Daily Archives: December 9, 2014

US, NATO Shut Down Afghan Combat HQ After 13 Years

Posted: December 9, 2014 at 5:49 am

Provided by IBT US Obama US combat role Afghanistan

Thirteen years after invading Afghanistan, U.S. and NATO forces have closed their combat headquarters Monday amid fresh attacks in the country from a resurgent Taliban. The first of two ceremonies marked the final month of formal NATO and U.S. combat missions in the country, which will officially cease on Dec. 31.

However, at the request of the Afghan government, U.S. troops will continue to target al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters into 2015 as a force of 13,000 coalition troops remains past the turn of the year. That's less than 10 percent of the 140,000 soldiers at the peak of involvement in 2011.

War operations typically slow down greatly or even cease altogether during the harsh Afghan winters, but the campaign of bombing by the Taliban rather than military attacks on enemy soldiers may keep going this winter. "I don't think the war will slow or stop during the winter, as attacks on cities are not contingent on the weather," Afghan political analyst Wahid Muzhdah said, as quoted by the Associated Press. "I believe attacks in the cities will increase -- they attract media attention."

When U.S. and NATO forces first began combat operations in Afghanistan in October 2001 in the wake of the September 11 attacks in the U.S., the sitting Taliban government and military was quickly beaten back, and U.S.-led coalition forces were able to take over control over much of the country. But as the Iraq war began one and half years later, attention pivoted away from Afghanistan, allowing a militant insurgency operating on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border to grow. That Taliban insurgency is now threatening to beat back the Western troops and the Afghan forces they trained, which risksdestabilizingmuch of what was achieved in the previous 13 years.

To that end, the 10,800 U.S. troops plus NATO allies that will remain in Afghanistan beyond the turn of the year have been authorized to launch attacks against the Taliban and al-Qaeda using ground forces and air support as necessary. New Afghan president Ashraf Ghani has also lifted a ban allowing the U.S. to conduct night raids, something that was not allowed under the previous presidency.

By the end of 2015, U.S. troop presence will be cut in half to 5,500 before hitting near zero by Christmas 2016.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, told the AP that the group would continue to fight until Afghanistan was clear of all foreign troops.

"The Americans want to extend their mission in Afghanistan, the motive being to keep the war going for as long as possible," he said. "And for as long as they do, the Taliban will continue their fight against the foreign and (Afghan) government forces."

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US, NATO Shut Down Afghan Combat HQ After 13 Years

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Rand Paul Battles CBS Hosts Over Necessity Of NSA Snooping ‘They Put You In Jail If You Complain’ – Video

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Rand Paul Battles CBS Hosts Over Necessity Of NSA Snooping #39;They Put You In Jail If You Complain #39;
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Rand Paul Battles CBS Hosts Over Necessity Of NSA Snooping 'They Put You In Jail If You Complain' - Video

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‘NSA criminals, surveillance not part of my America’ Pete Ashdown – Video

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#39;NSA criminals, surveillance not part of my America #39; Pete Ashdown
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The National Security Agency (a.k.a. the NSA) – Video

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The National Security Agency (a.k.a. the NSA)
The National Security Agency (a.k.a. the NSA) A summary of the many recent revelations about the spying incident of the National Security Agency (a.k.a. the NSA). In this video you #39;ll also...

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NSA spying on foreign leaders What did the President know about, and when – Video

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NSA spying on foreign leaders What did the President know about, and when
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Obama was unaware NSA was spying on allies, White House says – Video

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Obama was unaware NSA was spying on allies, White House says
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US court extends NSA surveillance rules in current form

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A U.S. secret court has extended the authorization of the National Security Agency to continue surveillance of phone records in its current form, after a reform bill ran into difficulties in the Senate.

Besides stopping the NSA from collecting bulk phone records of Americans from phone companies, the USA Freedom Act aimed to restrict access of the NSA to these records by requiring the use of targeted selection terms.

It also has a provision for the appointment of a special advocate tasked with promoting privacy interests in closed proceedings in the secret court.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court has reauthorized the NSA program for another 90 days at a request from the government, according to a statement Monday by the offices of the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence. The order expires on Feb. 27 next year.

In the wake of revelations by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden that the government was collecting bulk phone metadata of Americans from Verizon, President Barack Obama announced reforms to the program earlier this year, including a plan to stop NSA from collecting and holding the data from operators in bulk.

Obama instructed that other than in an emergency, phone metadata could only be queried after a judicial finding that there was a reasonable, articulable suspicion that the selection term was linked to an approved international terrorist organization. He also directed that the query results must be limited to associated metadata within two hops, or connections, from the selection term instead of the earlier three. The two changes to the program have been made since February this year, according to officials.

For the plan that the phone records data should stay with telephone companies, Obama said the necessary legislation would be required. Last month, the USA Freedom Act ran into difficulties in the Senate, and could not be moved towards a final vote. The setback could delay any NSA reform until next year.

Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Patrick Leahy, the sponsor of the bill and a Democrat from Vermont, last week said Obama could end the NSAs dragnet collection of phone records once and for all by not asking for reauthorization of the program by the FISC.

Doing so would not be a substitute for comprehensive surveillance reform legislationbut it would be an important first step, Leahy said in a statement.

