California. Another 700 Marines were sent to LA. &ldquo;It was not immediately clear how long the remaining troops would stay in the Southern California city as immigration raids continue across the country,&rdquo; AP noted.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>A new normal?&nbsp;</strong></em>The House version of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act features provisions that would increase military support for border protection and other law enforcement actions,&nbsp;Defense One&rsquo;s&nbsp;Patrick Tucker&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vcG9saWN5LzIwMjUvMDcvaG91c2UtbmRhYS13b3VsZC1kZWVwZW4tcGVudGFnb24taW52b2x2ZW1lbnQtZG9tZXN0aWMtYm9yZGVyLW9wZXJhdGlvbnMvNDA2Nzg2Lz9vcmVmPWQxLWZlYXR1cmVkLXJpdmVyLXNlY29uZGFyeQ/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B8a08a4ab&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0x_XrnfBAnRp1RdpuU25wC" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vcG9saWN5LzIwMjUvMDcvaG91c2UtbmRhYS13b3VsZC1kZWVwZW4tcGVudGFnb24taW52b2x2ZW1lbnQtZG9tZXN0aWMtYm9yZGVyLW9wZXJhdGlvbnMvNDA2Nzg2Lz9vcmVmPWQxLWZlYXR1cmVkLXJpdmVyLXNlY29uZGFyeQ/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B8a08a4ab">reports</a>. For instance, the bill makes permanent Defense Department support for joint task forces working to counter trans-national crime and allows the Secretary of Defense to hire tech and logistics contractors to support migration enforcement.&nbsp;</p> <p></p> <p><strong>The National Guard had its networks &ldquo;extensively compromised&rdquo; by Salt Typhoon hackers back in 2024</strong>,&nbsp;the Department of Homeland Security said in a June memo. NBC News&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubmJjbmV3cy5jb20vdGVjaC9zZWN1cml0eS9uYXRpb25hbC1ndWFyZC13YXMtaGFja2VkLWNoaW5hcy1zYWx0LXR5cGhvb24tZ3JvdXAtZGhzLXNheXMtcmNuYTIxODY0OD9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B6dbd9375&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1TxksihQx4RXQpZBAGr09u" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubmJjbmV3cy5jb20vdGVjaC9zZWN1cml0eS9uYXRpb25hbC1ndWFyZC13YXMtaGFja2VkLWNoaW5hcy1zYWx0LXR5cGhvb24tZ3JvdXAtZGhzLXNheXMtcmNuYTIxODY0OD9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B6dbd9375">reported</a>&nbsp;the existence of the memo on Tuesday with the help of the transparency nonprofit Property of the People, which obtained the document through a freedom of information request.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Between January and March of last year,&nbsp;</strong></em>Salt Typhoon also &ldquo;exfiltrated configuration files associated with other U.S. government and critical infrastructure entities, including at least two U.S. state government agencies,&rdquo; the memo says.</p> <p><em><strong>Panning out: Salt Typhoon breached major telecom carriers in a global, multi-year espionage campaign uncovered last year.&nbsp;</strong></em>Over time, news has trickled out about the scope and scale of the incident, which was first reported last September by the&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cud3NqLmNvbS9wb2xpdGljcy9uYXRpb25hbC1zZWN1cml0eS9jaGluYS1jeWJlcmF0dGFjay1pbnRlcm5ldC1wcm92aWRlcnMtMjYwYmQ4MzU_Z2FhX2F0PWVhZnMmZ2FhX249QVNXekRBaGo5cmdpWEZDMWpNS3AwM1l1TTJIakNhcFBpenUtQ3JBUzgza2k1SGdFcVhiaXB5NHo4NjJoaDJHWUo2MCUzRCZnYWFfdHM9Njg0NWU4MWImZ2FhX3NpZz1NREF1VmpScGFEYjlqZ28xci1HYnBnN245V0ZFNFZtVktac2JJSWl2TWZSTFdtdEk4dWhlLWUtaU1WMTlMdVhJVXItV0tweUxTN3ZFaTFBT0c1ZFplQSUzRCUzRCZvcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bd33e5644&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3mDlTfUKZ5VyTvucqqEGGn" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cud3NqLmNvbS9wb2xpdGljcy9uYXRpb25hbC1zZWN1cml0eS9jaGluYS1jeWJlcmF0dGFjay1pbnRlcm5ldC1wcm92aWRlcnMtMjYwYmQ4MzU_Z2FhX2F0PWVhZnMmZ2FhX249QVNXekRBaGo5cmdpWEZDMWpNS3AwM1l1TTJIakNhcFBpenUtQ3JBUzgza2k1SGdFcVhiaXB5NHo4NjJoaDJHWUo2MCUzRCZnYWFfdHM9Njg0NWU4MWImZ2FhX3NpZz1NREF1VmpScGFEYjlqZ28xci1HYnBnN245V0ZFNFZtVktac2JJSWl2TWZSTFdtdEk4dWhlLWUtaU1WMTlMdVhJVXItV0tweUxTN3ZFaTFBT0c1ZFplQSUzRCUzRCZvcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bd33e5644">Wall Street Journal</a>.</p> <p><em><strong>Expert reax: &ldquo;The revelation that Salt Typhoon maintained access to a U.S. National Guard network for nearly a year is a serious escalation in the cyber domain,&rdquo;</strong></em>&nbsp;said Ensar Seker, CISO at threat intelligence firm SOCRadar, to our sister site Nextgov. &ldquo;It raises questions about visibility gaps, segmentation policies and detection capabilities in hybrid federal-state defense networks. It&rsquo;s another reminder that advanced persistent threat actors like Salt Typhoon are not only targeting federal agencies but also state-level components where the security posture might be more varied.&rdquo; Read more,&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGhyZWF0cy8yMDI1LzA3L3NhbHQtdHlwaG9vbi1oYWNrcy1uYXRpb25hbC1ndWFyZC1zeXN0ZW1zLXNlcmlvdXMtZXNjYWxhdGlvbi1leHBlcnRzLXdhcm4vNDA2Nzc3Lz9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bb374c465&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw18qEGHSRcYPwXB4w3u3vMT" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmZW5zZW9uZS5jb20vdGhyZWF0cy8yMDI1LzA3L3NhbHQtdHlwaG9vbi1oYWNrcy1uYXRpb25hbC1ndWFyZC1zeXN0ZW1zLXNlcmlvdXMtZXNjYWxhdGlvbi1leHBlcnRzLXdhcm4vNDA2Nzc3Lz9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bb374c465">here</a>.&nbsp;</p> <h3 style="color:#aaa;font-style:italic;">Immigration</h3> <p><strong>The Marines recently rotated about 500 troops deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border</strong>&nbsp;for the past several months, officials&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW1lZi5tYXJpbmVzLm1pbC9NZWRpYS1Sb29tL1ByZXNzLVJlbGVhc2VzL0Fubm91bmNlbWVudC9BcnRpY2xlLzQyNDM4MjMvdGFzay1mb3JjZS1mb3JnZS1yZWxpZXZlcy10YXNrLWZvcmNlLXNhcHBlci1hdC1zb3V0aGVybi1ib3JkZXIvP29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bb8832d59&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2TKm4xL7rylAUWBD95hV_x" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW1lZi5tYXJpbmVzLm1pbC9NZWRpYS1Sb29tL1ByZXNzLVJlbGVhc2VzL0Fubm91bmNlbWVudC9BcnRpY2xlLzQyNDM4MjMvdGFzay1mb3JjZS1mb3JnZS1yZWxpZXZlcy10YXNrLWZvcmNlLXNhcHBlci1hdC1zb3V0aGVybi1ib3JkZXIvP29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Bb8832d59">announced</a>&nbsp;on Monday. The rotation was finalized over the weekend.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Leaving:&nbsp;</strong></em>Task Force Sapper, involving Marines from the 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, based at California&rsquo;s Camp Pendleton. They&rsquo;ve been working on tasks like&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZHZpZHNodWIubmV0L2ltYWdlLzg4OTgzMzMvdGFzay1mb3JjZS1zYXBwZXItc3VwcG9ydHMtc291dGhlcm4tYm9yZGVyLW1pc3Npb24_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B05aee713&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1RGfBgk20QHtgF1mEnL7KE" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZHZpZHNodWIubmV0L2ltYWdlLzg4OTgzMzMvdGFzay1mb3JjZS1zYXBwZXItc3VwcG9ydHMtc291dGhlcm4tYm9yZGVyLW1pc3Npb24_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B05aee713">replacing concertina wire</a>&nbsp;since at least March; their tasks have expanded to include security detail patrols alongside Homeland Security personnel. According to&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubWlsaXRhcnkuY29tL2RhaWx5LW5ld3MvMjAyNS8wNy8xNS9tYXJpbmVzLXJvdGF0ZS1ib3JkZXItZm9yY2Utc2VydmljZXMtaW1taWdyYXRpb24tb3BlcmF0aW9ucy1leHBhbmQuaHRtbD9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B6e30e9eb&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2GMMxJNPE3eUg_x22thi91" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubWlsaXRhcnkuY29tL2RhaWx5LW5ld3MvMjAyNS8wNy8xNS9tYXJpbmVzLXJvdGF0ZS1ib3JkZXItZm9yY2Utc2VydmljZXMtaW1taWdyYXRpb24tb3BlcmF0aW9ucy1leHBhbmQuaHRtbD9vcmVmPWRfYnJpZWZfbmw/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B6e30e9eb">Military-dot-com</a>, some of Sapper&rsquo;s troops &ldquo;initially believed the mission would last about a month. As it stretched past that assumption, leaders began planning for a nine-month operation.&rdquo;</p> <p><em><strong>Taking over:</strong></em>&nbsp;Task Force Forge, from the 1st Marine Logistics Group&rsquo;s Combat Logistics Battalion 15, also from Camp Pendleton. &ldquo;Working alongside U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Border Patrol, the task force will provide critical engineering and logistical support in accordance with the presidential executive order issued Jan. 20, 2025,&rdquo; the Marines said Monday.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>The new task force will be based in Yuma, Ariz.,</strong></em>&nbsp;which Military-dot-com noted, &ldquo;likely reflects the progression of barrier wall reinforcement that started on the coast of California and moved eastward during the mission.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Commander&rsquo;s POV:</strong></em>&nbsp;&ldquo;Our mission is clear: support our federal partners and Joint Task Force-Southern Border, strengthen operational readiness, and support upholding the territorial integrity of our nation&rsquo;s border with professionalism and precision,&rdquo; Lt. Col. Colin Graham said in the release.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Headline from across the pond:</strong></em>&nbsp;&ldquo;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW5kZXBlbmRlbnQuY28udWsvbmV3cy93b3JsZC9hbWVyaWNhcy91cy1wb2xpdGljcy9pY2UtZnVuZGluZy13b3JsZC1taWxpdGFyaWVzLWIyNzkwNDY2Lmh0bWw_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Be73a1698&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0ehl5eANgP5HFQPfH6Jsjp" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW5kZXBlbmRlbnQuY28udWsvbmV3cy93b3JsZC9hbWVyaWNhcy91cy1wb2xpdGljcy9pY2UtZnVuZGluZy13b3JsZC1taWxpdGFyaWVzLWIyNzkwNDY2Lmh0bWw_b3JlZj1kX2JyaWVmX25s/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1Be73a1698">ICE is now richer than most of world&rsquo;s militaries thanks to Trump&rsquo;s new funding</a>,&rdquo; the UK&rsquo;s&nbsp;Independent&nbsp;reported Wednesday.&nbsp;</p> <p><em><strong>Additional reading:&nbsp;</strong></em></p> <p>&ldquo;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvdGV4YXMtaW1taWdyYXRpb24tZGV0ZW50aW9uLWNlbnRlci1zaG9vdGluZy1jaGFyZ2VzLTg5YWRmM2QxN2ZkNGMzYTVkOWFlMWEyMGRkNjcwMGQ3P29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B3e1fc73a&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1752915145807000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1kEL2ZYJitVWx3VuR-reaY" href="https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvdGV4YXMtaW1taWdyYXRpb24tZGV0ZW50aW9uLWNlbnRlci1zaG9vdGluZy1jaGFyZ2VzLTg5YWRmM2QxN2ZkNGMzYTVkOWFlMWEyMGRkNjcwMGQ3P29yZWY9ZF9icmllZl9ubA/667f9e1a63ef8f38cd01e2a1B3e1fc73a">Former US Marine Corps Reservist Charged in Texas Immigration Detention Center Shooting</a>,&rdquo; the Associated Press reported Tuesday evening;&nbsp;</p> <p>And &ldquo;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.defenseone.com/click/40735291.24454/aHR0cHM6Ly9hcG5ld3MuY29tL2FydGljbGUvaW1taWdyYXRpb24tY291cnQtanVkZ2VzLXRydW Threats Lauren C. Williams The Legal Fig Leaf: The US-El Salvador Detainee Diplomatic Notes https://www.justsecurity.org/117271/us-elsalvador-diplomatic-notes/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=us-elsalvador-diplomatic-notes Just Security urn:uuid:268c7477-6e8b-9e58-4d41-f00f49bd12cf Thu, 17 Jul 2025 09:46:08 -0400 <p>Declassified U.S.–El Salvador documents expose a shaky legal cover and continued U.S. control over detainees in CECOT, raising questions about complicity in potential abuses.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117271/us-elsalvador-diplomatic-notes/">The Legal Fig Leaf: The US-El Salvador Detainee Diplomatic Notes</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>The U.S. State Department has now declassified (from the level of “confidential”) and publicly released the text of three documents pertaining to the “<a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/113026/us-agreement-el-salvador/">dirty deal</a>” between the United States and El Salvador for the transfer and indefinite detention of alleged members of Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and the Salvadoran gang MS-13.</p> <p>The following analysis of these documents is informed by my time as a State Department lawyer, beginning in the treaty office and involving many years working on diplomatic assurances—including with respect to detainee treatment.</p> <p>I focus on two aspects of the diplomatic notes: what they tell us about a weak legal cover for potential U.S. complicity in the abuse of detainees renditioned to El Salvador, and about the continuing U.S. control over these detainees.</p> <p>These documents have been the <a href="https://www.foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/shaheen_case_act_letter_to_rubio.pdf">subject</a> of <a href="https://democrats-foreignaffairs.house.gov/2025/4/meeks-castro-send-letter-to-rubio-demanding-answers-on-el-salvador-agreement">requests</a> by ranking members of Congress and litigants following the rendition of <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/venezuelans-deported-el-salvador-names/">hundreds</a> of Venezuelans and a small number of Salvadorans to the Salvadoran prison known as CECOT in March—the rendition of Venezuelans being effectuated under the purported wartime authority of the <a href="https://www.crisisgroup.org/global-united-states-el-salvador-venezuela/unpacking-use-us-wartime-powers-against-criminal-invasion">Alien Enemies Act</a>.