NewzIntel.com

Category: Natural Disasters

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Minister Hussen concludes visit to Türkiye and United Arab Emirates focused on Canada’s humanitarian assistance

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of International Development, today concluded a 2-day visit to Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates. The visit focused on Canada’s humanitarian assistance in the region and was an opportunity for the Minister to see and hear first-hand from humanitarian partners, how assistance is being delivered to vulnerable civilians in Lebanon, Gaza, and the West Bank.

    October 18, 2024 – Ottawa, Canada – Global Affairs Canada

    The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of International Development, today concluded a 2-day visit to Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates. The visit focused on Canada’s humanitarian assistance in the region and was an opportunity for the Minister to see and hear first-hand from humanitarian partners, how assistance is being delivered to vulnerable civilians in Lebanon, Gaza, and the West Bank.

    The Minister re-emphasized the need for Canadians to leave Lebanon and met with partners in the region who have been assisting over 1,200 Canadians and permanent residents to leave Lebanon to safety. Canada has also helped citizens of partnering countries leave Lebanon over the past several weeks. While in Istanbul on Thursday, Minister Hussen met with the Consuls General of these countries and with airport authorities and staff at the Consulate General of Canada, to thank them for their tremendous contribution in helping with these efforts.

    On Friday, Minister Hussen travelled to Dubai Humanitarian – the world’s largest centre for the distribution of humanitarian relief items – where he saw some of Canada’s humanitarian relief stockpile and toured the warehouses of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. Canada has donated 5,000 blankets and 1,000 hygiene kits to support impacted people in Lebanon through the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement. He also met with humanitarian partners to discuss their work in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon, as well as shared concerns over humanitarian access and the distribution of assistance.

    Canada reiterates its call for an immediate ceasefire and for a political solution to the conflict through diplomatic efforts. The increasingly dire humanitarian situation is unacceptable. In particular, the risk of famine persists across the whole Gaza Strip due to the decrease of aid allowed into Gaza. An increase in humanitarian aid is desperately needed to end this suffering.

    “The humanitarian situation in the Middle East is catastrophic and unsustainable, with widespread displacement in Lebanon and the risk of famine in Gaza. Canada continues to actively pursue all avenues with our partners on the ground to alleviate the suffering of those most impacted by this humanitarian crisis. We call for the rapid, safe, and unimpeded access of humanitarian relief in accordance with international humanitarian law.”

    – Ahmed Hussen, Minister of International Development

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: New Karratha weather radar now live, providing improved images

    Source: Weather Warnings – Australia

    18/10/2024

    Issued 18 October 2024

    Images from the new Karratha weather radar are now live on the Bureau of Meteorology’s website and the BOM Weather app.

    The new radar was built to replace a temporary radar in Dampier, which was put in place to replace the previous Dampier radar after it was severely damaged by Cyclone Damien in February 2020.

    The Karratha radar will provide better image resolution, better visibility of weather systems and less image interference than the temporary radar at Dampier.

    It will provide higher quality images during intense rain and storms and improve the image resolution between rain and hail.
    The new radar will have some areas of overlapping coverage with the Learmonth and Port Hedland radars.

    Bureau of Meteorology WA Manager James Ashley said the new dual-polarised Doppler radar is an important tool for observing rainfall and wind conditions in real time across large areas, including approaching tropical cyclones.

    “The new Karratha weather radar will benefit communities, emergency services and local industry across parts of the Pilbara region, Dampier Archipelago and surrounding areas,” Mr Ashley said.

    “The upgraded radar will eventually replace the temporary Dampier radar.

    “The temporary Dampier radar will remain in place for up to 6 months, to ensure continuous radar coverage while the Bureau completes monitoring and optimisation of the new Karratha radar.”

    Mr Ashley said construction of the Karratha radar required specialist equipment to reach the new site.

    “A self-propelled modular transporter, essentially a giant remote-controlled truck, was needed to get the tower segments to the top of the radar site,” he said.

    Radars collect data to feed into the Bureau’s models and forecasts to deliver better rainfall and flood warnings, estimates of accumulated rainfall and stored soil moisture, short-term forecasts of rainfall and severe weather, hail location and strength of wind changes.

    The Karratha radar is one part of the Bureau’s comprehensive weather observation network of more than 11,000 assets including satellites, upper atmosphere monitoring, automatic weather stations, ocean buoys and flood warning networks.

    Together these enable industry to make better decisions when preparing for severe weather, help farming businesses make timely decisions, such as movement of stock, chemical and fertiliser application, sowing and harvesting, and increase the accuracy of forecasts every year.

    The Karratha radar upgrade is part of the Bureau’s ongoing work to enhance and improve the Australian radar and observation network.

    ENDS…

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Olympia, Washington man who attacked religious buildings with gunshots and fires sentenced to 11 years in prison

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Tacoma –A 52-year-old Olympia, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 11 years in prison for a series of arsons and a shooting spree in 2018 that damaged or destroyed several Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Halls, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Mikey Diamond Starrett, aka Michael Jason Layes, pleaded guilty in May 2024 to four counts of damage to religious property and one count of using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. At today’s sentencing hearing, Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo said, “There are significant and troubling facts…. Terrorizing a group of individuals because of their religious beliefs.”

    “Mr. Starrett’s attacks irrevocably destroyed the sense of safety and peace that a house of worship is supposed to provide, and caused severe, permanent harm to the Jehovah’s Witness community in Washington,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “These were not crimes against buildings, but a series of attacks against a community and a faith.”

    “The defendant in this case committed four attacks on Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Halls, causing fear and anguish to its members,” said  Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The freedom to practice the religion we choose, without discrimination or violence, is a fundamental civil right in our nation and a hallmark of our democracy from its very inception. Violence based on religious prejudice has no place in our society.  The Justice Department will continue to prosecute those who target and harm houses of worship.”

    According to records in the case, Starrett set fire to Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Halls on three occasions. On March 19, 2018, he set fire to the Kingdom Halls in Tumwater and Olympia, Washington. On July 3, 2018, Starrett returned to the Olympia Kingdom Hall and burned it down completely. In a fourth attack on May 15, 2018, Starrett used an assault-style rifle to shoot rounds into another Kingdom Hall in Yelm, Washington. Starrett’s attacks caused more than $700,000 in damage to these Kingdom Halls. Starrett admitted in his plea agreement that he defaced, damaged, and destroyed the Kingdom Halls because of the properties religious character.

    After an extensive investigation, Starrett was arrested in September 2021 and has been in federal custody since then.

    “ATF and our law enforcement partners spent many thousands, if not tens of thousands, of hours investigating these attacks and ensuring that the right person was identified,” said ATF Seattle Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Blais. “His guilty plea is a validation of the hard work put in by all the law enforcement involved in the investigation, and this sentence is appropriate for his egregious actions. We are all committed to defending the right of people to practice their religion, and investigating when someone acts to deprive them of that right, in this case through acts of arson and use of a firearm during, and in relation to, a crime of violence.”

    Prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo that Starrett “committed several violent, premeditated attacks using fire or a dangerous weapon. His attacks were brazen and show that he believed he could engage in extensive criminal conduct without consequence. Starrett’s disregard for the safety of the Kingdom Halls, its congregants, first responders, and the surrounding area, which is vulnerable to devastating wildfires, underscores the danger that he poses to the public.”

    At the sentencing hearing, a spokesman for the Jehovah’s Witness community read a series of statements that had been submitted by community members. They wrote of the fear and anxiety the attack engendered writing: “I wondered if the arsonist would strike again with people inside; any new face at the meeting made me worry: and …the gunshots and bomb left, were clear threats, we worried someone would come to a meeting with a gun.”

    The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Seattle Field Division, the FBI, the Tumwater, Washington Police Department, and the Olympia, Washington Police Department.

    The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonas Lerman of the Western District of Washington and Trial Attorney Matthew Tannenbaum of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. 

    For more information and resources about DOJ’s work to combat hate crimes, visit http://www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: New Orleans Man Guilty of Being Felon in Possession of Firearm

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that on October 10, 2024, BRIAN WARD (“WARD”), age 30, a resident of New Orleans, pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(8). Sentencing is set for January 2, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Barry W. Ashe.

    WARD faces up to fifteen (15) years imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, at least three (3) years of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.00.

    According to court documents, on January 7,2024, WARD was arrested by the New Orleans Police Department following a physical altercation between WARD and another man in the 300 block of Bourbon Street.  During the altercation, WARD produced a firearm he possessed and shot at the man.  After WARD’s arrest, his firearm, a Taurus Model PTl40 G2, .40 caliber pistol, was recovered  near the tire of a van where WARD had hidden it.  Also, law enforcement recovered a spent .40-caliber shell casing from the scene.  It was later determined to be a match to the gun recovered.  The incident was additionally recorded by RealTime Crime Cameras in the area.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

    U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the New Orleans Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Katherine Kaufman of the General Crimes Unit.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: 50-Year Prison Term Handed Down for Man in Double Shooting at a Temp Labor Agency

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Victims Shot During Early Morning Attack in Northeast D.C.

                WASHINGTON – Matthew Walker, 25, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today, to 50 years in prison for shooting two men, killing one, at a temporary labor agency in Northeast Washington D.C. on February 14, 2019, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

                Walker was convicted at trial in January 2024 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

                In addition to the 50-year prison term, Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo also ordered Walker to serve five years of supervised release.

                According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 5:45 a.m. on February 14, 2019, Walker walked into Trojan Labor, a temporary labor agency in Northeast Washington D.C.  Once inside, Walker ran directly to the agency’s dispatch office, where he repeatedly shot David Remen, one of the agency’s workers and Michael Hardy, the manager of the agency. Walker then fled away from the scene and discarded his clothing, mask, and firearm nearby.  Mr. Remen died on scene.  Mr. Hardy died in 2022.  DNA evidence from the clothing, mask and firearm, as well as ballistic, video, and other evidence linked the defendant to the shooting.