Obama had in November urged the Senate to pass the USA Freedom Act and officials in the administration, including Attorney General Eric Holder and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, also backed it.

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NSA Accused Of Spying On Cellphone Carriers To Find Security Exploits

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December 8, 2014

Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

US National Security Agency (NSA) employees spent years monitoring domestic and international companies to find security vulnerabilities that could be exploited for surveillance purposes, according to new reports originating from documents obtained by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

Ryan Gallagher of The Intercept, who first broke the story, said that the program was codenamed Auroragold and also detailed how the agency planned to secretly introduce new flaws into communication systems that it could tap into but which experts said would also have made the general public more susceptible to hackers in the process.

The covert operation has monitored the content of messages sent and received by more than 1,200 email accounts associated with major cellphone network operators, intercepting confidential company planning papers that help the NSA hack into phone networks, Gallagher said.

One high-profile surveillance target is the GSM Association (GSMA), an influential UK-headquartered trade group that works closely with large US-based firms including Microsoft, Facebook, AT&T, and Cisco, and is currently being funded by the U.S. government to develop privacy-enhancing technologies, he added.

CNET technology columnist Don Reisinger said the NSA targeted IR.21 documents, which highlight new technologies and encryption methods used by mobile carriers, and Chris Johnston of The Guardian said that the documents reveal that the agency targeted meetings held by the trade association.

Cryptographer and cellphone security expert Karsten Nohl told Gallagher that information contained in the Auroragold documents provide hints that the volume and broad scope of data collected as part of the operation suggests the intent was to make sure that the overwhelming majority of mobile networks worldwide were NSA accessible.

Collecting an inventory [like this] on world networks has big ramifications, Nohl said, because it allows the agency to monitor and work around improvements in encryption technology cell providers utilize to protect calls and text messages from eavesdropping.

He added that evidence suggesting the NSA was deliberately attempting to weaken mobile communication infrastructure was especially alarming, since those vulnerabilities could be exploited by anyone, not just the NSA. The files also reveal that the NSA basically had unfettered access to the infrastructure of roughly 700 global wireless carriers as of May 2012, Engadgets Chris Velazco added.

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NSA warrantless bulk phone metadata spying continues unabated

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The NSA's bulk phone metadata spying program was renewed for another 90 days, the fourth time the warrantless snooping has been reauthorized following President Barack Obama promising reform last January, the government said Monday.

That means the nation's telecoms will continue forwarding a database to the government that includes the phone numbers of all calls, the international mobile subscriber identity number of mobile callers, the calling card numbers used in calls, and the time and duration of those calls to and from the United States. Whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed the program 18 months ago, but the numerouscalls for reform sincehave fallen on deaf ears.

The renewal comes the same day that the government defended the program's constitutionality before a federal appeals court. The case before the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals is one of three lawsuits challenging the program. Ultimately, the issue could reach the Supreme Court, perhaps as early as next year. Also, legislation the government says authorizes the intelligence program expires in June.

In January, Obama slightly reined in the bulk telephone metadata program. He ordered the nations spies to get approval from the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to search the metadata database under a "reasonable articulable standard" that a target is associated with terrorism. (A probable-cause standard continues to be lacking, however.)Obama also dramatically reduced the number of associated calling records connected to the original target that the NSA may analyzefrom three hops to two. Future presidential administrations, however, are not bound by Obama's changes.

Still, Obama punted any other reform measures to Congress. The Senate last month defeated a measure that, among other things, would have stripped the government of its unfettered access to the metadata database and would have kept the metadata in the hands of the telcos.

"The Administration welcomes the opportunity to work with the new Congress to implement the changes the President has called for. Given that legislation has not yet been enacted, and given the importance of maintaining the capabilities of the telephony metadata program, the government has sought a 90-day reauthorization of the existing program, as modified by the changes the President directed in January," the government said Monday whenannouncing that the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Courtapproved the snooping for another 90 days.The order expires February 27.

Sen. Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) urged Obama to let the program die instead of getting it reauthorized.

"The President can end the NSAs dragnet collection of Americans phone records once and for all by not seeking reauthorization of this program by the FISA Court, and once again, I urge him to do just that," Leahy said. "Doing so would not be a substitute for comprehensive surveillance reform legislationbut it would be an important first step."

TheFISA Court has now renewed bulk telephone metadata spying program four times following Obama's reform speechin March, June, September, and December.

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Judges to Hear Arguments Over NSA Surveillance

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A panel of federal appeals judges in Seattle is considering an Idaho woman's challenge to the National Security Agency's bulk collection of cellphone information.

U.S. District Court Judge Lynn Winmill ruled in Boise, Idaho, last June that the NSA's collection of such data doesn't violate the Fourth Amendment prohibition on unreasonable searches. But the judge also said the issue does raise privacy concerns and that the case could wind up before the Supreme Court.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have joined nurse Anna Smith's case for the appeal. Arguments at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals were scheduled for Monday morning.

The NSA has said it collects the phone numbers of calls made and received and how long a call lasts, but the agency contends it does not monitor the contents of a call. Smith said her cellphone is her primary means of communication with family, friends, doctors and others, and that her phone calls are none of the government's business.

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