</p> <p>The documents provide few additional details on the prisoner transfer arrangement between the United States and El Salvador—telling in its own right. Rather than memorializing the full terms of the deal, the principal function of these documents appears to be establishing a written record that the United States sought and received (and then sought to remind El Salvador of) assurances that detainees transferred to El Salvador would be treated humanely and not tortured, consistent with El Salvador’s obligations under the Convention Against Torture.</p> <p>Seeking such assurances that foreign partners will not violate international law is a longstanding practice by the U.S. government—a practice of <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/92214/not-reassuring-nsm-20-and-the-limits-of-law-of-war-assurances-in-the-transfer-of-u-s-arms/">dubious value</a>. Here it seems that State Department lawyers sought to create a paper trail in an attempt to rebut claims that the United States or U.S. officials renditioned people to El Salvador intent that they be abused—actions that could violate the United States’ own treaty obligations and potentially expose U.S. officials to criminal prosecution abroad. These documents should be understood as a legal fig leaf.</p> <h2><strong>Form of the Arrangement</strong></h2> <p>The form of the written detainee deal with El Salvador is (as <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/113026/us-agreement-el-salvador/">previously gleaned</a> from public reporting) a set of diplomatic notes. The underlying arrangement is described in a pair of notes dated March 13 and March 14—an outgoing U.S. note and the incoming Salvadoran note respectively. A subsequent U.S. diplomatic note dated March 31 was also released.</p> <p>Consistent with my <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/113026/us-agreement-el-salvador/">prior assessment</a>, the notes constitute a legally non-binding arrangement rather than a legally binding agreement having the status of a treaty under international law. The documents eschew language typically reserved for binding instruments such as “agree” in favor of formulations commonly used for non-binding arrangements such as “understands” and “requests.” This conclusion on the legal status of the diplomatic notes is reinforced by the fact that the State Department <a href="https://foia.state.gov/FOIALIBRARY/QNI2.aspx">released them explicitly pursuant</a> to 1 USC 112b(b)(1), a provision of the <a href="https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/transparency-of-international-agreements-under-the-revised-case-zablocki-act">amended Case-Zablocki Act</a> for “qualifying non-binding instruments.”</p> <h2><strong>Terms of the Dirty Deal </strong></h2> <p>The March 13-14 exchange of notes was conducted between the U.S. senior bureau official for the Western Hemisphere (himself a former senior State Department lawyer) and El Salvador’s Foreign Minister.</p> <p><em>March 13 U.S. Note</em></p> <p>The U.S. note requests that El Salvador accept “César Antonio</p> <p>Lopez Larios, Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang leader requested by President Bukele, César Eliseo Sorto Amaya, MS-13 gang leader convicted of murder in El Salvador, and up to 500 Venezuelan Tren de Aragua (TdA) members.”</p> <p>The U.S. note then sets out a legal disclaimer.</p> <blockquote><p>The United States understands that El Salvador will take these actions in accordance with its authorities under Salvadoran domestic law, and in a manner that is consistent with El Salvador&#8217;s international legal obligations regarding human rights and treatment of prisoners, including the Convention Against Torture.</p></blockquote> <p>The disclaimer appears intended to accomplish two objectives. First, to indicate El Salvador (rather than the United States) exercises control over the renditioned detainees. Second, the disclaimer seeks to disavow any intention on the part of the United States or U.S. officials that El Salvador will treat these detainees in violation of international law, including by torturing them or subjecting them to cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment forbidden by the Convention Against Torture.</p> <p>Notably, despite the disclaimer with respect to detainee treatment, the U.S. note does not request any mechanism for ongoing monitoring of the treatment by El Salvador. (Such monitoring mechanisms were a standard element that colleagues and I sought to include in any detainee transfer arrangement during my own time at the State Department.)</p> <p>Yet, the next sentence of the U.S. note undercuts the first part of this disclaimer. “Further, with regard to the TdA members, the United States understands El Salvador intends to accommodate them for a duration of one year unless <strong>or until a determination concerning their long-term disposition is made</strong>” (emphasis added).</p> <p>Although not explicit, this sentence strongly implies that the United States retains some meaningful authority to decide on the disposition of detains sent to El Salvador. The inclusion of this understanding only makes sense if it is the United States—not El Salvador making the determination on long-term disposition. Without such an understanding, El Salvador as the notional custodian of the detainees could make a contrary determination at any time. This interpretation of the text is also supported by detailed and elaborate <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/113739/state-secrets-el-salvador/">remarks</a> by El Salvador’s vice president in a <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.youtube.com_watch-3Fv-3D7YlCTjGCH20&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=slrrB7dE8n7gBJbeO0g-IQ&amp;r=JZwLRYy5ohjDpu4XJL_Qf2hS3DNnVr4l09kSgpJmOOs&amp;m=7fAZ9T38udYTSXBuUFaBbrlAOIBaNbTTXfrCvFy0KcxDU4e60x8kU5NtkGefStXW&amp;s=QHqEWOkJJcI3TKq8u_EBUqmHULtf7trd4ZqYpsHuVlI&amp;e=">video</a> recorded interview with Senator Chris Van Hollen, and by El Salvador’s <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.160.1.pdf">statements</a> to the <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436/gov.uscourts.dcd.278436.160.0.pdf">United Nations</a>.</p> <p>This understanding bears on the issue of whether the United States retains constructive custody over detainees renditioned to El Salvador for a major class action <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/?js_filter=00766">case</a> pending before Chief Judge James Boasberg and for other cases in which federal judges have ordered the government to facilitate the return of individuals wrongfully sent to El Salvador (such as <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/?js_filter=01944">J.O.P. v DHS</a> and <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/?js_filter=7792">Melgar-Salmeron v. Bondi</a>).</p> <p>The implication that the United States retains some control over detainees sent to El Salvador contradicts public assertions by Trump administration officials.  The US Attorney General<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/trump-claims-kilmar-abrego-garcia-returned-us-administration-said-othe-rcna203734"> asserted</a> with respect to the return of Kilmar Abrego Garica that it was “up to El Salvador if they want to return him. That’s not up to us.” In court, the Department of Homeland Security was notably much more nuance. The department <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mdd.578815/gov.uscourts.mdd.578815.77.0.pdf">claimed</a> “DHS does not have authority to forcibly extract an alien from the domestic custody of a foreign sovereign nation.” The latter statement may also be understood as narrow and <em>consistent</em> with the diplomatic notes. Indeed, those notes (and international law in general) do not provide the United States authority to “forcibly extract” individuals, but the notes do suggest some degree of continuing U.S. control over the individuals sent to and held in CECOT prison.</p> <p>The U.S. note then refers vaguely to the consideration the United States intends to provide in return for accepting these detainees—unspecified “in-kind and financial support to the Government of El Salvador.” The lack of detail on these critical elements of the arrangements—the U.S. quid for the Salvadoran quo—strengthens the impression that these diplomatic notes memorialize only part of the deal between the United States and El Salvador. The note states that this consideration is also provided to advance the shared “anti-crime and anti-drug objectives of our two countries.”</p> <p>The understanding that the diplomatic notes do not include the complete US-Salvadoran arrangement is further buttressed by the U.S. note stating that it “serves as 24-hour notice of the arrival of the Lopez Larios, Amaya, and up to 500 Venezuelan TdA members.” The alleged TdA members were those Venezuelan men that the United States would subsequently fly to El Salvador on March 15 under the supposed authority of the Alien Enemies Act. It is extremely unlikely that the United States would only provide El Salvador with 24-hours’ notice of the transfer of hundreds of detainees. Instead, this notice followed what were reportedly <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/30/us/politics/trump-deportations-venezuela-el-salvador.html">months of discussions and negotiations between the two countries</a> likely produced additional, unwritten (if not also written) understandings.</p> <p><em>March 14 Salvadoran Note</em></p> <p>El Salvador’s diplomatic note in response dated March 14 and signed by the foreign minister, largely mirrors the U.S. note and likely was primarily drafted by the United States (a common practice).</p> <p>The Salvadoran note refers to the individuals to be transferred as members of “foreign terrorist organizations” (a reference to the United States prior such designation of MS-13 and TdA in February)—an element missing from the U.S. note. The note proceeds to reaffirm El Salvador’s “commitment to assist the United States in combating terrorism … while upholding human rights.”</p> <p>Consistent with the U.S. note, the Salvadoran document “confirms [El Salvador] will house these individuals for one (1) year, pending further decisions on their long-term disposition.” As with the U.S. note, the Salvadoran document does not explicitly state who decide upon the long-term disposition, but the definite implication is that particular decision rests with the United States.</p> <p>The Salvadoran note also contains explicit diplomatic assurances on the treatment of the detainees which includes a more precise reference to the relevant treaty than its U.S. counterpart. “Furthermore, we assure you that the reception of these individuals will be conducted in accordance with Salvadoran law and international obligations, including adherence to the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, of which we have been a signatory since May 19, 1994.”</p> <p>The inclusion of this humane treatment assurance from El Salvador’s foreign minister combined with the dearth of details on the transfer arrangement itself, further reinforces the impression that this exchange of notes was conducted at the behest of State Department lawyers providing (some) legal cover for the United States and U.S. officials.</p> <p>It is also remarkable that by its terms, this exchange of notes does not cover the transfer of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man living in Maryland, who was erroneously removed from the United States to El Salvador on March 15. The mismatch between the written terms and the application of the deal may reflect that the arrangement also encompassed unwritten understandings, or the reportedly chaotic implementation of the deal, or both.</p> <p><em>March 31 U.S. Note</em></p> <p>The documents recently disclosed by the State Department pertaining to detainee transfers to El Salvador also include a subsequent outgoing U.S. diplomatic note—one without a corresponding Salvadoran response.</p> <p>The U.S. note concerns a later transfer of 16 individuals to El Salvador on March 30—seven Venezuelans alleged to belong to TdA and nine Salvadoran alleged to be members of MS-13. Significantly, the U.S. diplomatic note postdates the transfer rather than preceding it and contains this reminder to El Salvador regarding El Salvador’s detainee treatment assurances. “The United States highlights the importance of the Government of El Salvador&#8217;s previous assurance that El Salvador&#8217;s reception and treatment of TdA and MS-13 individuals will be in accordance with Salvadoran law and international obligations, including adherence to the Convention Against Torture.”</p> <p>That this reminder should be delivered after the March 30 transfer suggests that State Department lawyers may not have been aware of or otherwise in a position to reconfirm humane treatment assurances prior to the March 30 rendition flight. That the State Department felt the need to deliver this reminder at all likely reflects ongoing concern by lawyers about whether El Salvador was in fact treating detainees consistent with international law.</p> <p>The March 30 U.S. note also frames U.S.-Salvadoran cooperation in terms of El Salvador’s support for “combatting the crisis of illegal immigration and its acceptance of Foreign Terrorist Organization members.” This characterization of U.S.