                In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Prava Palacharla who investigated and indicted the case, Deputy Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharon Donavan for providing forensic DNA expertise, Paralegal Specialist Grazy Rivera, Victim/Witness Advocate Karina Hernandez, Supervisory IT Specialist Leif Hickling, and IT Specialist Charlie Bruce.

                Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel Seidel and Alec Levy, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Bloods Gang Member Sentenced to 40 Years’ Imprisonment for Double Homicide at Bay Shore Long Island Railroad Station

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Lameek Everette and a Fellow Bloods Member Killed Two Long Island Residents During a Robbery

    Earlier today at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, Lameek Everette, also known as “La,” a member of the Bloods Street gang, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Gary R. Brown, to 40 years’ imprisonment. On November 27, 2017, Everette was convicted of racketeering, including predicate acts of murder, robbery and attempted robbery.  Those charges stemmed from his participation in the September 2, 2016 murders of David Arzu and Janelle Curella, who were each shot by Everette during a robbery as the victims walked to the Long Island Rail Road train station in Bayshore, New York. 

    Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), James E. Dennehy, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Robert Waring, Acting Commissioner, Suffolk County Police Department (SCPD), announced the sentence. 

    “What started out as a robbery, turned into a double murder with the defendant pulling the trigger over and over to kill his victims simply because they resisted a holdup.  Today the defendant faced a reckoning for the devastating harm he has caused,” stated United States Attorney Peace.  “Gang members’ violent choices­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ will not go unpunished in our district.  The substantial sentence handed down today provides some measure of justice following the defendant’s senseless murder of a young man and woman whose families still grieve for the loss of their loved ones.  I hope it will also deter others from joining gangs and committing brutal crimes that terrorize our community.”

    “Lameek Everette’s blatant disregard for human life was clear not only by the execution of two young victims in cold blood, but also by his decision to spend the remainder of his night at a local club,” stated HSI New York Special Agent in Charge Walker.  “While no amount of time or justice can bring back David Arzu and Janelle Curella, preventing future violence is of the utmost priority for HSI New York. We will continue to work alongside our law enforcement partners to aggressively pursue violent street gangs and bring them to justice for the greater good of our Long Island community.”

    FBI Assistant Director in Charge Dennehy stated, “Lameek Everette personally appraised the lives of two innocent victims to be less than the potential value of their belongings. His callous actions demonstrate the senseless gang violence that can target random civilians. May today’s sentencing reflect the FBI’s unwavering commitment to eradicate all gang members threatening the welfare of our communities.”

    “Gang violence has no place in Suffolk County, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to hold accountable dangerous individuals like Everette whose plan for robbery escalated to murder,” stated Acting SCPD Commissioner Waring.  “I hope today’s sentence brings some sense of closure to the victims’ family and serves as a reminder we will pursue justice for all victims.”

    At approximately 9:30 p.m. on September 2, 2016, David Arzu, Janelle Curella and two friends were walking towards the Bay Shore train station.  Unbeknownst to them, Everette and a fellow Bloods member had devised a plan to rob them at gunpoint, and were lying in wait for them.  When Everette and his coconspirator spied Arzu, Curella and their friends, they approached the group, brandished firearms and demanded the victims’ money and valuables.  Arzu resisted, and a struggle ensued.  When Curella attempted to come to Arzu’s assistance, Everette shot and killed her.  Everette then shot Arzu multiple times, killing him.  Everette later posted pictures of himself of Facebook, flashing hand signals that signified his affiliation with the Bloods and wearing a necklace he had stolen from Arzu when he murdered him.

    Everette’s coconspirator in the robbery, Taheem Smith, was previously sentenced to 27 years’ incarceration for his role in the killings. 

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a Department of Justice program that brings together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of a renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorneys’ Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime.

    The government’s case is being handled by the Criminal Section of the Office’s Long Island Division.  Assistant United States Attorneys Mark E. Misorek and Anthony Bagnuola are in charge of the prosecution.   

    The Defendant:

    LAMEEK EVERETTE
    Age: 31
    Bay Shore, Long Island

    E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 17-CR-504 (GRB)

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Walton — East Hants District RCMP investigates fatal crash in Walton

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    East Hants District RCMP is investigating a fatal crash that occurred in Walton.

    On October 17, at approximately 12:12 p.m., East Hants District RCMP, fire services, and EHS responded to a report of a vehicle that had crashed into a residence along Hwy. 215. RCMP officers learned that a Toyota Camry had veered off the roadway, rolled, and came to rest against the house.

    The driver and sole occupant of the Camry, a 19-year-old man from Upper Kennetcook, was located deceased at the scene. Nobody at the residence was physically injured.

    An RCMP collision reconstructionist attended the scene and the investigation is ongoing. Hwy. 215 was closed for several hours but has since reopened.

    Our thoughts are with the victim’s loved ones at this difficult time.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The poetic violence of Han Kang’s Nobel Prize-winning literature – what you should read, watch and do this week

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Naomi Joseph, Arts + Culture Editor

    I didn’t seek out The Vegetarian when I first read it. I was on a book buying ban and in the lucky position to be living with a fellow hoarder. As I perused our combined stacks, a slim volume by an author I hadn’t heard of caught my eye, and I am glad it did. The Vegetarian by Han Kang, is exactly my sort of story: dark, disturbing and beautifully wrought.

    Yeong-hye is, as her husband charmingly says, “completely unremarkable in every way” – that is, until she becomes vegetarian. This decision sends her world, and her extended family’s, spinning aggressively off its axis. You may be thinking this is a bit dramatic (vegetarianism is normal), and it is.

    The Korean satirical sensibility often disturbs you into realising humanity is messed up. Parasite (winner of the Oscar for best picture in 2020), Oldboy (the 2003 thriller that inspired John Wick) and The Vegetarian are born of the same sort of urgency to expose our shared ability for violence, which they attest is always there, simmering just beneath the surface.

    The Vegetarian won the 2016 Man Booker International Prize, and Kang has now emerged as the surprise winner of this year’s Nobel prize in literature. She is one of the youngest writers to win. Artful is a word that comes to mind when thinking about her sparse and beautiful prose, which also manages to be so dense in meaning. It makes sense that Kang is a poet, and this quality in her translations is a testament to her translator, Deborah Smith.

    As our writer, Jenni Ramone, notes, The Vegetarian was likely to have been the work that influenced the judging panel the most. Kang manages to fit a lot of horror into this slim text (it’s less than 200 pages) without it feeling crowded. It’s a searing novel, visceral and savage in its imagery, which is so elegantly and economically described.

    I am currently in the lucky position of possessing an early reader copy of Kang’s newest novel We Do Not Part, which is out next year. I am so excited to get stuck in. Until then, I urge you to read The Vegetarian and to delve further into Kang’s catalogue, her poetry in particular.

    This got us thinking about the difference between writing poetry and prose. Is it obvious that a good poet would write good prose, and vice versa? Answer our poll and reply to this email with your thoughts and examples where poets have written good or bad prose, and prose writers have written bad or good poetry.



    Read more:
    Han Kang: innovative South Korean author wins the 2024 Nobel prize for literature

    Korean art and British horror

    Hallyu, the wave of Korean art and culture that has taken the west by storm, is going strong. Literature is getting its moment in the sun right now, and maybe Korea’s art will be next. If you want to be ahead of the curve, you should head down to London’s Southbank where you can catch artist Haegue Yang’s Leap Year at the Hayward Gallery.

    The work is bright and bold, Yang is certainly an original and radical. The exhibition is a major retrospective of her work in which you will find collage, sculpture and installations featuring sound and even scent. Our reviewer, Martin Lang, writes: “Yang’s work suggests that art, too, has the power to bridge divides and foster empathy, breaking down barriers between cultures.”



    Read more:
    Haegue Yang’s Leap Year is a bold and diverse show mixing cultural references and folk traditions

    “I remember watching it as a teenager in a lesson at school and once was enough for me,” writes politics academic Mark Lacy of the BBC film Threads, a truly terrifying imagining of the impact of a nuclear war on a city in the north of England from 1984. The film hasn’t been available to watch for decades, but has recently been put on iPlayer for us all to relive its horror.

    As Lacy outlines, “it’s a brutal and grim tour of the aftermath of nuclear war, which anyone who viewed it when originally aired may struggle to watch again”. Lacy watched it at a time when the possibility of cold war tensions escalating was very real. While we have certainly been exposed to more nuclear fallout stories since, the film is once again available to watch at a time when the fear of attacks on nuclear facilities is again in the news.



    Read more:
    Threads: the harrowing 1984 BBC docudrama is back on our screens – scary but appropriate viewing for our uncertain times

    The making of legends

    The film The Apprentice also comes at a time of great nervousness as the US election draws near. The film, set in the 1970s and 1980s, charts the business career of presidential hopeful Donald Trump. It centres around Trump’s relationship with the prosecutor Roy Cohn, from whom he is said to have learned underhanded ways of business and Machiavellian dealmaking.

    As our reviewer, professor of international relations Michelle Bentley, writes, it comes at a controversial time – with fewer than three weeks until the election. “The film seeks to get inside Trump’s mindset, not only as a businessperson, but unpicking what drove him in the White House, as well as the election he’s now fighting,” writes Bentley, who goes on to explain whether the film will affect the election at all. It is certainly a major event in this dramatic election.



    Read more:
    The Apprentice: released so close to the polls, this Trump biopic is inevitably political

    There are so many brilliant music documentaries giving long-deserved dues to musicians who have fallen into obscurity but who had major influence on so many artists and genres. Think the films Searching For Sugarman and Getting It Back: The Story of Cymande. A wonderful new addition to this genre is Harder Than the Rock about the Cimarons.

