Iranian hackers tried but failed to interest Biden’s campaign in stolen Trump info, FBI says

Iranian hackers tried but failed to interest Biden’s campaign in stolen Trump info, FBI says
Republican presidential nominee, former US President Donald Trump visits a cryptocurrency-themed bar called Pubkey in the West Village on September 18, 2024 in New York City. (AFP)
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Updated 19 September 2024
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Iranian hackers tried but failed to interest Biden’s campaign in stolen Trump info, FBI says

Iranian hackers tried but failed to interest Biden’s campaign in stolen Trump info, FBI says
  • The Trump campaign disclosed on Aug. 10 that it had been hacked and said Iranian actors had stolen and distributed sensitive internal documents

WASHINGTON: Iranian hackers sought to interest President Joe Biden’s campaign in information stolen from rival Donald Trump’s campaign, sending unsolicited emails to people associated with the then-Democratic candidate in an effort to interfere in the 2024 election, the FBI and other federal agencies said Wednesday.
There’s no indication that any of the recipients responded, officials said, and several media organizations approached over the summer with leaked stolen information have also said they did not respond. Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign called the emails from Iran “unwelcome and unacceptable malicious activity” that were received by only a few people who regarded them as spam or phishing attempts.
The announcement is the latest US government effort to call out what officials say is Iran’s brazen, ongoing work to interfere in the election, including a hack-and-leak campaign that the FBI and other federal agencies linked last month to Tehran.
US officials in recent months have used criminal charges, sanctions and public adviseries to detail actions taken by foreign adversaries to influence the election, including an indictment targeting a covert Russian effort to spread pro-Russia content to US audiences.
It’s a stark turnabout from the government’s response in 2016, when Obama administration officials were criticized for not being forthcoming about the Russian interference they were seeing on Trump’s behalf as he ran against Democrat Hillary Clinton.
In this case, the hackers sent emails in late June and early July to people who were associated with Biden’s campaign before he dropped out. The emails “contained an excerpt taken from stolen, non-public material from former President Trump’s campaign as text in the emails,” according to a statement released by the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
The agencies have said the Trump campaign hack and an attempted breach of the Biden-Harris campaign are part of an effort to undermine voters’ faith in the election and to stoke discord.
The FBI informed Trump aides within the last 48 hours that information hacked by Iran had been sent to the Biden campaign, according to a senior campaign official granted anonymity to speak because of the sensitive nature of the investigation.
The Trump campaign disclosed on Aug. 10 that it had been hacked and said Iranian actors had stolen and distributed sensitive internal documents. At least three news outlets — Politico, The New York Times and The Washington Post — were leaked confidential material from inside the Trump campaign. So far, each has refused to reveal any details about what it received.
Politico reported that it began receiving emails on July 22 from an anonymous account. The source — an AOL email account identified only as “Robert” — passed along what appeared to be a research dossier that the campaign had apparently done on the Republican vice presidential nominee, Ohio Sen. JD Vance. The document was dated Feb. 23, almost five months before Trump selected Vance as his running mate.
In a statement, Harris campaign spokesperson Morgan Finkelstein said the campaign has cooperated with law enforcement since learning that people associated with Biden’s team were among the recipients of the emails.
“We’re not aware of any material being sent directly to the campaign; a few individuals were targeted on their personal emails with what looked like a spam or phishing attempt,” Finkelstein said. “We condemn in the strongest terms any effort by foreign actors to interfere in US elections including this unwelcome and unacceptable malicious activity.
Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the effort to dangle stolen information to the Biden campaign “further proof the Iranians are actively interfering in the election” to help Harris.
Intelligence officials have said Iran opposes Trump’s reelection, seeing him as more likely to increase tension between Washington and Tehran. Trump’s administration ended a nuclear deal with Iran, reimposed sanctions and ordered the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, an act that prompted Iran’s leaders to vow revenge.
Iran’s intrusion on the Trump campaign was cited as just one of the cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns identified by tech companies and national security officials at a hearing Wednesday of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Executives from Meta, Google and Microsoft briefed lawmakers on their plans for safeguarding the election, and the attacks they’d seen so far.
“The most perilous time I think will come 48 hours before the election,” Microsoft President Brad Smith told lawmakers during the hearing, which focused on American tech companies’ efforts to safeguard the election from foreign disinformation and cyberattacks.


Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict

Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict
Updated 4 sec ago
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Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict

Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict
  • “We are seeing escalation after escalation, a regionalization of the conflict that is becoming a threat to global peace and security”

VIENTIANE LAOS: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday there was deep concern in Asia about the prospect of conflict spreading in the Middle East, as the UN chief called for everything possible to be done to avoid “all-out war” in Lebanon.
The conflict in the Middle East was a central issue during Friday’s East Asia Summit in Laos, where Blinken said Washington was dedicated to using diplomacy to try to control the situation in the face of what he called an Iranian-led axis of resistance.
“The intense focus of the United States, which has been the case going back a year... (is) preventing these conflicts from spreading. And we’re working on that every day,” Blinken told a press conference.
“We’re working very hard through deterrence and through diplomacy to prevent that from happening. There’s also obviously deep concern that we share about the plight of children, women, and men in Gaza.”
The US has stressed to Israel the importance of meeting the humanitarian needs of people in Gaza, Blinken said, adding it was in Israel’s interest that people forced from their homes by hostilities in Lebanon are able to return.
The annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations also included meetings with leaders and top diplomats from India, China, Japan, the US, Russia, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, as well as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Friday’s discussions included the war in Ukraine, Myanmar’s civil war, climate change, tensions in the Taiwan Strait and concern about confrontations in the South China Sea, a key conduit for at least $3 trillion in annual ship-borne trade.