-Salvadoran cooperation is different from that in the earlier U.S. note, which lists the shared objectives as “anti-crime and anti-drug.” This shift in framing may flow from the reportedly haphazard first wave of rendition flights on March 15 which <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/30/us/politics/trump-deportations-venezuela-el-salvador.html">Salvadoran President Bukele said he understood</a> to be conveying convicted criminals, despite the fact that <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/15/world/americas/trump-migrants-deportations.html">few</a> of the Venezuelan men being transferred had been convicted of any crimes.</p> <h2><strong>Not Reassuring</strong></h2> <p>Taken together, these diplomatic notes appear to represent an attempt by State Department lawyers to establish a legal fig leaf after the fact for U.S. government policies and actions they were unable or unwilling to stop or substantially influence at the front end. The humane treatment assurances and reminder contained within these documents appear intended to counter claims that the United States is <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/109284/non-refoulement-alien-enemies-act/">violating the prohibition on transfer to torture</a> as well as allegations that individual U.S. officials aided and abetted torture (actions that could expose them to legal jeopardy overseas).</p> <p>The U.S. government routinely makes use of diplomatic assurances of compliance with international law in providing support to or operations with foreign partners. Such assurances are a standard practice in the context of detainee transfers (including law-of-war detainees such as those held at Guantanamo Bay) and sometimes used in connection with arms transfers, such as those to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/14/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-arms-training-yemen.html">Saudi Arabia</a> and <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/92214/not-reassuring-nsm-20-and-the-limits-of-law-of-war-assurances-in-the-transfer-of-u-s-arms/">Israel</a> in recent years. As in this case, written assurances are commonly memorialized through exchange of non-binding, diplomatic notes.</p> <p>Notionally, the strength of assurance (according to the legal lore of the U.S. executive branch) rests upon them being both credible and reliable. “Credible” assurances are generally ones that are believable. To be “reliable” assurances must be provided by an official who can speak authoritatively on behalf of the foreign partner.</p> <p>In practice however, what matters is whether assurances are sought and provided in good faith and whether the U.S. government is willing and able to use leverage to ensure compliance. Such leverage can include monitoring mechanisms and the credible threat of consequences for non-compliance—consequences such as the suspension of U.S. financial or other support. All too often however, the U.S. government treats obtaining assurances as a box checking exercise rather than a serious attempt to prevent complicity in violations of international law.</p> <p>Here, there is particular reason to be skeptical of the assurances provided by El Salvador.</p> <p>It is hard to imagine a reason for sending Venezuelans to be indefinitely detained at CECOT that does not involve outsourcing their <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/109284/non-refoulement-alien-enemies-act/">mistreatment</a> or <em>creating the perception of such mistreatment.</em> Salvadoran prisons and CECOT in particular, are <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/03/20/human-rights-watch-declaration-prison-conditions-el-salvador-jgg-v-trump-case">notorious</a> for their conditions. The U.S. Department of State’s own <a href="https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/el-salvador/">human rights report</a> from 2023 recounts allegations of “systemic abuse in the prison system, including beatings by guards and the use of electric shocks.”</p> <p>Senior U.S. officials have been very clear that the brutality of CECOT is a feature not a bug for the U.S. rendition project—undercutting attempts to pretend the U.S. government did not know and intend that transferred detainees would be abused. The day after the initial transfer, President Trump and Secretary Rubio <a href="https://x.com/SecRubio/status/1901252043517432213">each</a> <a href="https://democrats-foreignaffairs.house.gov/2025/4/meeks-castro-send-letter-to-rubio-demanding-answers-on-el-salvador-agreement">reposted</a> on social media a video of the detainees being man-handled and forcibly shaved upon their arrival at CECOT. Trump subsequently <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114200244380161257">threatened</a> to send those who vandalized Teslas to prison in El Salvador, which he sarcastically noted “have become so recently famous for such lovely conditions.” Secretary Kristi Noem <a href="https://x.com/Sec_Noem/status/1905034256826408982">filmed</a> a video standing in front of an overcrowded cage of CECOT prisoners, saying the notorious prison would be serve as a deterrent — “one of the tools in our toolkit that we will use if you commit crimes against the American people.”</p> <p>Kilmar Abrego Garcia—the man wrongly renditioned from Maryland to CECOT and subsequently returned to the United States—<a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mdd.578815/gov.uscourts.mdd.578815.211.3_1.pdf">alleges</a> in court filings that “he was subjected to severe mistreatment upon arrival at CECOT, including but not limited to severe beatings, severe sleep deprivation, inadequate nutrition, and psychological torture.”</p> <p>In addition, Human Rights Watch has characterized the U.S. transfer of men to CECOT as amounting to <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/04/11/us/el-salvador-venezuelan-deportees-forcibly-disappeared">enforced disappearance</a>—a crime under international law.</p> <p>Although the United States certainly has leverage with the Bukele government to ensure humane treatment of detainees renditioned to El Salvador (despite some U.S. officials’ claims to the contrary), doing so would undermine the apparent purpose of sending them to the country in the first place.</p> <p>The legal fig leaf of these assurances may even be counterproductive, to the extent the subsequent reminder of assurances reflects an awareness that the United States and U.S. officials are treading on legally treacherous ground. Should U.S. officials ever be haled into court abroad on charges relating to the treatment of detainees Courts & Litigation Executive Branch Immigration International Law Alien Enemies Act Congressional Oversight Diplomacy El Salvador Marco Rubio torture Treaty Law Brian Finucane A Warm Welcome to Mark Nevitt as a Just Security Editorial Board Member! https://www.justsecurity.org/117195/mark-nevitt-editorial-board-member/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=mark-nevitt-editorial-board-member Just Security urn:uuid:6d5e653e-ca47-bc9d-944d-378bded2da36 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 09:05:09 -0400 <p>We are thrilled to welcome distinguished scholar and Emory law professor Mark Nevitt, Commander, JAGC (ret.), as a new member of Just Security's Editorial Board.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117195/mark-nevitt-editorial-board-member/">A Warm Welcome to Mark Nevitt as a Just Security Editorial Board Member!</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>We are thrilled to announce that longtime <i>Just Security</i> contributor <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/nevittmark/">Mark Nevitt</a> is now joining<i> Just Security</i>’s Editorial Board.</p> <p>Nevitt, Commander, JAGC (ret.), is an Associate Professor of Law at Emory University School of Law. He was previously the Class of 1971 Distinguished Military Professor of Leadership &amp; Law at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, Associate Professor at Syracuse University College of Law, and the Sharswood Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.</p> <p>Prior to law school, Nevitt served as an accomplished naval tactical jet aviator and was awarded the Air Medal. After completing a J.D. and LL.M. with distinction from Georgetown, his Navy JAG assignments included serving as criminal defense counsel in Lemoore, California; international law and ethics attorney with the U.S. Navy’s Sixth Fleet in Naples, Italy; Deputy Director for Administrative Law for the Office of the Judge Advocate General at the Pentagon; and the Department of Defense’s Regional Environmental Counsel in Norfolk, Virginia.</p> <p>Today, Nevitt works, teaches, and publishes widely on emerging legal and policy issues, particularly at the intersection of environmental law, climate change, and national security as well as on legal issues governing the domestic use of the U.S. military.</p> <p>In addition to his scholarship, he has contributed to <i>Just Security’s</i> growing content in these areas, including by promoting the work of global voices and emerging scholars. We are delighted for him to continue to share his expertise as a member of our outstanding Editorial Board.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117195/mark-nevitt-editorial-board-member/">A Warm Welcome to Mark Nevitt as a Just Security Editorial Board Member!</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> Climate Change Democracy & Rule of Law Executive Branch Law Enforcement Military Editorial Board Just Security Tess Bridgeman As Georgian Regime Intensifies Crackdown, U.S. Should Support Its People https://www.justsecurity.org/117144/as-georgian-regime-intensifies-crackdown-u-s-should-support-its-people/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=as-georgian-regime-intensifies-crackdown-u-s-should-support-its-people Just Security urn:uuid:50df5899-ba3e-e3ec-020e-76fd12bb3c23 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 08:50:37 -0400 <p>Sanctions moving through Congress and a new, vocal U.S. ambassador could help protesting Georgian citizens restore an alliance with the West and avoid a turn to Russia, China.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117144/as-georgian-regime-intensifies-crackdown-u-s-should-support-its-people/">As Georgian Regime Intensifies Crackdown, U.S. Should Support Its People</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>The United States soon will be without an ambassador in the country of Georgia, as Robin Dunnigan ends her tenure there, even though, for years, Georgia has been a key partner to America in a difficult neighborhood, and its population has been among the most pro-American in the region. The Georgian people still hold such views, but the government clearly tilts toward Moscow and is increasingly behaving like the Russian regime in its crackdown on the Georgian opposition and civil society.</p> <p>Such dynamics make it imperative for the Trump administration to quickly nominate a replacement for Dunnigan – one who will speak out forcefully against the Georgian government’s authoritarian and pro-Russian behavior. The U.S. Senate, for its part, should confirm a qualified candidate who meets that test. It also must pass legislation already approved by the House on May 5 that would hold Georgian officials accountable for their anti-American actions and demonstrate U.S. concern for their country&#8217;s slide toward authoritarian rule.</p> <p>The United States, together with European allies, should redouble efforts to get Georgia back on a democratic, pro-Western path. There’s a window of opportunity because Russia is losing influence in the region. Both Armenia and Azerbaijan have <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/two-sworn-enemies-unite-against-050000894.html">soured</a> on their ties to Moscow. And Ukraine, of course, is fending off Russia’s brutal invasion.</p> <h2><strong>Security Partner</strong></h2> <p>Not so long ago, Georgia was an important security partner of the United States. Remarkably, given its small size, Georgia was the <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/1078614.html">largest non-NATO troop contributor to Operation Iraqi Freedom</a> and to the NATO-led <a href="https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_101633.htm">International Security Assistance Force</a> in Afghanistan. Despite intense Russian pressure not to do so, Georgia also hosted both U.S. Marines and U.S. Army troops to conduct exercises and train-and-equip programs with the Georgian armed forces.</p> <p>Those days are gone. Particularly since the 2022 full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party has adopted strident anti-American rhetoric. Controlled by oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, it has falsely accused the United States of trying to drag Georgia into another war with Russia (Russia invaded Georgia in 2008). Party leaders also accuse the United States of fomenting another “color revolution” in Georgia (the Rose Revolution in 2003 brought to power a very pro-American government).</p> <p>Georgian Dream has essentially ended cooperation with the United States, particularly the American military, and has instead treated the West as the enemy. Georgia has frozen accession talks with the European Union and no longer attends NATO summits. In 2023, the GD government established a <a href="https://jamestown.org/program/georgian-dream-and-the-peoples-republic-of-china-pursue-strategic-relationship/">strategic partnership with China</a> and this year, it <a href="https://civil.ge/archives/689809">expressed solidarity with the Iranian regime</a> after the American strikes there recently.