    This lovely piece by sociologist Kenny Monrose is full of childhood anecdotes of their music. The group were the UK’s first reggae band, and looking at the long list of people they worked with, from Bob Marley to Paul McCartney, it’s startling how little known they are – even by the film’s director, Mark Warmington. My colleague Anna said she had a wonderful afternoon editing Monrose’s piece while listening to the band’s music, which you we highly recommend you do too.



    Read more:
    Why the Cimarons are one of the greatest British bands of all time – as documentary Harder Than the Rock shows

    – ref. The poetic violence of Han Kang’s Nobel Prize-winning literature – what you should read, watch and do this week – https://theconversation.com/the-poetic-violence-of-han-kangs-nobel-prize-winning-literature-what-you-should-read-watch-and-do-this-week-241601

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Highgate, Vermont Man Pleads Not Guilty to Federal Firearms Charge

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    Burlington, Vermont – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that Jason Douglas, 40, of Highgate, Vermont, pleaded not guilty in United States District Court in Burlington on October 16, 2024 to a charge that he possessed a firearm as a convicted felon. At a subsequent hearing on October 17, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jerome Niedermeier ordered that Douglas be released on conditions that include home confinement during the pendency of the case.

    On September 26, 2024, a federal grand jury in Burlington returned a one-count indictment charging Douglas with unlawfully possessing a Ruger .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol as a convicted felon. According to court records, Douglas is barred from possessing firearms because he has two separate felony convictions in Vermont for kidnapping and burglary. The federal prosecution of Douglas stems from an incident in downtown Burlington on July 29, 2024, in which it is alleged that Douglas pointed a firearm at an individual in the middle of the day. Douglas was arrested shortly thereafter and law enforcement recovered a loaded pistol from the driver’s compartment of the car Douglas was driving. As a result of this incident, Douglas has also been charged in Vermont Superior Court with reckless endangerment.

    The United States Attorney emphasizes that the charge in the indictment is merely an accusation and that Douglas is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty. If convicted, Douglas faces up to 15 years of imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000. The actual sentence, however, would be determined by the Court with guidance from the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.

    This case was investigated by the Burlington Police Department with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

    Douglas is represented by Federal Public Defender Mike Desautels. The prosecutor is Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Associate of Violent Gang Sentenced to Nearly Six Years in Prison for Home Invasion Robbery

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    BOSTON – A member of the violent Boston gang Cameron Street was sentenced yesterday for committing an armed home invasion robbery with fellow gang members.

    Brendon Amado, 27, of Randolph, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young to 70 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. In February 2024, Amado pleaded guilty to conspiracy to interfere with commerce by threats or violence.

    Amado was identified as an associate of Cameron Street, a violent gang based largely in the Dorchester section of Boston that uses violence, including murder and attempted murder, to preserve, protect and expand their territory.

    In July 2018, Amado, along with Cameron Street members and co-defendants Deronde Bethea and Michael Nguyen, committed a home invasion robbery with firearms of two victims at the home of a rival drug dealer in Canton. Amado, Bethea and Nguyen broke into the home through the back door, wearing masks and dark hoodies and carrying firearms. One victim ran out of the front door of the house and called 911. The second victim was brought into the living room, punched in the head, had a gun put to her head. as the men ransacked the house demanding, “where’s the stuff, where’s the money, where’s your boyfriend?” Amado, Bethea and Nguyen later fled the house in a silver pickup truck after stealing $2,000 in cash and a safe. Among other evidence, Amado and Bethea were identified on convenience store surveillance footage shortly before the robbery took place.

    In December 2023, Nguyen pleaded guilty and in March 2024 he was sentenced to 70 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Bethea pleaded guilty in February 2024 and in June 2024 was sentenced to 250 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

    Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division, and Boston Police Commissioner Cox made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office; Suffolk, Plymouth, Norfolk and Bristol County District Attorney’s Offices; and the Canton, Quincy, Randolph, Somerville, Brockton, Malden, Stoughton, Rehoboth and Pawtucket (R.I.) Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Pohl and Charles Dell’Anno of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.

    This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

    The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The remaining defendants named in the indictment are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
     

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Liam Payne: journalistic ethics are often ignored when celebrities die

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Polly Rippon, University Teacher in Journalism, University of Sheffield

    When someone famous dies, particularly if they are young or it was unexpected, it is natural for their fans to want to know what happened. But, as the reporting on the tragic death of singer Liam Payne shows, the media does not always handle this appropriately or ethically.

    The singer, 31, fell to his death from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires while under the influence of “drugs or alcohol”, local police said. LA-based celebrity news website TMZ initially reported the story alongside graphic images of Payne’s body.

    After a backlash, TMZ removed the photos, but executive editor Michael Babock defended publication, claiming the site was “trying to confirm reports Liam had died before police had established his identity”.

    Other mainstream outlets published transcripts or recordings of a 911 call made to police shortly before Payne was found, and an Argentinian newspaper published images of Payne’s hotel room which included images of drugs paraphernalia.

    This is certainly not the first time the media, and TMZ in particular, has come under fire for insensitive or harmful reporting of celebrity deaths. When basketball great Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash in January 2020, TMZ shared the news before police were able to notify his family. Bryant’s widow later testified that she learned of her husband and daughter’s deaths through social media. This breaches the UK’s journalism codes of practice.

    In their quest to get a scoop, what precautions and sensitivities do journalists have to respect when it comes to reporting sudden and tragic deaths?

    Media guidelines and ethics

    The ethical standards and guidelines vary from country to country. In the UK,
    these are set out by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) and independent press monitor Impress for print media, and by Ofcom for broadcasters.

    An Ipso clause around intrusion into grief and shock says journalists should make enquiries with “sympathy and discretion” and publication should be handled “sensitively”.

    Ofcom has similar guidelines for broadcasters. The section on privacy states: “When people are caught up in events which are covered by the news they still have a right to privacy.”

    This can be infringed if “warranted”, says Ofcom, for example if it is in the public interest. This could include revealing or detecting crime, protecting public health or safety, exposing misleading claims or disclosing incompetence. But a tragic death, even of a high profile person, is unlikely to meet this standard.

    Broadcasters should not interview or film people who have experienced a personal tragedy unless it is “warranted” or they have given consent. And journalists are advised not to “reveal the identity of someone who has died unless it is clear that the next of kin have been informed”.

    Impress, which regulates more independent journalism, has released a statement condemning the reporting of Payne’s death.

    It said: “The defence of publishing in the public interest does not give outlets carte blanche to report the most intimate details of a celebrity’s life, or their death.”

    It is important to state at this stage that what happened prior to Payne’s tragic death and his intentions at the time are unknown. It is the job of the coroner to investigate and come to a conclusion at his inquest.

    The effect of reporting on tragedy

    Beyond accuracy and respect for the victim of a tragedy and their family, there are wider concerns that journalists should take into account.

    Research conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) has shown irresponsible media reporting of celebrity deaths, particularly suicides, can increase suicide rates.

    One study examining patterns of suicide and media coverage found that in the five months following comic Robin Williams’ death in 2014, there were 1,841 more deaths from suicide in the USA compared to the same period the previous year – a 9.85% rise.

    The WHO’s international guidelines for reporting suicide urge the media to avoid sensationalism. Journalists should not provide details about methods, and should include information about mental health resources in stories.

    Analysis of over 100 academic studies found repeated coverage and high-profile news stories were most strongly associated with copycat behaviour.

    The WHO states: “Such stories can inadvertently function as celebrity endorsements of suicidal behaviour and it is known that celebrity endorsements can have an impact on behaviour of the public.”

    Sensitive reporting can reduce the risk of copycat suicides. Providing context in relation to mental health challenges and offering resources for support is vital.

    In the UK, guidelines were first drawn up by the Samaritans charity in 1994 to improve reporting on suicide and prevent copycat attempts. These are taught to journalism students on courses accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists.

    Guidance includes avoiding “dramatic” headlines, emotive or sensational pictures or video footage and excessive amounts of coverage. Not speculating about the trigger or cause is urged, because it can oversimplify the issue.

    “Coverage that reflects the wider issues around suicide, including that it is preventable, can help reduce the risk of suicidal behaviour”, the guidelines state. “Include clear and direct references to resources and support organisations.”

    Making a change

    Despite all of these guidelines, many media outlets flout them in the race for clicks. It is heartening that there has been so much outrage at the publication of the images of Payne, but some members of the public still seem to have an insatiable appetite for it. Nothing, it seems, is off limits.

    We need to take collective responsibility. Journalists and editors should reacquaint themselves with responsible reporting guidelines and put themselves in the bereaved family’s shoes. Members of the public can also do their bit by not clicking on or sharing this kind of material, so editorial priorities change.

    Ultimately, our thoughts must be with Payne and his loved ones. A death so young is a real tragedy and those who loved him will be affected for the rest of their lives.

    If you’re struggling with suicidal thoughts, the following services can provide you with support:
    In the UK and Ireland – call Samaritans UK at 116 123.
    In the US – call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or IMAlive at 1-800-784-2433.
    In Australia – call Lifeline Australia at 13 11 14.
    In other countries – visit IASP or Suicide.org to find a helpline in your country.

    Polly Rippon does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Liam Payne: journalistic ethics are often ignored when celebrities die – https://theconversation.com/liam-payne-journalistic-ethics-are-often-ignored-when-celebrities-die-241631

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Security: RM of Tache — St-Pierre-Jolys RCMP respond to fatal two-vehicle collision

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    On October 18, 2024, at approximately 1:40 am, St-Pierre-Jolys RCMP responded to a report of a two-vehicle collision in the eastbound lane of Highway 1, located between Road 27E and Road 28E, in the RM of Tache.

    The initial investigation has determined that a vehicle, travelling westbound in the eastbound lane, collided with an eastbound semi-trailer. Both vehicles entered the ditch and caught on fire.

    The 36-year-old male driver of the semi-trailer along with his 37-year-old male passenger were treated on scene for minor injuries.

    The driver, and lone occupant of the vehicle, was pronounced deceased on scene. The deceased has not yet been identified.