‘Escalation after escalation’
Guterres condemned an attack by Israeli forces on a watchtower that wounded two UN peacemakers from Indonesia, an incident he said violated international law and must not be repeated.
He said any spread of fighting in the Middle East would have dramatically negative impacts on the whole world and called for maximum restraint from all sides.
“I have never seen in my time as secretary-general any example of death and destruction as dramatic as what we are witnessing here,” he told a press conference.
“We are seeing escalation after escalation, a regionalization of the conflict that is becoming a threat to global peace and security.”
“We see an enormous tragedy in Lebanon. And we must do everything to avoid an all-out war,” he added.
Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. made a plea before the regional leaders for all parties to be genuinely committed to managing disputes over the South China Sea, where his country has been embroiled in more than a year of confrontations with China.
The row has sparked fears those could spiral out of control, as US defense ally the Philippines accuses China of aggression, and Beijing expresses outrage over what it calls provocations and territorial infringements by Manila.
His remarks come a day after he called for ASEAN and China to urgently speed up negotiations on a code of conduct.
“These kinds of behavior cannot be ignored, and demand of us concerted and serious efforts to truly manage our disputes,” Marcos said.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose country takes over the ASEAN chair next year, said violence must be avoided and that Chinese Premier Li Qiang had given assurances that matters would be handled peacefully.
“This is an issue that affects all countries but the solution we propose, that is agreed upon by all, including China, is to avoid violence, use diplomatic channels, have negotiations,” he told a press conference.

Intensely focused
ASEAN and China on Friday issued a statement recognizing the proliferation of online gambling crimes and telecommunications network fraud, more commonly known as scam centers, for which hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked in Southeast Asia by criminal gangs, according to the UN.
Blinken and the ASEAN leaders on Friday agreed to cooperate on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and strengthen its safety, security and trustworthiness, including developing compatible approaches to AI governance.
Blinken gave reassurances about Washington’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, regardless of the outcome of next month’s US presidential election.
“Even with everything else going on, our focus has remained intensely on this region,” he said.

 


Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces

Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces
Updated 11 October 2024
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Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces

Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces
  • State visit highlights growing partnership between nations in sectors such as education, business, energy

LONDON: King Charles will host the Emir of Qatar and his wife during a state visit to the UK on Dec. 3-4, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and his wife, Sheikha Jawaher, will stay at the palace in central London during their visit, The Times newspaper reported.

Sheikh Tamim, who became Qatar’s emir in 2013, is known for his strong ties to the UK, having attended Sherborne School and Sandhurst.

The state visit highlights a growing partnership between the two nations, particularly in sectors such as education, business, and energy.

Sheikh Tamim and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met during the Paris Olympic Games this summer, and also met previously in Qatar.

King Charles visited Qatar several times when he was Prince of Wales, and Sheikh Tamim attended his coronation last year.

Their most recent meeting took place during the COP28 summit in Dubai in November and December last year.


Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit

Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
Updated 11 October 2024
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Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit

Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
  • Delegates were urged to put aside differences and move negotiations forward during the two-day “pre-COP” in Azerbaijan
  • At COP29, countries are supposed to agree on a new goal for “climate finance” that meets the needs of the world’s poorest countries in dealing with global warming

PARIS: A key meeting ahead of the UN COP29 climate summit ended Friday in frustration with countries making little progress over how to fund a new finance deal for poorer nations.
Delegates were urged to put aside differences and move negotiations forward during the two-day “pre-COP” in Azerbaijan, which is hosting the major climate talks in November.
Not all countries were represented so smaller gains, rather than concrete breakthroughs, were hoped for during the Baku meet.
But the gathering wrapped with nations no closer to resolving the same sticking points that have hindered the talks for months, attendees told AFP.
“Despite some hopeful talk of coming together, countries remain quite far apart,” said Iskander Erzini Vernoit, co-founder and director at the IMAL Initiative for Climate and Development, who was present in Baku.
At COP29, countries are supposed to agree on a new goal for “climate finance” that meets the needs of the world’s poorest countries in dealing with global warming.
The existing amount of $100 billion a year is considered insufficient and rich countries are under pressure to raise their contributions by at least a factor of 10.
Donors have still not said how much they are willing to pay, frustrating those advocating for a larger financial commitment from the countries most responsible for climate change to date.
“It is outrageous that just weeks before COP29, developed countries did not say how much money they are willing provide for this new finance goal,” said Mariana Paoli from Christian Aid.
Some developed countries want the pact to offer mixed layers of finance: one from governments, another from multilateral lenders, and private capital.
But Paoli said without developed countries agreeing to pay from their coffers without strings attached “any number at COP will be a meaningless figure.”
Most climate finance comes as loans, and developing countries say it worsens their debt problems.
They are pushing for unconditional grants to finance clean energy and climate adaptation measures, and want funding for disaster relief known as “loss and damage” included in any new deal.
Rebecca Thiessen from the NGO coalition CAN said it was “positive” to hear rich nations at Baku talk of a pact in trillions instead of billions.
“The scale of need has been recognized, but no figure has been put on the table,” she said.


ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers

ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers
Updated 11 October 2024
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ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers

ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers
  • The ECHR on Tuesday condemned Nicosia for returning two Syrian refugees to Lebanon who had arrived on a small boat

LONDON: Human rights lawyers on Friday were celebrating a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights for Cyprus to pay damages to two Syrian refugees who were blocked from applying for asylum as a major victory.

The ECHR on Tuesday condemned Nicosia for returning two Syrian refugees to Lebanon who had arrived on a small boat, without examining their asylum claim, and said the country had committed four violations of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Cyprus failed to conduct “any assessment of the risk of lack of access to an effective asylum process in Lebanon or the living conditions of asylum-seekers there,” it also said, adding that the Cypriot government had not assessed the risk of “refoulement,” which is the forcible return of refugees to a country such as Syria where they might be subjected to persecution.

Lawyer Nicoletta Charalambidou, who represented the refugees, said the judgment set a precedent against Cyprus’ migration policies, The Guardian newspaper reported on Friday.

“For four years the migration policies of Cyprus have relied on human rights violations, and illegal pushbacks at land and sea,” she said.

“This ruling has exposed these illegal practices and it has set a precedent. It is a perfect win for human rights,” she added.

Charalambidou stated that more legal actions are likely to follow, as asylum-seekers seek justice for violations of their rights under EU and international law.

“There are many more that I will be filing here in Nicosia before the administrative court of international protection and of course this week’s judgment (in Strasbourg) will encourage others,” she said.

“At first we saw pushbacks in the sea, now we’re seeing pushbacks in the buffer zone but Cyprus has obligations. It has to provide access to asylum requests wherever they come from and it has to provide dignified reception conditions. It is duty bound to do that under EU and international law.”

The ruling came amid reports by the UN’s refugee agency and the Border Violence Monitoring Network highlighting Cyprus’ use of new surveillance technologies and forcible expulsions, particularly in the buffer zone.

Around 65 asylum-seekers, including minors and cancer patients, remain stranded in the UN-patrolled zone between Cyprus’ divided regions.

“The state is now providing food but what is required is a sustainable long-term solution,” said Emilia Strovolidou, the UN agency’s spokesperson. “We’re in talks with the government. There are people who’ve been in limbo for months now and psychologically they’re in a very difficult situation.”

However, Nicholas Ioannides, Cyprus’ deputy minister in charge of migration, said in August his country was not bound under EU law to examine asylum requests even if lodged by claimants in a transit zone.

“Cyprus has taken a decision that it will not accept flows through the green line, particularly as we’ve managed to have zero arrivals via sea,” he said.


Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region

Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region
Updated 11 October 2024
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Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region

Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region
  • Four Russian missile and drone attacks on the Odesa region this week have killed 14 people and wounded around 20
  • The strikes have hit merchant ships and damaged port infrastructure in the region

KYIV: A nighttime Russian missile strike on Odesa killed at least four people including a 16-year-old girl, regional authorities said Friday, in the latest in a series of attacks this week on the southern Ukrainian region that are likely intended to disrupt the country’s grain exports.
Four Russian missile and drone attacks on the Odesa region this week have killed 14 people and wounded around 20, according to local officials. The strikes have hit merchant ships and damaged port infrastructure in the region, which is a vital hub for Ukraine’s agricultural exports through the Black Sea.
An attack on Odesa late Wednesday killed nine people and hit a container ship sailing under the Panamanian flag — the third attack on a merchant vessel in four days, according to regional Gov. Oleh Kiper.
The apparent Russian effort to frustrate Ukraine’s exports, which bring vital revenue for a national economy battered by more than two years of war, coincided with a renewed push by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to ensure continuing military and financial support from his country’s Western partners.
Ukraine’s stretched and short-handed army is currently under heavy pressure in the country’s eastern Donetsk region. Russian forces recently pushed it out of the Donetsk town of Vuhledar and are now in control of about half of nearby Toretsk, local administration chief Vasyl Chynchyk said Friday. To stop the losses, Zelensky needs to secure more help.
Russia last year tore up an agreement that allowed Ukraine — one of the world’s biggest suppliers of grain and other food staples, especially to developing nations — to export produce safely through the Black Sea.
Months later, and amid successful Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s Black Sea fleet which forced its navy to back away from the coast, Ukraine established a shipping corridor that hugs the coast down to Turkiye and opens a way to the Mediterranean Sea.
A special insurance program has provided affordable coverage to shippers who have carried millions of tons of cargo out of Ukraine, but the latest attacks could jeopardize that arrangement.