</p> <p>While Georgia’s trade and cooperation with the West has plummeted, trade with Russia and China has skyrocketed, and the number of <a href="https://transparency.ge/en/post/georgia-politically-and-economically-moving-closer-iran">Iranian-owned companies operating in Georgia has more than quadrupled</a> since GD took power.</p> <p>The ruling party apparently believes that aligning with illiberal States offers greater benefits than partnering with the United States and Europe and that accommodating Russia is existential. Its appeasement policy includes adopting the Kremlin’s political playbook: It used coercive methods to gain a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/27/world/europe/republic-of-georgia-election.html">questionable victory in elections</a> last fall, <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/06/georgia-crackdown-on-government-critics-deepens-as-another-opposition-politician-is-jailed/">imprisoning opposition leaders</a> and attempting to silence and intimidate independent media and civil society by branding them “foreign agents.”</p> <p>In short, like Russia’s Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping, and Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ivanishvili is gathering all the reins of power to ensure his and the regime’s survival.</p> <p>GD’s decision to align the country away from the West flies in the face of Georgian public opinion. Polls routinely show that as many as 80 percent of Georgians support <a href="https://www.ndi.org/publications/ndi-poll-georgian-citizens-remain-committed-eu-membership-nation-united-its-dreams-and">joining the European Union</a> and <a href="https://www.iri.org/resources/georgian-survey-of-public-opinion-september-october-2023/">NATO</a>. Since last fall’s <a href="https://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/-/georgia-parliamentary-elections-marked-by-high-polarisation-unequal-competition-conditions-and-a-widespread-climate-of-intimidation-1">controversial parliamentary elections</a>, the Georgian people have been bravely turning out in the streets for nightly protests, despite use of force by authorities, to demand an end to the government’s authoritarian measures and pro-Russian orientation. The government has <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/georgia-jails-top-opposition-figures-144454969.html">arrested most opposition leaders</a> and is <a href="https://www.transparency.org/en/press/democracy-at-risk-georgia-moves-to-silence-civil-society">threatening to go after civil society representatives</a>, too. These are the Georgians who need and deserve America’s support.</p> <h2><strong>Congressional Legislation</strong></h2> <p>Apart from some targeted sanctions against leading GD politicians, the Biden administration did not do enough to support the Georgian people’s aspirations to join the West and to counter Russian, Chinese, and Iranian influence. Congress can step in and help by passing the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/36">MEGOBARI Act</a>, an acronym for the legislation that means “friend” in Georgian. There appears to be little opposition to its passage but other legislation has taken up the Senate’s time and attention.</p> <p>The act would impose further sanctions against bad actors in the Georgian government: <a href="https://apnews.com/article/georgia-dream-sanction-bidzina-ivanishvili-russia-d22fe108cdef72b221769a113d980c45">Ivanishvili was sanctioned</a> at the end of the Biden administration but his puppet prime minister and other key officials have not been penalized for their actions.</p> <p>Importantly, the act also holds out the promise of increased U.S. investment and security cooperation if GD abandons its anti-Western path, or a new, better government comes into office. It calls on the administration to formulate a five-year strategy for U.S. relations with Georgia. That would strengthen Georgia’s capacity to deter threats from Russia – rather than feeling the need to pursue a policy of appeasement.</p> <p>It wasn’t long ago that the United States enjoyed a robust security partnership with Georgia. But its government has taken the country far away from the goal of most Georgians – a vibrant democracy integrated with the Western community.</p> <p>To show solidarity with most Georgians, the Trump administration should appoint a new ambassador, and the Senate should pass the MEGOBARI Act. Both steps are needed urgently before Ivanishvili and GD do more harm to their people and before the United States loses an important regional partner permanently.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117144/as-georgian-regime-intensifies-crackdown-u-s-should-support-its-people/">As Georgian Regime Intensifies Crackdown, U.S. Should Support Its People</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> Congress Democracy & Rule of Law Democratic Backsliding & Solutions Diplomacy International and Foreign Russia Sanctions China congressional authorization European Union Georgia (Country) Iran North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) sanctions Trump administration second term Ambassador (ret) Ian Kelly Even After Bondi Gains Trump’s Backing, Her Survival Remains an Open Question https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/us/politics/trump-epstein-bondi-bongino.html NYT > Federal Bureau of Investigation urn:uuid:2dc289de-e9b2-aa67-3a04-e12362445856 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 08:23:44 -0400 The sustained backlash has exposed the hazards of the attorney general’s focus on courting President Trump, with the assumption that he maintains the total backing of his base. United States Politics and Government Federal Bureau of Investigation Justice Department Bondi, Pamela J Bongino, Daniel Epstein, Jeffrey E (1953- ) Loomer, Laura Patel, Kashyap Trump, Donald J Wiles, Susie Glenn Thrush Early Edition: July 17, 2025 https://www.justsecurity.org/117261/early-edition-july-17-2025/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=early-edition-july-17-2025 Just Security urn:uuid:558a48df-6d08-1089-5fd0-ba4a082ce445 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 08:05:39 -0400 <p>Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news: SYRIA  Israel launched airstrikes at Syria’s capital city of Damascus yesterday, killing three people, damaging a compound housing the defense ministry, and hitting an area near the presidential palace, according [&#8230;]</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117261/early-edition-july-17-2025/">Early Edition: July 17, 2025</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">Signup</span><span data-preserver-spaces="true"> to receive the Early Edition in your inbox </span><a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://justsecurity.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=96b766fb1c8a55bbe9b0cdc21&amp;id=41135b9185&amp;e=bd8778e5ec" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="here- opens in new tab"><span data-preserver-spaces="true">here</span></a><span data-preserver-spaces="true">.</span></p> <p><span data-preserver-spaces="true">A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:</span></p> <p><b><i>SYRIA </i></b></p> <p><b>Israel launched airstrikes at Syria’s capital city of Damascus yesterday, killing three people, damaging a compound housing the defense ministry, and hitting an area near the presidential palace, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">according to Syrian authorities and the Israeli military. Shortly after the strikes, Damascus said that a new ceasefire agreement with the Druze forces was reached, a claim confirmed by some and contradicted by other prominent Druze figures. According to the Syrian state news agency, SANA, the Syrian government forces had also begun withdrawing from the Druze-majority region of Sweida. Euan Ward and Aaron Boxerman report for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/world/middleeast/israel-syria-damascus-strikes.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">; Eyad Kourdi, Catherine Nicholls, Eugenia Yosef, Mostafa Salem, and Mohammed Tawfeeq report for </span><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/16/middleeast/damascus-syria-airstrikes-intl"><span style="font-weight: 400;">CNN</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>In a televised address early today, Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa accused Israel of trying to destabilize and sow division in Syria and said that it is his “priority” to protect Syria’s Druze citizens. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">Eyad Kourdi, Catherine Nicholls, Eugenia Yosef, Mostafa Salem, and Mohammed Tawfeeq report for </span><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/16/middleeast/damascus-syria-airstrikes-intl"><span style="font-weight: 400;">CNN</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">; David Gritten reports for </span><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg5z3jqe673o"><span style="font-weight: 400;">BBC News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The United States has worked with all parties involved in the clashes in Syria and “agreed on specific steps that will bring this troubling and horrifying situation to an end tonight,”</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said yesterday. Euan Ward and Aaron Boxerman report for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/world/middleeast/israel-syria-damascus-strikes.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR</i></b></p> <p><b>A Russian overnight attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure injured at least 15 people across four cities yesterday, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">officials said. Illia Novikov report for </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-attack-trump-ultimatum-50-days-7388ae351bc78e42c9ab844be6b93942"><span style="font-weight: 400;">AP News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The European Union yesterday failed for the second time to approve a new package of sanctions against Russia </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">as Slovakia continued to seek concessions over gas supplies, according to diplomatic sources. Kate Abnett and Jason Hovet report for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/eu-again-fails-approve-new-sanctions-russia-diplomats-say-2025-07-16/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>President Trump should not wait 50 days to impose secondary sanctions on Russia, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže argued yesterday, pointing to Russia’s continuing attacks on Ukraine. Felicia Schwartz reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/16/trump-sanctions-braze-latvia-00459093"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>GLOBAL AFFAIRS </i></b></p> <p><b>British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz are expected to sign an Anglo-German treaty on defense, energy, economic cooperation, and migration today, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">officials from both countries say. The treaty is likely to include a pledge by both countries to regard a threat against one as a threat against the other, the officials add. Mark Landler and Jim Tankersley report for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/17/world/europe/germany-uk-merz-starmer-meeting.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Israel’s Shas party yesterday became the second ultra-Orthodox party to announce it was quitting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government over disagreements on the draft exemptions bill. </b>Shas&#8217; departure leaves <span style="font-weight: 400;">Netanyahu with a minority in the Knesset. Tia Goldenberg reports for </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-shas-netanyahu-b58b8705277f27fa41f664c341e5a93e"><span style="font-weight: 400;">AP News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Clashes between the Bangladeshi security forces and supporters of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left at least four people dead and scores injured yesterday,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> according to a hospital official and local media. Julhas Alam reports for </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/bangladesh-clashes-hasina-students-1e58562a6c9e766c760af9b577189504"><span style="font-weight: 400;">AP News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>International Criminal Court judges yesterday </b><a href="https://www.icc-cpi.int/sites/default/files/CourtRecords/0902ebd180c1587a.pdf"><b>rejected</b></a><b> Israel’s request to withdraw arrest warrants against Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and to suspend the wider investigation into alleged atrocity crimes in the Palestinian Territories. </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/icc-judges-reject-israels-request-withdraw-netanyahu-arrest-warrant-2025-07-16/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> reports. </span></p> <p><b><i>U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS</i></b></p> <p><b>In a 51-48 vote, the Senate </b><b style="--tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-color: #3b82f680; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000;">early today </b><b>approved Trump’s $9 billion rescission package, which would claw back foreign assistance and public media funding.