    St Pierre-Jolys RCMP, along with an RCMP Forensic Collision Reconstructionist, continue to investigate.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Coast Guard responds to Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton

    Source: US Coast Guard (video statements)

    U.S. Coast Guard District Seven Commander, Rear Admiral Douglas Schofield, discusses Coast Guard property damage after Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton struck the west coast of Florida Oct. 3, 2024, at Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, Florida. Coast Guard crews responded to multiple search and rescue cases resulting in a total of 37 lives saved or assisted and eight pets rescued. (U.S. Coast Guard video by Petty Officer 2nd Class Jose Hernandez and Petty Officer 2nd Class Ian Gray)

    #USCG #Coastguard #hurricanemilton #hurricanehelene

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-2uXb4rpDI

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Getting carbon capture right will be hard – but that doesn’t make it optional

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Myles Allen, Professor of Geosystem Science, Director of Oxford Net Zero, University of Oxford

    Kodda / Shutterstock

    The UK government has given the go-ahead to carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) schemes worth £22 billion (US$28.6 billion). Critics are insisting that this technology – which involves capturing carbon as it is emitted or taking it back out of the atmosphere, then pumping it into rocks deep underground – is unsafe, unproven and unaffordable. Defenders are responding with painstaking rebuttals.

    Could the whole debate be missing the point? I think it is better to focus on the big picture – why we need CCS to work – rather than playing whack-a-mole with every objection to individual projects.

    The case for CCS boils down to waste disposal: we are going to make too much carbon dioxide (CO₂), so we need to start getting rid of it, permanently.

    By burning fossil fuels and producing cement alone, we will generate more CO₂ than we can afford to dump into the atmosphere to have any chance of limiting global warming to close to 1.5°C – even after accounting for the capacity of the biosphere and oceans to mop it up.

    So, we need to start disposing of that CO₂, safely and permanently, on a scale of billions of tonnes a year by mid-century. And the only proven way of doing this right now is to re-inject it back underground.

    Keep our options open

    The world is not giving up fossil fuels any time soon, and the transition is going to be difficult enough without tying our hands by ruling out using CCS technology.

    The questions we should be asking are: will “green hydrogen” – a low-carbon fuel produced from water using renewable electricity – be a cheaper way of dealing with lulls in renewable energy generation than gas-fired power plants fitted with CCS? And, can we get by entirely on recycled steel, and eliminate the use of conventional cement in construction, when steel and cement are notoriously hard to produce without fossil fuels?

    If the answer to any of these questions, anywhere in the world, turns out to be “no” – or even “not by 2050” – then we need CCS.

    Would taking CCS off the table focus minds and make us abandon fossil fuels faster? Perhaps, but it could equally make us abandon climate targets – ultimately, the most expensive option of all.

    We should be conscious of “lifecycle emissions” for all forms of energy – including, for example, green hydrogen made with electricity from solar panels that were manufactured using coal-fired power. The right response is to find cleaner suppliers of solar panels for green hydrogen, and cleaner suppliers of gas for blue hydrogen. The wrong response is to give up on either fuel source.

    Nature is maxed out

    What about offsetting continued fossil fuel use with nature-based solutions, such as restoring ecosystems and rewilding? Unfortunately, we are already maxing out nature’s credit card.

    In the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) scenarios in which warming is kept close to 1.5°C, we need to eliminate deforestation almost immediately, and restore a cumulative total of 250 billion tonnes of CO₂ to the biosphere over the coming 75 years – by restoring forests and wetlands, for example.

    Over the same period, we also need to dispose of four times that amount of CO₂ back underground through various forms of CCS – after slashing the amount of CO₂ we produce by 75%-80%.

    We cannot bank on stuffing an additional trillion tonnes of CO₂ into the biosphere over the next 75 years – especially as more Earth system feedbacks emerge and accelerate, whereby carbon stored at the Earth’s surface is re-released to the atmosphere as the world warms, forests burn, and peatlands dry out.

    Invest, but invest wisely

    To limit global warming to the extent the planet urgently requires, we need a means of permanent CO₂ disposal that does not make further demands on the biosphere. But at the same time as enabling CCS technology, we also need to make sure its availability does not encourage yet more CO₂ emissions.

    This is where critics of government policy may have a point. If CCS is widely available and heavily subsidised, will that just encourage individuals and companies to use more fossil fuels? The danger is real, but it doesn’t mean we should abandon CCS. We need to be smart about how it is implemented.

    Given the way the first CCS projects were set up by the previous UK government, an initial injection of £22 billion from taxpayers is, by now, the only way to kickstart a CO₂ disposal industry. But this should not become an endless subsidy which allows private industry to keep profiting from selling the stuff that causes global warming, while taxpayers pay for the clean-up.

    Fortunately, there is another way. The EU has shown, in its Net Zero Industry Act, how regulation can force the fossil fuel industry to contribute to the cost of CCS without relying on US-style subsidies.

    The UK government could make it clear that, by mid-century, anyone selling fossil fuels in the UK will be responsible for permanently disposing all CO₂ generated by their activities and the products they sell.

    Pricing in safe CO₂ disposal would make fossil fuels more expensive, potentially adding 5p per kWh to the cost of natural gas over the next 25 years. That’s cheap compared with the cost of just dumping CO₂ into the atmosphere.

    It is possible, and even affordable, to ensure fossil fuel use falls to meet our available CO₂ disposal capacity. There again, building a global CO₂ disposal industry from a standing start in only 25 years will be hard.

    Fortunately, the UK has the right geology, skills and expertise, as well as a history of innovation in climate policy. It also has a clear interest in getting involved in what should become one of the major industries of the second half of this century. And it has a moral obligation, having pioneered taking fossil carbon out of the Earth’s crust, to join the first wave of countries putting it back.


    Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?

    Get our award-winning weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 35,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

    Myles Allen receives funding from the Strategic Research Fund of the University of Oxford and the European Commission. He is a member of the Advisory Board of Puro.Earth.

    – ref. Getting carbon capture right will be hard – but that doesn’t make it optional – https://theconversation.com/getting-carbon-capture-right-will-be-hard-but-that-doesnt-make-it-optional-241515

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Supporting Jasper’s tourism recovery

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    Jasper’s value is beyond measure. For decades, Jasper has been a place where families and friends from Alberta and across the world have travelled to experience the incredible Canadian Rockies, connect with locals and make memories that last a lifetime.

    As Jasper has a tourism-based economy, tourism is essential for the recovery of the community. Alberta’s government is committed to that recovery, and the recovery of the tourism sector in Jasper and surrounding areas. As a show of that commitment, Alberta’s government has earmarked $2.5 million to support Jasper’s tourism industry.

    “Tourism is the backbone of Jasper’s economy, and for the town to rebuild, we need to see a strong return of tourism businesses, accommodation providers, services and experiences. This funding will help Jasper’s tourism businesses prepare to welcome visitors this fall and winter, ensuring they remain viable and ready for next summer.”

    Joseph Schow, Minister of Tourism and Sport

    “The return of visitors is essential for the health and well-being of Jasper. I am grateful that Minister Schow and Travel Alberta are ensuring that the recovery of the community of Jasper and the tourism businesses is a priority for the Government of Alberta.”

    Martin Long, MLA for West Yellowhead

    Alberta’s government recognizes that Jasper’s recovery, and that of its tourism industry, requires long-term support. This initial funding through Travel Alberta is aimed at supporting businesses and tourism operators in their early work to rebuild. In the immediate aftermath of the fires, this funding helped support the Jasper is Recovering campaign, and will support promotional activities to encourage visitation this fall and winter, sustainability funding for Tourism Jasper, and funding for existing tourism businesses to activate fall and winter experiences.

    As Alberta’s destination management organization, Travel Alberta works to promote Alberta as a premier tourism destination and grow Alberta’s visitor economy through supporting destination development and close partnerships with tourism businesses provincewide.

    “We know that this fall and winter will be critical to the long-term success of Jasper’s recovery. This investment will help Jasper tourism operators expand their offerings while inviting travellers to come make new memories in this special place, supporting the community as it rebuilds.”

    Jon Mamela, chief commercial officer, Travel Alberta

    “A strong and thriving visitor economy is essential for our residents to rebuild swiftly and continue welcoming visitors to Jasper. These funds will provide direct support to our tourism operators and help reinforce the message that Jasper is open for business this fall and into the winter season. We are deeply grateful for the support and contributions of our provincial tourism partners.”

    Tyler Riopel, CEO, Tourism Jasper

    Jasper represents an important destination for Alberta’s tourism sector, accounting for 22 to 25 per cent of tourism expenditures in the Canadian Rockies. For more information on Travel Alberta programs, please visit the Travel Alberta Industry Hub webpage.

    Related information

    • Travel Alberta Industry Hub
    • Higher Ground: A Tourism Sector Strategy

    Related news

    • Alberta tourism soars to new heights (Sept. 26, 2024)
    • Growing Alberta’s visitor economy (Feb. 14, 2024)

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Remarks by President  Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany in Joint Statements to the Press | Berlin,  Germany

    Source: The White House

    German Chancellery
    Berlin, Germany

    12:34 P.M. CEST

    CHANCELLOR SCHOLZ:  (As interpreted.)  Mr. President. 

    (Speaking English.)  Dear Joe, it is my great pleasure to welcome you here to the Chancellery in Berlin as a friend of Europe, as a friend of Germany, and, above all, as my friend.  Welcome.

    (As interpreted.)  Dear Joe, our cooperation the past three years was extraordinarily close and full of trust.  I know that this is not something that we can take for granted, even among good partners as the U.S. and Germany have been for many, many decades. 

    I would like to take this opportunity here and today to express my gratitude and say thank you.  Thank you, Mr.  President. 

    The times in which we’re living are extremely challenging indeed.  With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, war has returned back to Europe.  The European security order has been shaken in its very foundations. 

    It is all the more important that we reacted decisively and stood closely together and unequivocably condemned this blatant violation of international law and stand by our Ukrainian friends’ side. 

    It is thanks to your leadership that Putin’s plans failed, that Ukraine wasn’t overrun within a few days.  But it is thanks to the bravery of Ukrainian armed forces and the support of many states — above all, the United States and Germany — Ukraine stands up to imperialist Russia since more than two and a half years. 

    Together, we commit to Ukraine’s sovereignty and integrity so that Russia cannot subjugate Ukraine by force.  We stand by Ukraine’s side as long as it is necessary.  Putin has miscalculated.  He cannot sit and ride out this war.

    Together, therefore, we decided, with our G7 partners, to support Ukraine with a loan package to the tune of 50 billion U.S. dollars by the end of this year. 

    Together, we commit to a strong NATO Alliance which defends every square inch of its territory.  Every member of our alliance can rely on that.  And together, we commit to the fundamental principles of the free world as enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. 

    Mr. President, from the very beginning of the war, we closely coordinated ourselves across the Atlantic.  It has made us strong.  It has made the Alliance strong, and we will continue to do that. 

    Our position is clear.  We continue to support Ukraine as strongly as possible.  At the same time, we are making sure that NATO does not become a party to this war so that this war does not lead to an even bigger catastrophe.  We are very much aware of this responsibility, and no one can shoulder this responsibility for us. 

    Of course, the situation in the Middle East is also on our agenda.  The barbaric terrorist attacks of Hamas on Israel of October 7th has massively destabilized the situation. 

    Israel has the right to defend itself.  It is important to me to say this very clearly.  We stand by Israel’s side, and we fully agree that it is now more important than ever before to prevent further escalation and a regional conflagration.

    With the death of Hamas leader Sinwar, who was responsible for the horrific terrorist attacks, we hopefully now see a tangible prospect of a ceasefire in Gaza, an agreement that leads to the release of hostages held by Hamas. 

    Joe, your efforts — we always supported your efforts in this conflict, and we will continue to do so.  Our common objective remains a credible political process towards a two-state solution, and we will continue to be fully committed to that. 

    In Lebanon, we’re working towards a situation that the conflict leads to a diplomatic process as soon as possible.  It is clear the people in Northern Israel have to be able to live free of fear and insecurity.  Lebanon deserves a future in self-determination, stability, and security. 

    Originally, your visit was scheduled to take place last Friday and had to be postponed due to the severe hurricanes.  And I’m delighted that you were able to come today.  It affords us the opportunity to talk about the challenging global situation in great detail bilaterally but also together with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, who will join us later. 

    In my view, we need such talks at highest levels to make progress in the most important, pressing issues. 

    (In English.)  Joe, thanks again for taking the time for this visit.  It is a strong signal of our transatlantic unity and of our friendship.

    Please.

    PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Well, Chancellor — Olaf, it’s great to see you again, and I do apologize for having to cancel the first time around, but we did have a crisis in our southeastern border with hurricanes and tornadoes.  But we’re here because Germany is — Germany is my country’s closest and most important of allies. 

    When Putin launched his brutal invasion in Ukraine, you reminded us all why this alliance is so essential.  Under your leadership, Chancellor, Germany rose to meet the moment.  You showed the wisdom to recognize that this war marked a turning point in the history, an assault on the very principles of the protected peace and security in Europe for more than 75 years. 

    And then you summoned the resolve to act, remaking Germany’s foreign policy to reckon new realities — with new realities to stand strong and steadfast with Ukraine. 

    America and Germany are the two largest supporters of Ukraine in its fight for survival as a free and independent nation.  As Ukraine faces a tough winter, we must — we must sustain our resolve, our effort, and our support. 

    And I know the cost is heavy, but make no mistake, it pales in comparison to the cost of living in the world where aggression prevails, where large states attack and bully smaller ones simply because they can. 

    Today, the chancellor and I are going to discuss ongoing efforts to surge support to Ukraine’s military; to shore up Ukraine’s civilian energy infrastructure, which is under constant assault and bombardment from Russia; and to help Ukraine recover by unlocking the value of frozen Russian assets.

    I also want to recognize Germany’s decision to spend 2 percent of your gross domestic product on defense.  Please keep it up, because it matters. 

    Our alliance with Germany extends far beyond Ukraine and Europe.  It’s global. 

    Today, the chancellor and I will discuss regional security in the Middle East, including the ongoing domestic efforts regarding Lebanon and Gaza. 

    The death of the leader of Hamas represents a moment of justice.  He had the blood of Americans and Israelis, Palestinians and Germans, and so many others on his hands.

    I told the prime minister of Israel yesterday: Let’s also make this moment an opportunity to seek a path to peace, a better future in Gaza without Hamas.  And I look forward to discussing Iran. 

    Olaf and I spoke the morning after Iran launched 200 ballistic missiles at Israel earlier this month.  With our G7 counterparts, we agreed to coordinate our response through sanctions and other measures, and that is what we have done. 

    I’m grateful for Germany’s cooperation holding Iran accountable for destabilizing policies, including providing missiles and drones to Russia to use against Ukraine. 

    And just this week, the European Union followed Germany, the UK, and France in sanctioning Iran’s leading airlines.  This followed our own oil sanctions.  This coordination is going to have to continue. 

    I also want to thank Germany for standing firm against a vicious surge of antisemitism, hatred, and extremism we’re witnessing today.  Some of it fueled by foreign misinformation.

    As domestic — as democratic allies, we have to remain ever vigilant against what I call the “old ghosts in new garments,” ancient hatreds resurfacing.  Our charge is to make sure that the forces holding our societies together and binding us in the common cause of human dignity and freedom remain stronger — stronger than the forces seeking to pull us apart. 

    And finally, Chancellor, I deeply appreciate your partnership and the many times you’ve forsaken the easy choice to make the right choice.  Your act of statesmanship and friendship has made possible the safe return and unjustly detained Americans and Germans and the reunion of brave Russian dissidents to their families.  I want to thank you, thank you, thank you. 

    I value our conversations, and I look forward to them — this one is — particularly.  And I want to — I really mean it — I want to thank you for your friendship, not only personally, but I don’t see how we maintain stability in Europe and around the world without a tight German-U.S. relationship.  And you’re the leader to do it. 

    Thank you. 

    12:45 P.M. CEST

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: 8 expert tips for getting started with NotebookLM

    Source: Google

    You might know Steven Johnson as an author. He’s written a number of books, many focused on the science of how we think and the history of innovation. But he’s also a Googler who has worked on the NotebookLM team from the beginning of the project two years ago. “Simply put, NotebookLM is a tool for understanding things,” Steven says. Think of it as your virtual note-taking and research assistant: NotebookLM takes information, digests and analyzes it so that you can glean more from it. It’s designed for that “deeper dive” you may need to take into a topic — or multiple topics at once.

    With NotebookLM, you create individual notebooks dedicated to a topic or project. You can upload up to 50 “sources” with up to 25 million words — all from things like PDFs, Google Docs, websites and YouTube videos. Then, NotebookLM uses Gemini 1.5’s multimodal capabilities to assess and make connections between the sources you’ve added. You can ask questions about the content or ask NotebookLM to format it in a specific way — it will even provide citations that link back to the most relevant original passages in your sources. And along the way, your private information is never shared or used to train the model.

    If you’re just getting started, try these eight tips from Steven to get the most out of NotebookLM.

    1. Experiment with your recent documents — even if they’re random

    One of the first things Steven suggests new NotebookLM users do is upload their 10 most recent documents into one notebook and start experimenting by asking questions. Even if your most recent documents are unrelated and totally random, it’s a great way to test run what NotebookLM can do. Whether you know the material in the documents down to the letter, or it’s all pretty new to you, NotebookLM will help you uncover some interesting insights.

    2. Create one main notebook and then identify topic-based notebooks from there

    Steven suggests keeping what he calls an “everything notebook,” which you load up with sources that include the general knowledge you work with most days. The sources might be inspirational quotes from books you read, or the core documents that describe the company you work for, or all your brainstorming ideas that you’ve captured over the years. “I do a lot of open-ended thinking and exploring of ideas in my ‘everything’ notebook,” Steven says. But it’s equally important to create topic- or project-based notebooks as well. “I’ve got a notebook devoted exclusively to the work we do building NotebookLM,” Steven explains. “It’s got all the press releases, new feature descriptions and important internal docs we write as a team.” By keeping all those related sources in a single notebook, Steven effectively has a personalized AI that’s almost like having another member of the team. “I can go in there and type something like, ‘Draft the outline of a blog post for that feature we were discussing last week,’ and Notebook knows exactly what to do.”

    3. Use NotebookLM to connect the dots from different materials

    NotebookLM is extremely useful for situations where you need to manage, connect and synthesize information from multiple sources. “We all have this problem where we’re working on something, and the information we need is scattered across desktop folders, tabs and wherever else,” Steven says. This is what NotebookLM is made for, he explains: connecting all those scattered dots.

    It can be especially helpful as a next step after using Gemini and Gems. After you brainstorm or have other open-ended conversations in those tools, NotebookLM can take the results and turn them into something easy to follow. Steven offers the example of working on a slide deck. Maybe you start the process by brainstorming with Gemini, which leads you to open a few tabs of articles, save some design inspo images and put some notes in a Google doc. You can then feed all of that into NotebookLM, which will synthesize the information into an easy-to-digest format so you can reference everything in one place when you get to the stage of building your presentation in Google Slides.

    4. Start with the suggested questions

    Once you’ve added content to NotebookLM, it’s time to start asking questions — which might leave you stumped. Similarly to tips we shared about using the Gemini-powered side panel in Workspace tools, Steven says NotebookLM’s suggested questions are a great resource. “The model will actually help you ask questions that guide you through the material for a while until you think of something you want to ask,” he explains. You can find some starter questions in the “Notebook Guide” that appears after you upload your first sources. Plus, when you start asking questions, NotebookLM will suggest follow-up queries, too, based on what you’ve already asked and what you uploaded.