</b> Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (AK) and Susan Collins (ME) joined Democrats in voting against the bill. The House is expected to vote on the amended measure later today, with the Senate’s changes including the removal of a $400 million cut to the global AIDS fighting program and insertion of language vowing that certain food assistance programs, as well as food aid, maternal health, malaria, and tuberculosis initiatives would not be impacted. Jordain Carney and Katherine Tully-McManus report for <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/17/senate-votes-to-cut-9-billion-from-public-broadcasting-and-foreign-aid-00459199">POLITICO</a>.</p> <p><b>More than 900 former Justice Department attorneys have signed a </b><a href="https://www.thejusticeconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Bove-Nomination-DOJ-Letter.pdf"><b>letter</b></a><b> expressing “deep concern” about the judicial nomination of the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General and Trump’s former criminal defense lawyer, Emil Bove. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">Citing Bove’s role as a “leader” in an “assault” on “constitutional principles and institutional guardrails” and “senseless attacks” on DOJ career employees, the letter urges the Senate Judiciary Committee to “rigorously examine” Bove’s actions before voting on the nomination. Tim Balk reports for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/us/politics/justice-dept-lawyers-emil-bove-federal-judge.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENTS</i></b></p> <p><b>Some Trump administration officials are holding up efforts to finalize a deal for the United Arab Emirates to buy Nvidia’s AI chips due to concerns that China could access cutting-edge U.S. technology,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> sources say. The delay might not be resolved unless the UAE agrees to different terms to address the U.S. officials’ national security concerns, the sources add. Amrith Ramkumar and Eliot Brown report for the </span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/national-security-concerns-tie-up-trumps-u-a-e-chips-deal-a0273815?mod=politics_lead_pos2"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Wall Street Journal</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The U.S. House of Representatives late yesterday voted 217-212 to advance a trio of cryptocurrency bills and a defense spending measure</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> after a group of GOP hard-liners dropped their opposition to the effort. Jasper Goodman and Meredith Lee Hill report for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/07/16/congress/house-advances-crypto-defense-spending-bills-following-standoff-00459201"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS</i></b></p> <p><b>Trump yesterday said he intends to send a single letter telling more than 150 countries that are “not big” and “don’t do that much business” what their tariff rate would be, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">adding that the rate will be “the same for everyone, for that group.” Doug Palmer reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/16/trump-tariffs-small-countries-00456401"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>In an unusual and unprecedented move, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee yesterday attended a hearing in Netanyahu’s corruption trial at a Tel Aviv district court.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Trump has previously pressed for a halt in the trial, which he described as a “witch hunt.” Barak Ravid reports for </span><a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/07/16/netanyahu-trial-trump-mike-huckabee"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Axios</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The acting State Department Under Secretary for Foreign Assistance, Humanitarian Affairs, and Religious Freedom and USAID Deputy Administrator, Jeremy Lewin, took weeks to sign off on a deal to transfer 622 metric tons of emergency food rations nearing expiry to the World Food Programme for distribution,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> according to memos reviewed by </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-aid-workers-lobbied-weeks-save-food-stocks-destruction-after-trump-cuts-2025-07-16/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and sources. A further 496 metric tons of rations worth $793,000 are set to be incinerated after they expired this month, the documents show. Ammu Kannampilly, Jonathan Landay, and Jessica Donati report.</span></p> <p><b>The Malaysian government is facing mounting calls to reject a self-styled “alpha male” influencer, Nick Adams, as the next U.S. Ambassador to the country,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> with Muslim groups and ruling bloc allies raising concerns about Adams’ views on Islam and support for Israel&#8217;s military campaign in Gaza. Rozanna Latiff and Danial Azhar report for </span><a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/malaysia-tight-spot-pressure-builds-reject-trumps-alpha-male-pick-ambassador-2025-07-16/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Reuters</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS</i></b></p> <p><b>Eswatini yesterday announced that it would repatriate the five migrants who had been deported there by the United States.</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Homeland Security Department Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin previously said that the migrants’ home countries had refused to accept them. John Eligon and Hamed Aleaziz report for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/world/africa/eswatini-trump-migrants-deportation.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b><i>TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS</i></b></p> <p><b>The U.S. Navy is considering eliminating up to five high-level admiral positions key to the construction of ships and fighter planes </b>as<span style="font-weight: 400;"> part of a larger Pentagon effort to cut down the number of admirals and generals in the ranks, sources say. Commenting on the plans, a former defense official said that if Navy Secretary John Phelan goes ahead with the plan, “he would be decapitating the organizations responsible for executing shipbuilding effectively.” Paul McLeary and Jack Detsch report for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/16/navy-shipbuilding-hegseth-defense-00457393"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Maurene Comey, an Assistant U.S. Attorney who prosecuted Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, was fired from her job in the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office yesterday,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> sources say. Comey, who is the former FBI Director James Comey’s daughter, was given no explanation for her firing, and the decision to fire her was likely made by someone at the Justice Department’s headquarters, another source added. Erica Orden reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/16/maurene-comey-fired-doj-00458921"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Trump showed approximately a dozen House Republicans a draft of a letter firing the Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell, and asked them whether he should send it</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> during a Tuesday meeting on the crypto bill, sources say. Trump has since stated he was “highly unlikely” to fire Powell. The </span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/opinion/jerome-powell-donald-trump-federal-reserve-chairman-c7376c12?mod=author_content_page_1_pos_2"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Wall Street Journal</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">’s Editorial Board yesterday called on Trump not to not fire Powell, stating that “the President has to live with his choices.” Maggie Haberman and Colby Smith report for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/us/politics/trump-powell-firing-letter.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">; Seung Min Kim reports for </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-powell-federal-reserve-firing-interest-rates-b235d01f01f9762bc66a577d16ddeff2"><span style="font-weight: 400;">AP News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>The Justice Department has asked at least nine states for copies of their voter rolls as part of a multi-pronged Trump administration effort to gather data on voters and inspect voting equipment, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">state officials say. Two DOJ lawyers have also asked states to share information about voters to implement Trump’s elections executive order, and a consultant who says he is working with the White House has asked Colorado county clerks whether they would allow the federal government or a third party to physically examine their election equipment, officials add. Patrick Marley and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez report for the </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/07/16/trump-voter-fraud-elections/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Washington Post</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>National Institutes of Health Principal Deputy Director Matthew Memoli overrode NIH career scientists’ assessment of what gain-of-function studies to halt</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> under Trump’s </span><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/05/improving-the-safety-and-security-of-biological-research/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">executive order</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> on “dangerous” research, according to internal emails seen by the Washington Post and interviews with career staffers. In a draft July 3 memo obtained by </span><a href="https://www.science.org/content/article/exclusive-nih-suspends-dozens-pathogen-studies-over-gain-function-concerns"><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Science</span></i></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, Memoli told the White House that “erring on the side of caution,” the NIH has “identified 40 projects that may meet the definition” of “dangerous” research. Hannah Natanson, Carolyn Y. Johnson, and Joel Achenbach report; Jon Cohen and Jocelyn Kaiser report.</span></p> <p><b>The Trump administration has delayed and may cancel approximately $140 million in grants to fund fentanyl overdose response efforts,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Centers for Disease Control and Prevention staff members say. The funding disruption appears to be caused by bureaucratic confusion involving DOGE and the Office of Management and Budget, both of which are scrutinizing the grants, the staffers added. Brian Mann reports for </span><a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/07/16/nx-s1-5468535/fentanyl-trump-addiction-funding"><span style="font-weight: 400;">NPR</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>Solar and wind energy projects on federal land under the Interior Department’s control must now get Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s personal sign-off,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> potentially slowing down approvals and construction, according to a Wednesday internal memo reviewed by </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/16/interior-requires-burgum-sign-off-for-solar-wind-projects-00458999"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. Josh Siegel and Zack Colman report.</span></p> <p><b>The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission will allow some complaints filed by transgender workers to move forward, </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">departing from earlier guidance that indefinitely stalled all such cases, according to an email seen by </span><a href="https://apnews.com/article/transgender-discrimination-trump-lgbtq-gender-eeoc-bca3a912489803d9b26d897198fd1b4d"><span style="font-weight: 400;">AP News</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. Claire Savage reports.</span></p> <p><b><i>TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION</i></b></p> <p><b>A group of 20 Democratic Attorneys General yesterday filed a </b><a href="https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/court-filings/state-of-washington-et-al-v-federal-emergency-management-agency-et-al-complaint-2025.pdf"><b>lawsuit</b></a><b> challenging the Trump administration&#8217;s termination of a multibillion-dollar Federal Emergency Management Agency program </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">that helped states protect against potential disaster damage. Thomas Frank reports for </span><a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/16/democrats-sue-trump-canceled-grant-program-00456011"><span style="font-weight: 400;">POLITICO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>A coalition of legal groups representing immigrants yesterday filed a class action lawsuit alleging the Trump administration’s campaign to arrest people at immigration courthouses is unlawful and violates due process protections. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">Luis Ferré-Sadurní reports for the </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/nyregion/trump-ice-arrests-lawsuit-immigrants.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">New York Times</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><b>A federal judge yesterday delayed his ruling on whether Kilmar Abrego García should be released from criminal detention,</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> indicating he intends to issue an order on the matter next week. Jeremy Roebuck and Maria Sacchetti report for the </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/07/16/kilmar-abrego-garcia-judge-release-deportation/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Washington Post</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><b>Did you miss this?</b> Stay up-to-date with our <a href="https://justsecurity.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=96b766fb1c8a55bbe9b0cdc21&amp;id=251d4342e4&amp;e=bd8778e5ec" aria-label="Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions- opens in new tab">Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions</a></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXchCAluDft2LKA1wOLQ4i6 Daily News Roundup Weronika Galka The Just Security Podcast: Trump’s Shift on Ukraine and Russia — A Conversation with Amb. Daniel Fried and Dara Massicot https://www.justsecurity.org/117252/podcast-trump-shift-ukraine-russia-weapons/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=podcast-trump-shift-ukraine-russia-weapons Just Security urn:uuid:233f523a-2bf4-be18-7094-566b4b76a176 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 07:34:18 -0400 <p>Viola Gienger is joined by Ambassador Daniel Fried and Dara Massicot to discuss Trump’s policy shift on Ukraine and its impact.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117252/podcast-trump-shift-ukraine-russia-weapons/">The Just Security Podcast: Trump’s Shift on Ukraine and Russia &#8212; A Conversation with Amb. Daniel Fried and Dara Massicot</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <div class="left"> <div id="episode_info" class="px-0 pt-5 md:pt-0 md:pl-5" data-controller="player"> <div id="episode_content" class="px-5 pb-5 leading-normal bg-gradient-to-b from-white md:px-0 md:bg-none to-zinc-100" data-controller="tabs" data-tabs-hide-class="hidden" data-tabs-active-class="episode__nav--current" data-tabs-show-on-load=""> <div> <div class="episode_description !w-full" dir="auto" data-controller="convert-links-to-open-in-new-tab" data-tabs-target="panel" data-tabs-panel="description" aria-selected="true"> <p>President Donald Trump this week put weapons behind his growing irritation with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intransigence on negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. Meeting at the White House with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, President Trump announced that the United States will work with European allies in NATO to send advanced weapon systems, including Patriot missile batteries, to Ukraine. He also threatened tariffs and additional sanctions against Russia and countries that do business with it if it doesn’t ease its assault on Ukraine and make progress on stalled peace talks within 50 days.</p> <p>What impact is this policy shift likely to have on the war in Ukraine? Will the combination of military support for Ukraine and economic threats toward Russia succeed in forcing President Putin to the negotiating table, or could they spur further escalation?</p> <p>On this episode, host <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/violagienger/">Viola Gienger</a> is joined by<a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/frieddaniel/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Ambassador Daniel Fried</a> and <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/massicotdara/">Dara Massicot</a> to discuss Trump’s policy shift on Ukraine and its impact.</p> </div> <p><a href="https://justsecuritypodcast.buzzsprout.com/2074610/episodes/17520150-trump-s-shift-on-ukraine-and-russia-a-conversation-with-amb-daniel-fried-and-dara-massicot"><img data-recalc-dims="1" fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="wp-image-117256 aligncenter" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-17-at-7.35.05-AM.png?resize=705%2C322&#038;ssl=1" alt="" width="705" height="322" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-17-at-7.35.05-AM.png?resize=300%2C137&amp;ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-17-at-7.35.05-AM.png?resize=768%2C350&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Screenshot-2025-07-17-at-7.35.05-AM.png?w=789&amp;ssl=1 789w" sizes="(max-width: 705px) 100vw, 705px" /></a></p> <div class="episode_description !w-full" dir="auto" data-controller="convert-links-to-open-in-new-tab" data-tabs-target="panel" data-tabs-panel="description" aria-selected="true"> <p><b>Show Notes:</b></p> <ul> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/115754/podcast-ukraine-mp-nato/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Just Security Podcast: A Ukrainian MP Takes Stock of the NATO Summit and the Prospects for Peace</a>, with Ukrainian MP <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/author/goncharenkooleksiy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oleksiy Goncharenko</a>, Lauren Van Metre, and Viola Gienger.</li> <li>Ambassador Daniel Fried’s “<a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/114139/trump-seize-win-ukraine/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Can Trump Seize a Win in Ukraine?</a>” in <em>Just Security </em></li> <li>Ambassador Daniel Fried’s “<a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/112463/ukraine-emerging-peace-deal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to Land the Emerging Deal on Peace for Ukraine</a>” in <em>Just Security </em></li> <li>Just Security’s <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/82513/just-securitys-russia-ukraine-war-archive/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russia-Ukraine War Archive</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/81789/russias-eliminationist-rhetoric-against-ukraine-a-collection/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russia&#8217;s Eliminationist Rhetoric Against Ukraine: A Collection</a> by Clara Apt in Just Security</li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/117252/podcast-trump-shift-ukraine-russia-weapons/">The Just Security Podcast: Trump’s Shift on Ukraine and Russia &#8212; A Conversation with Amb. Daniel Fried and Dara Massicot</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> Armed Conflict Diplomacy International and Foreign Podcast Russia Russia-Ukraine Sanctions Foreign Policy Just Security Podcast Podcasts Trump administration second term Ukraine Vladimir Putin Volodymyr Zelenskyy weapons Dara Massicot Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration Just Security urn:uuid:aaefac01-59ff-ba5c-da04-1b99b214be00 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 07:00:19 -0400 <p>A public resource tracking all the legal challenges to the Trump administration's executive orders and actions.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/">Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org">Just Security</a>.</p> <p>This public resource tracks legal challenges to Trump administration actions. The Tracker is part of the <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/106653/collection-trump-administration-executive-actions/">Collection: Just Security’s Coverage of the Trump Administration’s Executive Actions</a>.</p> <p><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">NEW</span></strong>: To get important litigation updates delivered to your inbox at the end of every weekday, sign up for <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/newsletter-signup/">&#8220;Today on Just Security.&#8221;</a> That weekday newsletter also includes our articles from the day. Readers may also be interested in <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/early-edition-signup/">signing up</a> for our free Early Edition roundup of global and national news each workday morning. (Both sign-ups are free and we respect your privacy; we do not use your email address for any other purpose except to automatically send you the requested email).</p> </p> <p><strong>Total number of cases currently tracked</strong>: 336.</p> <p><b>What’s included in our tracker?</b></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400"><b>Note-1: </b><span style="font-weight: 400">We do not track cases in which the Trump administration is the plaintiff/files a civil lawsuit. Some other organizations include those cases in their litigation trackers &#8211; ours tracks only challenges to Trump administration executive actions.</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400"><b>Note-2:</b><span style="font-weight: 400"> We do not count appeals as separate cases. (The appeal of a district court decision to a Court of Appeals and/or Supreme Court is part of the same case.)</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400"><b>Note-3:</b> We treat as <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/107087/tracker-litigation-legal-challenges-trump-administration/?js_filter=01998">one case</a> all the lawsuits involving the removal of F-1 foreign student visa registration. According to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/25/foreign-students-visas-donald-trump-00311600">Politico</a>, there were “more than 100 lawsuits and 50 restraining orders from dozens of federal judges,” before the government <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/25/trump-admin-reverses-termination-foreign-student-visa-registrations-00309407">reversed</a> its decision and restored the F-1 registrations on or about Apr. 25, 2025.</li> </ul> <p>If you think we are missing anything, you can email us at <a href="mailto:lte@justsecurity.org">lte@justsecurity.org</a>.</p> <p> <table id="tablepress-33" class="tablepress tablepress-id-33 tablepress-responsive"> <thead> <tr class="row-1"> <th class="column-1">Category</th><th class="column-2"><strong>Executive Action</strong></th><th class="column-3"><strong>Case Name</strong></th><th class="column-4"><strong>Complaint</strong></th><th class="column-5"><strong>Date Filed</strong></th><th class="column-6"><strong>Case Summary</strong></th><th class="column-7"><strong>Last Update</strong></th> </tr> </thead> <tbody class="row-striping row-hover"> <tr class="row-2"> <td class="column-1">Immigration and Citizenship</td><td class="column-2"><strong>Executive Action: Alien Enemies Act removals (<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/20/2025-04865/invocation-of-the-alien-enemies-act-regarding-the-invasion-of-the-united-states-by-tren-de-aragua">Presidential Proclamation 10903</a>)</strong></td><td class="column-3"><a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69857769/gff-v-trump/"><em>G.F.F. v. Trump</em></a> (S.D.N.Y.) <br /> <br /> Case No 1:25-cv-02886<br /> <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70746614/gff-v-trump/">Second Circuit No: 25-1671</a></td><td class="column-4"><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Petition-for-Habeas-gff-v-trump.pdf">Habeas petition and Class complaint</a><br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/aclu-sdny-TRO-petition.pdf">Motion for TRO</a></td><td class="column-5">2025-04-08</td><td class="column-6"><span style="color: #0056a7;"><strong>Overview: </strong></span> <em>Plaintiffs are two Venezuelan nationals (proceeding under pseudonym) in immigration custody in New York. They have filed a habeas petition asking the court to stop the government from removing them from the United States under the purported authority of the Alien Enemies Act Presidential Proclamation, and to declare the Proclamation unlawful. The case has been brought on behalf of themselves and a class of all other persons similarly situated, to include all noncitizens from Venezuela in immigration custody in the Southern District of New York, who were, are, or will be subject to the Proclamation. The court has temporarily blocked the Defendants from removing the Plaintiffs and others similarly situated in the Southern District of New York. Defendants have appealed the court’s decisions to the Second Circuit.</em><br><br /> <strong>Case Summary</strong>: On March 15, 2025, President Donald Trump published a Presidential Proclamation titled “Invocation of the Alien Enemies Act Regarding the Invasion of The United States by Tren De Aragua” (Proclamation), which sought to authorize removal of noncitizens from Venezuela who are deemed to be “enemy aliens” under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA). <br /> Petitioners are two Venezuelan men who have been arrested and detained by immigration authorities, and allegedly face imminent deportation pursuant to the Proclamation. <br /> Petitioners argue that the removal process established under the Proclamation is unlawful. They argue that such process is ultra vires under the AEA, as the AEA only authorizes removals during a declared war or invasion of the United States by a foreign nation or government, and further requires additional process prior to removing noncitizens. They also argue that the removal process violates various provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act and Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act, including those that establish procedures and mechanisms for, as well as protections against, removal (including sending someone to a country where they are more likely than not to face torture). Finally, they argue that the removal process violates the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment and the right to habeas corpus. <br /> Petitioners have brought their petition and complaint on behalf of a similarly situated class, including all noncitizens in immigration custody who were, are, or will be subject to the Proclamation.