    5. Ask NotebookLM to deliver info in different ways

    Something that came out of early testing, Steven says, was the need for NotebookLM to show information in various formats. “Everyone processes information differently, or even just prefers to see information presented in different ways,” he explains. Using the Notebook Guide feature, NotebookLM can turn your uploaded content into an FAQ, a briefing document, a timeline, a table of contents, a study guide — or the popular new Audio Overview, which actually transforms your information into an engaging conversation between two AI “hosts.” Try different options both to see what works best for your own learning purposes as well as for presenting information to others.

    6. Don’t shy away from creative uses

    NotebookLM is an amazing resource for work and school projects (the team actually just launched a pilot program for NotebookLM Business for collaborating within a workplace). But it’s also a great tool for lots of creative uses outside the office or classroom. “We’re seeing a lot of people using it for assistance with writing fantasy and sci-fi novels or developing games where they’re working on world building and intricate backstories,” Steven says. Maybe for your screenplay, you jotted down some notes in a doc, saved various webpages and took photos and videos as inspiration. “There’s all of this information that can be hard to keep straight,” Steven says. “You can put all of that stuff into a single notebook and ask things like, ‘What was the deal with that one character?’ Or ‘Remind me which characters live where?’”

    Steven particularly likes that you can ask NotebookLM for creative input with questions like, “Which characters do you think are most compelling?” or, “What are your favorite parts?” “It’s like being able to control F for ‘interestingness’!” he says.

    7. Turn your sources into Audio Overviews

    You should definitely turn each of those 10 documents you start with, or whatever else you upload, into an Audio Overview, Steven says. “After waiting a few minutes for it to generate, you will have a very entertaining, kind of mind-blowing audio conversation about whatever you uploaded!” Steven says. And the team has just released a new feature in Audio Overviews that allows you to adjust the format of the conversation. Just hit “Customize” in the Audio Overviews panel and enter a short description of what you want the hosts to focus on from your sources. “You can also steer them in terms of the approach of the level of sophistication you want from the Overview,” Steven explains. “I’ve been uploading my own writing and asking them to give me constructive criticism about my work.”

    8. Revisit your NotebookLM chat sessions

    NotebookLM makes it easy to save anything interesting that comes up during your text chats with the AI, just by hitting the “save to note” button in every text exchange. Steven recommends another option as well. “Let’s say you have a conversation about one of your notebooks — you ask questions and then follow-up questions, and you even ask it to refine your idea,” Steven says. You don’t want to lose whatever progress you made or insights you gathered during that dialogue. “At the end of the chat, you can ask NotebookLM to summarize the key points from the conversation into a single note that goes in that notebook,” Steven explains. “That way,” he says, “Future You will thank Past You — and NotebookLM — for making it as easy as possible to pick up where you left off.”

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Speech: PM speech in Berlin: 18 October 2024

    Source: United Kingdom – Prime Minister’s Office 10 Downing Street

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer makes a speech in Berlin.

    Location:
    Berlin
    Delivered on:
    (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)

    I’ve just had a very productive meeting with President Biden, Chancellor Scholz, and President Macron. 

    We focused on two issues.

    Firstly, the situation in the Middle East.

    Let me start by saying that no one should mourn the death of the Hamas Leader Sinwar.

    On his hands is the blood of innocent Israelis.

    Killed on the 7th of October and over years of terror.

    And also the blood of the Palestinian people.

    Who suffered in the chaos and violence that he sought and celebrated.

    We continue to support Israel’s right to self-defence.

    Particularly in the face of the attacks by the Iranian regime. 

    Allies will keep working together.

    To de-escalate across the region. 

    Because we know there is no military-only solution here.

    The answer is diplomacy.

    And now we must make the most of this moment. 

    What is needed now is a ceasefire in Gaza.

    The immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

    Immediate access for humanitarian aid.

    And a return to the path towards the two-state solution.

    As the only way to deliver long-term peace and security. 

    The dire humanitarian situation cannot continue. 

    And I say once again to Israel, the world will not tolerate any more excuses on humanitarian assistance. 

    Civilians in northern Gaza need food, now.

    The UK strongly supports UNRWA in the vital work it does in Gaza, across the OPTs and the region.

    UNRWA must be allowed to continue its life saving support.

    The suffering must end, including in Lebanon, where we need a ceasefire to implement a political plan based on UN resolution 1701.

    That empowers the Lebanese Armed Forces.

    Strengthens UNIFIL.

    And allows communities on both sides of the border to return to their homes.

    That delivers humanitarian and economic support to the people of Lebanon.

    Supports democracy and bolsters the Lebanese State.

    Second, we discussed the war in Ukraine.

    Building on the conversation I had with President Zelenskyy at Downing Street last week. 

    We remain united in our support for Ukraine.

    We have always said that it is for the Ukrainian people to decide their own future.

    So we’re clear, together with President Zelenskyy, that the only acceptable outcome is a sovereign Ukraine, and a just peace. 

    We want to see Ukraine thriving and secure.

    And we’ll work together to make it happen. 

    And while the situation is incredibly tough.

    It’s also true that Russia is getting weaker.

    This war is soaking up 40% of their budget. 

    Last month Russia suffered the highest daily casualty rate so far.

    So we discussed how to speed up our support for Ukraine.  

    And the UK is delivering. 

    95% of the equipment that we promised to fast track in July is now in Ukrainian hands.

    And together with the G7 we’re working to send $50 billion of further support to Ukraine.

    Drawn from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets. 

    So as Ukraine enters a difficult winter it’s important to say.

    We’re with you.

    We’re absolutely united in our resolve.

    And we’ll back Ukraine for as long as it takes.

    Updates to this page

    Published 18 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Camden County Man Pleads Guilty to Violent Armed Robberies of Three Corner Stores in Philadelphia’s Kensington Section

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (c)

    PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jared Stanley, 32, of Lindenwold, New Jersey, entered a plea of guilty on Friday, October 11, 2024, before United States District Court Judge John F. Murphy to three counts of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of carrying, using, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in connection with the armed robberies of three corner stores in Philadelphia’s Kensington section.

    Stanley committed all three robberies during a two-week span in late January and early February of this year.

    On January 21, 2024, the defendant entered the Birch Mini-Market, located at 2001 East Birch Street. He approached the counter, pointed a gun at the cashier, and demanded money. When the cashier didn’t understand him, Stanley started screaming at them. He repeatedly hit the cashier in the head with the gun, stole approximately $550 from the register, and fled.

    On January 28, 2024, Stanley and an unidentified co-conspirator entered the Capricorno Grocery, located at 2000 East Orleans Street. Stanley walked to the employee area of the store, displayed a firearm, grabbed the employee by the shirt and forcibly pulled him away, pistol whipped him repeatedly, and stood guard over him while his accomplice went back to the register and stole approximately $500.

    On February 2, 2024, Stanley and an unidentified co-conspirator entered Bonifacios Grocery, located at 3052 Frankford Avenue. They pushed an employee to the cash register, told him to get on the ground and then pistol whipped him in the head. Stanley and his accomplice then stole approximately $500 from the cash register and fled the store on foot.

    Stanley is scheduled to be sentenced on January 29, 2025. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison and a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment, five years of supervised release, a $1,250,000 fine, and a $500 special assessment.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

    The case was investigated by the FBI and the Philadelphia Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: PM speech in Berlin: 18 October 2024

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer makes a speech in Berlin.

    Location:
    Berlin
    Delivered on:
    (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered)

    I’ve just had a very productive meeting with President Biden, Chancellor Scholz, and President Macron. 

    We focused on two issues.

    Firstly, the situation in the Middle East.

    Let me start by saying that no one should mourn the death of the Hamas Leader Sinwar.

    On his hands is the blood of innocent Israelis.

    Killed on the 7th of October and over years of terror.

    And also the blood of the Palestinian people.

    Who suffered in the chaos and violence that he sought and celebrated.

    We continue to support Israel’s right to self-defence.

    Particularly in the face of the attacks by the Iranian regime. 

    Allies will keep working together.

    To de-escalate across the region. 

    Because we know there is no military-only solution here.

    The answer is diplomacy.

    And now we must make the most of this moment. 

    What is needed now is a ceasefire in Gaza.

    The immediate and unconditional release of all hostages.

    Immediate access for humanitarian aid.

    And a return to the path towards the two-state solution.

    As the only way to deliver long-term peace and security. 

    The dire humanitarian situation cannot continue. 

    And I say once again to Israel, the world will not tolerate any more excuses on humanitarian assistance. 

    Civilians in northern Gaza need food, now.

    The UK strongly supports UNRWA in the vital work it does in Gaza, across the OPTs and the region.

    UNRWA must be allowed to continue its life saving support.

    The suffering must end, including in Lebanon, where we need a ceasefire to implement a political plan based on UN resolution 1701.

    That empowers the Lebanese Armed Forces.

    Strengthens UNIFIL.

    And allows communities on both sides of the border to return to their homes.

    That delivers humanitarian and economic support to the people of Lebanon.

    Supports democracy and bolsters the Lebanese State.

    Second, we discussed the war in Ukraine.

    Building on the conversation I had with President Zelenskyy at Downing Street last week. 

    We remain united in our support for Ukraine.

    We have always said that it is for the Ukrainian people to decide their own future.

    So we’re clear, together with President Zelenskyy, that the only acceptable outcome is a sovereign Ukraine, and a just peace. 

    We want to see Ukraine thriving and secure.

    And we’ll work together to make it happen. 

    And while the situation is incredibly tough.

    It’s also true that Russia is getting weaker.

    This war is soaking up 40% of their budget. 

    Last month Russia suffered the highest daily casualty rate so far.

    So we discussed how to speed up our support for Ukraine.  

    And the UK is delivering. 

    95% of the equipment that we promised to fast track in July is now in Ukrainian hands.

    And together with the G7 we’re working to send $50 billion of further support to Ukraine.

    Drawn from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets. 

    So as Ukraine enters a difficult winter it’s important to say.

    We’re with you.

    We’re absolutely united in our resolve.

    And we’ll back Ukraine for as long as it takes.

    Updates to this page

    Published 18 October 2024

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Windsor — West Hants RCMP arrest youth after threats made

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    West Hants RCMP Detachment has arrested a youth after they uttered threats toward other youths at a high school.

    On October 16, at approximately 5:40 p.m., West Hants RCMP received a report that a youth told other youths about plans to bring a weapon to school the following day and target specific students.

    Officers immediately followed up with witnesses then attended a residence later that evening and arrested a youth. The investigating officers also executed a search warrant at a residence and seized a firearm and two replica firearms, as well as other evidence relevant to the investigation.

    “Safety concerns for schools, such as threats, are taken seriously and investigated thoroughly,” says Cst. Richard Collins, School Safety Resource Officer at West Hants RCMP Detachment. “I’m glad the witnesses who heard these threats were brave enough to talk about them with people they trust because it allowed us to take steps that may have prevented potential violence from taking place.”

    The youth, who will face charges of Uttering Threats, was released on conditions pending an appearance in Windsor Provincial Court on December 6.

    The investigation is ongoing and is being led by the West Hants RCMP.

    File #: 2024-1530161

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Delaware Man Sentenced to More Than 23 Years in Prison for Two Violent Delco Carjackings

    Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (c)

    PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Keenan Righter, 21, of New Castle, Delaware, was sentenced yesterday by United States District Court Chief Judge Mitchell S. Goldberg to 280 months in prison, five years of supervised release, restitution of $1,919, and a $500 assessment, in connection with two armed carjackings in Delaware County in January of 2023.

    Righter was convicted by a jury in May of conspiracy, two counts of carjacking, and two counts of using or carrying a firearm during a crime of violence arising from his role in the two carjacking incidents. Codefendant Jamar Miller pleaded guilty to these offenses in March of 2023 and is awaiting sentencing.

    On January 14, 2023, at approximately 9 p.m., Righter and others drove in Miller’s car to a Wawa on Route 322 in Upper Chichester Township, Delaware County. Righter and another male then ambushed a 23-year-old college student who was walking to his car after leaving the store. The men, each brandishing firearms and wearing masks to disguise their identities, demanded the victim’s vehicle at gunpoint. They pistol-whipped the victim in the back of the head and fled the scene in the victim’s car.

    On January 24, 2023, at approximately 1:30 a.m., Righter and another male drove in Miller’s car to a Wawa on Edgmont Avenue in Brookhaven, Delaware County. Again, they wore masks and carried firearms as they carjacked a 33-year-old victim at gunpoint in the parking lot of the Wawa. The men pistol-whipped the victim multiple times in the head with a firearm as they stole his belongings and fled the scene in his car.

    The defendant was apprehended after an intensive investigation by FBI Philadelphia’s Newtown Square Resident Agency, in conjunction with the Brookhaven and Upper Chichester Police Departments. Digital forensic evidence and more linked the defendant to both carjackings.

    “Imagine the shock of being violently ambushed on a Wawa run, of all things,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Keenan Righter targeted and terrorized total strangers, just to steal their cars. Armed criminals who think they can victimize innocent people with impunity should take a good hard look at 21-year-old Mr. Righter’s 23-year prison sentence. Keep doing what you’re doing, and you’ll earn your own long stay in one of our federal facilities.”  

    “Such brazen and senseless acts, like the ones in this case, not only devastate the victims but our community at large,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “This sentencing exemplifies the value of partnerships in combatting violent crime. Our office will continue to work alongside our local law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to keep violent offenders off the streets and ensure our neighborhoods are a safer place to live.”

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

    The case was investigated by the FBI, the Brookhaven Police Department, and Upper Chichester Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorneys Brian Doherty and Branwen McNabb O’Donnell.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Chairman McCaul Calls on President Biden to Fully Enforce Mandatory 21st Century Peace through Strength Act Sanctions

    Source: US House Committee on Foreign Affairs

    Media Contact 202-226-8467

    San Francisco, Calif. — House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul sent a letter to President Biden urging him to implement mandatory sanctions against U.S. adversaries under McCaul’s bipartisan 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act. Despite the grave and growing threat Russia, China, and Iran pose to U.S. national security interests, the Biden-Harris administration has not issued a single sanctions designation under the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act since it was signed into law as part of the national security supplemental in April of 2024. 

    “I call on you to provide additional resources, including detailed staff, to the Departments of Treasury and State for the specific purpose of immediate and robust implementation of the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act to counter Iran, Russia, and China. The world is on fire; we cannot lose another day to hesitation, appeasement, and weakness.”

    The full text of the letter can be here and found below:

    Dear President Biden,

    The United States, our allies, and our partners are facing unprecedented threats from Iran, Russia, and China. Last year, the Biden-Harris administration requested supplemental funding to respond to our adversaries and assist our allies. Congress appropriated the funding and mandated additional policy changes, including sanctions and export controls, that would counter these generational threats.

    Nearly six months later, the Biden-Harris administration has failed to implement these requirements while our enemies are on the march. During this delay, Iran launched another major ballistic missile attack on Israel, transferred ballistic missiles to Russia, and supported its terrorist proxies; Iran-backed Hamas murdered hostages, including American Hersh Goldberg-Polin; and China continued to purchase Iranian oil and support Russia’s defense industrial base.

    The administration has not issued a single sanctions designation under the bipartisan 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act (Public Law 118-50) enacted alongside the supplemental appropriations law. Even worse, the White House dragged its feet on delegating the authorities to the agencies. When Congress enacted the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act in 2017, President Trump delegated authorities less than two months later. By contrast, it took you almost five months to delegate the authorities in the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act, significantly delaying vital actions to weaken our adversaries.

    I call on you to provide additional resources, including detailed staff, to the Departments of Treasury and State for the specific purpose of immediate and robust implementation of the 21st Century Peace Through Strength Act to counter Iran, Russia, and China. The world is on fire; we cannot lose another day to hesitation, appeasement, and weakness.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: FEMA advises You to Check Your Furnace

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: FEMA advises You to Check Your Furnace

    FEMA advises You to Check Your Furnace

    HARRISBURG, Pa. — The weather might be crisp and lovely right now, but Pennsylvania’s fierce winter winds and snow are on their way. Before it gets icy, take this time to check your furnace and any other appliances that might have been damaged in the August 9-10 flooding that came with Tropical Storm Debby. If your furnace isn’t working and it isn’t covered by your insurance, you may be eligible to receive help from FEMA to repair or even replace it.  

    Assistance from FEMA is limited to only owner-occupied primary homes, not vacation homes or second homes. In addition, home repair assistance is available to homeowners only for uninsured or underinsured disaster-damaged items that make your home safe, sanitary, secure and inhabitable. Households with damage to essential living spaces in a basement – including garden apartments – may also be eligible for FEMA assistance to help cover those losses.  

    When you apply for assistance, be sure to indicate the furnace and other essential electrical appliances damaged during the summertime disaster. If you have already repaired or replaced the furnace, be prepared to provide FEMA with valid estimates or receipts.  

    If you discover your heating systems need replacing after you have already received a FEMA grant, you can use the FEMA appeals process to request additional assistance. To learn more about the process, visit www.fema.gov/assistance/individual/after-applying/appeals. 

    If you have yet to apply for FEMA assistance, go online to www.DisasterAssistance.gov, call 800-621-3362, or use the FEMA App on your phone. If you use a video relay service or captioned telephone service. give FEMA your number for the service. And for in-person assistance, visit a Disaster Recovery Center. The registration deadline is November 12, 2024. 

    For more information on Pennsylvania’s disaster recovery, visit the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Facebook page, fema.gov/disaster/4815 and facebook.com/FEMA.  

    ###

    FEMA’s mission is helping people before, during, and after disasters. FEMA Region 3’s jurisdiction includes Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. Follow us on X at x.com/FEMAregion3 and on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/femaregion3

    Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency, or economic status. If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call FEMA toll-free at 833-285-7448. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA the number for that service. Multilingual operators are available (press 2 for Spanish and 3 for other languages).

    erika.osullivan

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Government of Canada announces $3 million in funding to support tourism recovery in Jasper and the region

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    Jasper is one of Canada’s most iconic destinations, treasured by Canadians and renowned around the world.

    October 18, 2024 – Jasper, Alberta

    Jasper is one of Canada’s most iconic destinations, treasured by Canadians and renowned around the world. With its proximity to majestic mountains and clear blue lakes, Jasper draws over two million visitors from across Canada and around the world every year. This summer’s wildfires had a devastating impact on Jasper and the region’s economy, which is built on tourism. That’s why the Government of Canada is taking action to support Jasper’s recovery and help its tourism industry come back strong.

    The Honourable Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, alongside Marsha Walden, President and CEO of Destination Canada, the Honourable Joseph Schow, Alberta Minister of Tourism and Sport, Richard Ireland, Mayor of the Municipality of Jasper, David Goldstein, CEO of Travel Alberta, and Tyler Riopel, CEO of Tourism Jasper, today announced $3 million in support from the Government of Canada to help Jasper and the region’s tourism industry recover, rebuild and retake its place on the world stage. This is made possible through collaboration between Destination Canada and Travel Alberta, which are integrating their marketing strategies to showcase one of Canada’s most sought-after experiences.

    Key marketing initiatives delivered by Destination Canada include:

    • investing in Destination Canada-led seasonal marketing campaigns, in collaboration with Travel Alberta, with a focus on the United States—Canada’s top international arrivals market;
    • co-investing in opportunities for targeted Destination Canada-led marketing programs in additional key markets such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Australia and Mexico;
    • hosting Canada’s largest global tourism media event in Jasper in September 2025, which will be organized in collaboration with Travel Aberta and Tourism Jasper and will serve as a platform to foster relationships between over 80 top-tier travel media outlets from around the world and Canadian tourism industry representatives; and
    • leveraging Destination Canada’s $50 million International Convention Attraction Fund.     