<br /> Petitioners have requested that the court certify the class, grant a writ of habeas corpus to Petitioners that enjoins Defendants from removing them pursuant to the Proclamation, and declare the Proclamation unlawful.<br /> <strong>Update 1: </strong>On Apr. 11, the court <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.34.0_1.pdf">certified</a> the class and <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.35.0.pdf">granted a temporary restraining order</a> preventing their removal from the district or the United States.<br /> <strong>Update 2:</strong> On Apr. 17, petitioners <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.54.0.pdf">filed a reply</a> in support of their motion for a preliminary injunction. The reply asserts that the government has not satisfied due process requirements in use of the AEA and that the proclamation violates both procedural requirements and Congressionally established protections for noncitizens seeking humanitarian protections.<br /> <strong>Update 3:</strong> On Apr. 21, the government <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.72.0.pdf">moved to vacate</a> the class certification, alleging the class cannot be certified because the court lacks jurisdiction over the matter. <br /> <strong>Update 4:</strong> On Apr. 22, Judge Alvin Hellerstein <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.78.0.pdf">extended the temporary restraining order</a> issued on Apr. 11 through May 6.<br /> <strong>Update 5</strong>: On May 6, Judge Hellerstein granted a <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.84.0.pdf">preliminary injunction</a>.<br /> <strong>Update 6: </strong>On May 6, the court <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.83.0.pdf">denied</a> respondent’s motion to decertify the class, stating that because it is unknown how many people may become subject to an order for removal, judicial efficiency and due process considerations for individuals yet to be removed support a class action.<br /> <strong>Update 7:</strong> On May 14, the Court <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.89.0.pdf">granted</a> the Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, stating that the Plaintiffs and the certified class are likely to succeed on the merits of their claims that the Proclamation violates the Alien Enemies Act.<br /> <strong>Update 8: </strong>On July 3, the government <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153/gov.uscourts.nysd.640153.96.0.pdf">appealed</a> Judge Hellerstein’s May 6 and May 14 orders to the Second Circuit.</td><td class="column-7">2025-07-03</td> </tr> <tr class="row-3"> <td class="column-1">Immigration and Citizenship</td><td class="column-2"><strong>Executive Action: Alien Enemies Act removals (<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/20/2025-04865/invocation-of-the-alien-enemies-act-regarding-the-invasion-of-the-united-states-by-tren-de-aragua">Presidential Proclamation 10903</a>)</strong></td><td class="column-3"><a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69862833/jav-v-trump/"><em>J.A.V. v. Trump</em></a> (S.D. Tex.)<br /> <br /> Case No. 1:25-cv-00072<br /> Fifth Circuit No. <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70676465/jav-v-trump/">25-40400</a></td><td class="column-4"><a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/j.a.v.-v-trump-habeas-petition-s-d-texas-april-9-2025.pdf">Habeas petition</a> (Apr. 9, 2025)<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/jav-v-trump-Emergency-Application-for-TRO.pdf">Emergency Motion for TRO</a> (Apr. 9, 2025)</td><td class="column-5">2025-04-09</td><td class="column-6"><span style="color: #0056a7;"><strong>Overview:</strong></span> <em> Plaintiffs are three Venezuelan nationals (proceeding under pseudonym) in immigration custody in Texas. They have filed a habeas petition asking the court to stop the government from removing them from the United States the Alien Enemies Act Presidential Proclamation, and to declare the Proclamation unlawful. The case has been brought on behalf of themselves and a class of all other persons similarly situated, to include all noncitizens from Venezuela in immigration custody in the Southern District of Texas, who were, are, or will be subject to the Proclamation. The court has blocked the Defendants from using the Alien Enemies Act to detain or remove the Plaintiffs and others similarly situated in the Southern District of Texas. Defendants have appealed the court’s decision to the Fifth Circuit.</em><br><br /> <strong>Case Summary</strong>: On March 15, 2025, President Donald Trump published a Presidential Proclamation titled “Invocation of the Alien Enemies Act Regarding the Invasion of The United States by Tren De Aragua” (Proclamation), which sought to authorize removal of noncitizens from Venezuela who are deemed to be “enemy aliens” under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA). <br /> Petitioners are three Venezuelan men who have been arrested and detained by immigration authorities at El Valle Detention Center in Texas, and allegedly face imminent deportation pursuant to the Proclamation. <br /> Petitioners argue that the removal process established under the Proclamation is unlawful. They argue that such process is ultra vires under the AEA, as the AEA authorizes removals only during a declared war or invasion of the United States by a foreign nation or government, and further requires additional process prior to removing noncitizens. They also argue that the removal process violates various provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act and Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act, including those that establish procedures and mechanisms for, as well as protections against, removal (including sending someone to a country where they are more likely than not to face torture). Finally, they argue that the removal process violates the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment and the right to habeas corpus. <br /> Petitioners have brought their petition and complaint on behalf of a similarly situated class, including all noncitizens in immigration custody in the Southern District of Texas who were, are, or will be subject to the Proclamation.<br /> Petitioners have requested that the court certify the class, grant a writ of habeas corpus to Petitioners that enjoins Defendants from removing them pursuant to the Proclamation, and declare the Proclamation unlawful. Petitioners filed an emergency application for a temporary restraining order (TRO) due to being in imminent danger of removal to another country. <br /> On April 9, 2025, Judge Fernando Rodriguez <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.12.0_1.pdf">granted</a> petitioners’ TRO on an ex parte basis and blocked Respondents from transferring, relocating, or removing petitioners "or any other person that Respondents claim are subject to removal under the Proclamation, from the El Valle Detention Center; and Respondents are enjoined from transporting such persons outside of Willacy County or Cameron County, Texas, without an Order from the Court." Absent further action, the TRO will be in place through Apr. 23, 2025.<br /> <strong>Update 1: </strong>On Apr. 11, the TRO was <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.34.0.pdf">extended</a> through Apr. 25, 2025.<br /> <strong>Update 2: </strong>On Apr. 16, Plaintiffs <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69862833/jav-v-trump/#entry-42">filed</a> a motion for a preliminary injunction.<br /> <strong>Update 3:</strong> On Apr. 23, Defendants filed an <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.45.0.pdf">opposition</a> to Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, asserting that Plaintiffs failed to show they would succeed on the merits of their claims and that they failed to establish standing for injunctive relief. On that same day, Plaintiffs filed a <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69862833/jav-v-trump/#entry-47">reply</a> in further support of their motion for a preliminary injunction.<br /> <strong>Update 4: </strong>On Apr. 24, Judge Rodriguez granted a <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.50.0.pdf">superseding TRO</a> against the Defendants (excluding Trump) that is effective through May 2, 2025. This new TRO expands the scope of the previous by blocking Defendants from removing, transferring, relocating, or deporting any person that Respondents designate as an alien enemy outside of the Southern District of Texas, whereas the former TRO applied only to the El Valle Detention Center.<br /> <strong>Update 5</strong>: On May 1, Judge Rodriquez granted <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.57.0_1.pdf">certification of the class</a> of plaintiffs, described as: “Venezuelan aliens, 14 years old or older, who have not been naturalized, who Respondents have designated or in the future designate as alien enemies under the March 14, 2025, Presidential Proclamation … and who are detained or reside in the Southern District of Texas.”<br /> Judge Rodriguez followed the class certification with an order granting a <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.58.0_1.pdf">permanent injunction</a>. The court wrote: "The historical record renders clear that the President’s invocation of the AEA [Alien Enemies Act] through the Proclamation exceeds the scope of the statute and is contrary to the plain, ordinary meaning of the statute’s terms." On the scope of the injunction, Judge Rodriguez wrote: “To the extent that J.A.V., J.G.G., and W.G.H., or any member of the certified class, have been detained or are detained in the future pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act, they have not sought and do not obtain any relief. In addition, the conclusions of the Court do not affect Respondents’ ability to continue removal proceedings or enforcement of any final orders of removal issued against J.A.V., J.G.G., and W.G.H, or against any member of the certified class, under the Immigration and Nationality Act.”<br /> <strong>Update 6:</strong> On June 27, Defendants <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771/gov.uscourts.txsd.2000771.64.0.pdf">appealed</a> Judge Rodriquez’s May 1 orders to the Fifth Circuit.</td><td class="column-7">2025-06-27</td> </tr> <tr class="row-4"> <td class="column-1">Immigration and Citizenship</td><td class="column-2"><strong>Executive Action: Alien Enemies Act removals (<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/20/2025-04865/invocation-of-the-alien-enemies-act-regarding-the-invasion-of-the-united-states-by-tren-de-aragua">Presidential Proclamation 10903</a>)</strong></td><td class="column-3"><a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69741731/zacarias-matos-v-venegas/"><em>Zacarias Matos v. Venegas</em></a> (S.D. Tex.)<br /> <br /> Case No. 1:25-cv-00057<br /> <br /> <span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>CASE CLOSED</strong></span></td><td class="column-4"><a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.1996605/gov.uscourts.txsd.1996605.1.0_5.pdf">Habeas petition</a></td><td class="column-5">2025-03-15</td><td class="column-6"><span style="color: #0056a7;"><strong>Overview:</strong></span> <em>Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers tried to remove Daniel Enrique Zacarias Matos, a Venezuelan national who is detained at the El Valle Detention Facility, from the United States. Zacarias Matos filed a petition to prevent his removal from the US unless and until he receives a final removal order. The Government asserts that the Alien Enemies Act authorizes his removal. The court has issued a preliminary injunction and set a hearing to assess evidence of the government’s claim that he is a member of the Venezuelan TdA gang.</em><br><br /> <strong>Summary</strong>: Daniel Enrique Zacarias Matos brought a habeas petition to prevent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers from removing him from the United States unless and until he receives a final removal order. The Government <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.1996605/gov.uscourts.txsd.1996605.6.0.pdf">states</a> that the Alien Enemies Act, 50 U.S.C. § 21, authorizes his removal based on the March 15 Presidential Proclamation.<br /> ICE officials tried to remove Zacarias Matos, a Venezuelan national who is detained at the El Valle Detention Facility, from the United States on Mar. 14, but they were allegedly unable to do so due to a problem with the flight. <br /> Zacarias Matos claims that the attempt to remove him violates 8 U.S.C. § 1229a of the Immigration and Nationality Act and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the US Constitution, and asked the Court to enjoin his imminent removal unless and until a removal order is entered against him.<br /> <strong>Update 1</strong>: On Apr. 7, Judge Fernando Rodriguez granted a <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txsd.1996605/gov.uscourts.txsd.1996605.31.0_2.pdf">preliminary injunction</a> and set an evidentiary hearing for May 5 on whether the petitioner is a member of TdA.<br /> <strong>Update 2: </strong>On May 13, 2025, following a joint status report and motion to dismiss request, the Court <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69741731/43/zacarias-matos-v-venegas/">ordered</a> the case dismissed without prejudice.</td><td class="column-7">2025-05-13</td> </tr> <tr class="row-5"> <td class="column-1">Immigration and Citizenship</td><td class="column-2"><strong>Executive Action: Alien Enemies Act removals (<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/20/2025-04865/invocation-of-the-alien-enemies-act-regarding-the-invasion-of-the-united-states-by-tren-de-aragua">Presidential Proclamation 10903</a>)</strong></td><td class="column-3"><a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69885285/dbu-v-trump/"><em>D.B.U. v. Trump</em></a> (D. Colo.)<br /> <br /> Case No. 1:25-cv-01163</td><td class="column-4"><a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cod.243061/gov.uscourts.cod.243061.1.0.pdf">Class petition for habeas</a></td><td class="column-5">2025-04-12</td><td class="column-6"><span style="color: #0056a7;"><strong>Overview: </strong></span> <em>On Mar. 14, President Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation purporting to invoke the Alien Enemies Act to allow for removal of alleged members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang. Plaintiffs filed a class action lawsuit arguing the Act does not apply to these circumstances, in Courts & Litigation Democracy & Rule of Law Diplomacy Executive Branch Human Rights Administrative Law citizenship Civil Liberties Executive Orders Foreign Aid/Foreign Assistance Immigration Litigation Tracker Trackers Trump administration second term Just Security AI, satellites, and Golden Dome shine in new House-passed defense bill https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/07/ai-satellites-and-golden-dome-shine-new-house-passed-defense-bill/406787/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:be54bcf0-9452-7dfa-9249-10e4e35f61c5 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 04:48:37 -0400 The House version of the NDAA takes aim at acquisition and requirements processes that have long bedeviled both Congress and the military. <![CDATA[<p>Commercial satellite imagery, autonomy, and Golden Dome would all get a big boost under the version of the National Defense Authorization Act passed by the House on Tuesday night. The policy bill also seeks more congressional oversight for how the Pentagon handles less formal contracts and outreach to tech firms, and bolsters U.S. forces in Europe and support for Ukraine.</p> <p>On satellite imagery, the bill pushes the Air Force to adopt the Tactical Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Tracking&mdash;orTacSRT&mdash;effort as a formal program of record, which means the Air Force must fund it every year out of its budget. The program allows different entities across the Pentagon to send task orders to commercial satellite imagery companies directly (on their own dime), which resulted in much faster and better intelligence in <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/lawmakers-space-force-commercial-surveillance-vleo/">2024</a> as the military withdrew from bases in Niger and oversaw construction of a floating pier to deliver aid in Gaza.&nbsp;</p> <p>The bill also gives a big nod to Golden Dome, calling on the Defense Department to construct a missile defense shield that could &ldquo;deter, and defend [United States&rsquo;] citizens and critical infrastructure&hellip;against any foreign aerial attack on the homeland.&rdquo; The change may seem small, but it&rsquo;s actually quite significant. The Pentagon already maintains about 44 missile interceptors in Alaska and California, which are capable of dealing with a missile threat from a nation like Iran or North Korea, but not nearly enough to shoot down all the missiles that Russia or China could launch in the event of an attack. &ldquo;Any&rdquo; in the bill&rsquo;s language provides a mandate to actually build the Golden Dome as envisioned.&nbsp;</p> <div class="related-articles-placeholder">[[Related Posts]]</div> <p>The <a href="https://admin.govexec.com/media/general/2025/7/fy26_ndaa_chairman's_mark_-_full_text_(2).pdf">bill</a> also includes a potentially controversial measure mandating the Defense Department study how to use AI to enhance not just data collection and analysis but specifically to find targets. The study, which would be due next April, would explore &ldquo;AI capabilities for potential use in exercises or operations that would improve the accuracy of military targeting, to include locating, identifying, and analyzing such targets to minimize collateral damage and civilian harm.&rdquo; It also asks the Pentagon to come up with ways it can &ldquo;accelerate the integration of autonomy-enabling software into programs,&rdquo; using middle-tier acquisition programs.&nbsp;</p> <p>Increasingly, the Defense Department is reaching out to new technology players and using <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2025/03/pentagon-aims-accelerate-acquisition-new-tech-through-software-contracting-change/403598/">less formal,</a> faster contract vehicles like Other Transaction Authority contracts, or OTAs&mdash;smaller contracts with fewer regulatory requirements.</p> <p>Congress has been genuinely supportive of the trend, because&nbsp; it speeds up acquisition and allows for new contractors. Section 1831 of the House version of the bill removes some limitations on who OTA contracts can go to,&nbsp; allowing them to go to any firm that &ldquo;demonstrated performance and the alignment of [a solution&rsquo;s] capability with [DOD&rsquo;s] needs.&rdquo; Previously, a non-traditional defense contractor had to be on the team, and/or the contract needed certain cost-sharing provisions.&nbsp;</p> <p>But the new bill makes clear that Congress still wants oversight. Rep. Pat Ryan, D-N.Y. <a href="https://armedservices.house.gov/uploadedfiles/0_-_chm_en_bloc.pdf">added an amendment</a> mandating a report on how OTAs have been used, going back to 2022.</p> <p>Finally, section 1811 of the bill changes the Joint Requirements Oversight Council&mdash;the group of senior military officers that approves requirements for major new service programs across the Defense Department&mdash;into a body that does not, in fact, draft or oversee requirements. The bill describes the JROC&rsquo;s influence on Pentagon procurement as an &ldquo;overly protracted process that has neither streamlined time-to-delivery nor facilitated adequate responsiveness to the combatant commands.&rdquo; It suggests an aggressive reframing into a body focused on &ldquo;identifying and promoting solutions in a nonprescriptive manner to joint operational problems.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p>It&rsquo;s an idea championed by many in the defense establishment for years, including <a href="https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2021/04/free-data-vice-chiefs-launch-crusade-fix-key-acquisition-problem/173499/">JROC members themselves. </a></p> ]]> Policy Patrick Tucker A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from launch pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station with the GPS III - SV 08 satellite, May 30, 2025. Manuel Mazzanti / NurPhoto via Getty Images House NDAA would deepen Pentagon involvement in domestic, border operations https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/07/house-ndaa-would-deepen-pentagon-involvement-domestic-border-operations/406786/ Defense One - All Content urn:uuid:5d4dc563-cf7b-cb9a-7345-5f2c86be6cd0 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 04:10:35 -0400 The House-passed version of the military policy bill makes Defense Department involvement in various domestic and law enforcement activities more permanent. <![CDATA[<p>The House version of the National Defense Authorization Act, passed Tuesday night, would increase Defense Department support for border protection and other law enforcement actions far outside of foreign military threats.</p> <p>The National Defense Authorization Act <a href="https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/fy2026_ndaa_executive_summary.pdf">provides congressional mandates on new departments or initiatives</a>. This year&rsquo;s House version significantly breaks down barriers between the Defense Department and domestic law enforcement.&nbsp;</p> <p>One <a href="https://armedservices.house.gov/uploadedfiles/log_4778_fallon.pdf">amendment</a>, from Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, codifies the Defense Department&rsquo;s role in homeland security and border enforcement, allowing the Secretary of Defense &ldquo;enter into a contract for the provision of&rdquo; intelligence collection and monitoring&mdash;such as watching drone feeds&mdash;vehicle maintenance, aviation, linguistics, and warehousing in support of Customs and Border Protection efforts. That allows the Defense Department to use part of its budget to hire contractors to help with migrant detention and deportation efforts, rather than have troops perform those roles.&nbsp;</p> <p>The bill also <a href="https://armedservices.house.gov/uploadedfiles/log_5629_van_orden.pdf">expands</a> the Defense Department&rsquo;s role in supporting any joint task force (regardless of agency) conducting &ldquo;counter-terrorism&rdquo; and &ldquo;counter transnational-organized crime activities.&rdquo; That provision makes permanent a 2004 NDAA pilot program that enabled Defense Department support for law enforcement counterterrorism operations (striking a sunset clause that would have ended it after fiscal year 2024).</p> <div class="related-articles-placeholder">[[Related Posts]]</div> <p>But the bill doesn&rsquo;t address potential chain-of-command and legal <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/105321/military-immigration-enforcement-deportation">confusion</a>, some of which is already on display in California, where some 700 Marines <a href="https://www.army.mil/article/284048/joint_task_force_southern_border_assumes_authority_of_southern_border_mission">are deployed</a> under federal authority to deal with civil unrest. Active-duty troops are <a href="https://irp.fas.org/doddir/army/adp3_28.pdf">under the command</a> of their military superiors even when supporting domestic agencies, and they aren&rsquo;t <a href="https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2025-07-16/ice-dhs-insurrection-act-trump-militarization">allowed</a> to carry out arrests or similar domestic law enforcement actions unless the president invokes the Insurrection Act. National Guard troops are normally under the control of state authorities, but the president has the power to federalize them under conditions of &lsquo;invasion&rsquo; or rebellion,&rdquo; under <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text">Title 10.</a>&nbsp;</p> <p>In June, the White House federalized portions of the National Guard in California, describing protests as <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/06/department-of-defense-security-for-the-protection-of-department-of-homeland-security-functions/">&ldquo;rebellion.&rdquo;</a> But that justification was challenged by the state&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/06/09/governor-newsom-suing-president-trump-and-department-of-defense-for-illegal-takeover-of-calguard-unit/">governor.</a> It&rsquo;s even less clear under whose authority Defense Department contractors performing DHS support missions might fall. The bill also doesn&rsquo;t address <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/pentagon-sending-another-3750-troops-to-southwest-border">long-standing concerns</a> that using troops to guard the border or support domestic law enforcement agencies <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/18/guard-chief-dings-trump-biden-border-missions-00163900">hurts their readiness</a> to <a href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2018/11/the-us-militarys-border-enforcement-role.html">face foreign military threats.&nbsp;</a></p> <p>The Senate <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/senate-panel-approves-500-million-aid-ukraine-defense-bill-2025-07-11">passed</a> its version of the bill earlier this month. Now the two bodies will conference to iron out differences before sending it to the president&rsquo;s desk.</p> ]]> Policy Patrick Tucker Demonstrators gather in front of the federal building guarded by a mix of U.S. Marines and National Guard troops during the "No Kings" protest following federal immigration operations, in Los Angeles, on July 4, 2025. ETIENNE LAURENT / AFP via Getty Images PROCUREMENT: Indian Emergency Procurement http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htproc/articles/2025071701145.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:092737e3-1f11-6691-f2e3-9b86643d539b Thu, 17 Jul 2025 00:11:48 -0400 SUPPORT: Dragon's Teeth http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htcbtsp/articles/2025071701013.aspx StrategyPage.com urn:uuid:c2dfbd49-3f82-297a-a059-95c0826e459a Thu, 17 Jul 2025 00:10:15 -0400