    These important investments build on significant support for Jasper already announced by the Government of Canada. This began with calling in the Canadian Armed Forces to fight the wildfires in July. As Jasper began to recover, the government matched donations and ensured local residents received the benefits and services they needed. As the town started rebuilding, the government quickly made changes to put the municipality in charge of the effort. This work is being directed by a special cabinet committee, led by the Honourable Randy Boissonnault. 

    Today’s announcement followed Minister Ferrada and Minister Schow’s co-hosting of the annual Canadian Council of Tourism Ministers meeting in Banff, Alberta and subsequent tour of the region. At the meeting, federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for tourism discussed challenges facing the tourism sector and cross-governmental opportunities to support its growth.

    Marie-Justine Torres
    Press Secretary
    Office of the Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
    marie-justine.torresames@ised-isde.gc.ca
    613-327-5918

    Media Relations
    Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
    media@ised-isde.gc.ca

    For easy access to government programs for businesses, download the Canada Business app.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Jayapal, Lee Statement on Death of Yahya Sinwar

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (7th District of Washington)

    WASHINGTON —U.S. Representatives Barbara Lee (CA-12) and Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement regarding the death of terrorist Yahya Sinwar:

    “Yahya Sinwar was the leader of Hamas who planned the brutal October 7 terrorist attack. His death should provide new opportunities to work towards peace in the Middle East. As we have maintained from the very beginning of this war, a ceasefire and hostage deal is key to resolving this conflict. Both sides should use this opportunity to agree to President Biden’s proposal for a ceasefire, and immediately reunite surviving hostages with their families.

    “History shows that the death of a terrorist leader does not necessarily mean the end of violence – it will only lead to peace and security if the strategy includes smart, principled, and tough diplomacy.”  

    Issues: Foreign Affairs & National Security

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney Office for Eastern District of Kentucky Observes Domestic Violence Awareness Month

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    LEXINGTON, Ky.— The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky commemorates and emphasizes Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM) this October, by reaffirming its unwavering commitment to supporting survivors, raising awareness, and promoting justice for those affected by domestic violence.

    DVAM serves as a crucial opportunity to shed light on the profound impacts of domestic violence and emphasize the importance of collective action.  Each year, millions of individuals are impacted by intimate partner violence, and far too many families endure the tragic consequences of domestic abuse.  The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that survivors are heard, perpetrators are held accountable, and to strengthening partnerships with communities to prevent domestic violence.

    This year’s commemoration of DVAM is special because it also marks the 30th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act.  In 1994, the passage of this landmark, bipartisan legislation transformed the way our nation addresses domestic and dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, by increasing protections for survivors, providing critical federal resources to support a coordinated community response to these crimes, and awarding grants at the local, state, territory, Tribal, and national levels.

    “Domestic violence accumulates a massive toll, not only on its victims, but also on the friends, families, and communities that surround them,” said Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky.  “Home is where people go to feel safe and secure, not where fear, abuse, and violence should engulf their lives.  We remain committed to doing our part to combat this destructive threat, to making our communities safer, and to holding people responsible for these shameful acts of violence and abuse.”

    Domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking can have long-lasting impacts and consequences, and survivors in underserved communities are disproportionately impacted due to the lack of resources or barriers to accessing services.  DVAM provides an opportunity to spread awareness about domestic violence and encourage everyone to play a role in ending gender-based violence.

    We also encourage everyone to learn more about domestic violence and take steps to support friends, family, co-workers, and neighbors who may be affected.  By understanding the signs of abuse, providing a safe space for survivors, and connecting them to available resources, we can all play a role in creating safer communities.

    Victims of domestic violence deserve safety, dignity, and justice.  We are committed to prosecuting those who violate federal laws, collaborating with local law enforcement and prosecutors to identify domestic violence offenders who violate federal firearms prohibitions, and ensuring survivors have access to the resources they need for safety and healing.  Together, we can bring hope to those in need and build a future free from domestic violence.  For more information on Domestic Violence Awareness Month or to access to local resources, please visit https://www.sos.ky.gov/safe-at-home/Pages/Survivor-Resources.aspx

    — END —

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Orlando Man Indicted For Arson Resulting In Injury At Inter&Co Stadium

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Giovanni Isai Ramirez Reyes (37, Orlando) with arson of a building that led to personal injuries. If convicted, Ramirez Reyes faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 7 years, up to 40 years, in federal prison.

    According to court documents and information provided during a hearing, Ramirez Reyes lit two flares and threw them into the crowd during a soccer match on February 24, 2024, at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The flares produced a larger fire that damaged the stadium and caused burns to a child attending the match.

    An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

    This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Orlando Police Department, and the Orlando Fire Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam J. Nate.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Hyannis Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Being a Felon in Possession

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    BOSTON – A Hyannis man was sentenced yesterday for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Specifically, the defendant possessed and sold a Chinese SKS .762 caliber rifle.    

    Ryan Diefenbach, 33, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Judge William G. Young to six years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. In July 2024, Diefenbach pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. In November 2022, Diefenbach, along with co-defendant Donnell Pina, was indicted by a federal grand jury.

    In September 2021, Diefenbach, and allegedly Pina, sold a Chinese SKS .762 caliber rifle to a confidential informant in Hyannis. Due to previous felony convictions, including prior convictions for carrying a firearm without a license, unlawfully possessing a firearm, possessing a firearm with a defaced serial number and assault with a dangerous weapon, Diefenbach was prohibited from possessing firearms.

    At the time Diefenbach committed the offense, the charge of being a felon in possession provided for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.

    Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Field Division made the announcement today. Assistant United States Attorney Elianna J. Nuzum of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.  

    Pina is scheduled to plead guilty on Nov. 21, 2024.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun violence and other violent crime, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.  For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

    The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
     

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Scientist Profile: Jacquelyn Shuman Blazes New Trails in Fire Science

    Source: NASA

    Jacquelyn Shuman, FireSense Project Scientist at NASA Ames Research Center, originally wanted to be a veterinarian. By the time she got to college, Shuman had switched interests to biology, which became a job teaching middle and high school science. Teaching pivoted to finance for a year, before Shuman returned to the science world to pursue a PhD.
    It was in a forest ecology class taught by her future PhD advisor, Herman “Hank” Shugart, that she first discovered a passion for ecosystems and dynamic vegetation that led her into the world of fire science, and eventually to NASA Ames.
    While Shuman’s path into the world of fire science was not a direct one, she views her diverse experiences as the key to finding a fulfilling career. “Do a lot of different things and try a lot of different things, and if one thing isn’t connecting with you, then do something different,” Shuman said.

    Shuman’s PhD program focused on boreal forest dynamics across Russia, examining how the forest changes in response to climate change and wildfire. During her research, she worked mainly with scientists from Russia, Canada, and the US through the Northern Eurasia Earth Science Partnership Initiative (NEESPI), where Shugart served as the NEESPI Chief Scientist. “The experience of having a highly supportive mentor, being a part of the NEESPI community, and working alongside other inspiring female scientists from across the globe helped me to stay motivated within my own research,” Shuman said.
    After completing her PhD, Shuman wanted to become involved in collaborative science with a global impact, which led her to the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). There, she spent seven years working as a project scientist on the Next Generation Ecosystem Experiment NGEE-Tropics) on a dynamic vegetation model project called FATES (Functionally Assembled Terrestrial Ecosystem Simulator). As part of the FATES team, Shuman used computer modeling to test vegetation structure and function in tropical and boreal forests after wildfires, and was the lead developer for updating the fire portion of the model.

    Fire has also played a powerful role in Shuman’s personal life. In 2021, the Marshall Fire destroyed neighborhoods near her hometown of Boulder, Colorado, causing over $513 million of damage and securing its place as the state’s most destructive wildfire. Despite this, Shuman is determined to not live in fear. “Fire is part of our lives, it’s a part of the Earth system, and it’s something we can plan for. We can live more sustainably with fires.” The way to live safely in a fire-inclusive ecosystem, according to Shuman, is to develop ways to accurately track and forecast wildfires and smoke, and to respond to them efficiently: efforts the fire community is continuously working on improving.

    Collaboration is a critical element of wildland fire management. Fire science is a field that involves practitioners such as firefighters and land managers, but also researchers such as modelers and forecasters; the most effective efforts, according to Shuman, come when this community works together. “People in fire science might be out in the field and carrying a drip torch and marching along in the hilltops and the grasslands or be behind a computer and analyzing remote sensing data,” Shuman said. “We need both pieces.”
    Protecting communities from wildfire impacts is one of the most fulfilling aspects of Shuman’s career, and a goal that unites this community. “Fire research poses tough questions, but the people who are thinking about this are the people who are acting on it,” Shuman said. “They are saying, ‘What can we do? How can we think about this? What information do we need? What are the questions?’ It’s a special community to be a part of.”

    Currently at NASA Ames Research Center, Shuman is the Project Scientist for FireSense: a project focused on delivering NASA science and technology to practitioners and operational agencies. Shuman acts as the lead for the project office, identifying and implementing tools and strategies. Shuman still does ecosystem modeling work, including implementing vegetation models that forecast the impact of fire, but also spends time traveling to active fires across the country so she can help partners implement NASA tools and strategies in real time.

    “Right now, many different communities are all recognizing that we can partner to identify the best path forward,” Shuman said. “We have an opportunity to use everyone’s strengths and unique perspectives. It can be a devastating thing for a community and an ecosystem when a fire happens. Everyone is interested in using all this collective knowledge to do more, together.”
    Written by Molly Medin, NASA Ames Research Center

    MIL OSI USA News –