ONS: 25 January 2012

by TRG Alerts Admin on January 25, 2012

KEY STORYLINES

AFRICA: Gaddafi loyalists took control of Bani Walid
AMERICAS: Mexican lawmakers demanded an investigation into office wiretapping
ASIA: A Pakistani air force jet crashed during a training mission
EUROPE: Polish PM Tusk said he will not sign a fiscal pact if it divides Europe
MIDDLE EAST: In Israel, hackers shut down the security system for the country’s largest hospital
TECHNOLOGY: An Ipsos/Reuters poll showed 10% of people telecommute regularly, 30% in certain countries

TOP STORY

Armed Somalis held Jessica Buchanan, an American, and Poul Hagen Thisted, a Dane, for three months
The two foreigners worked for the Danish Refugee Council
US special forces conducted an early morning operation to rescue the two
Coverage: BBC, WaPo, AP

AFRICA

Region: Boko Haram received training from both al Qaeda and al Shabaab, according to Nigerien FM Bazoum. (Reuters)
Libya: Gaddafi loyalists took control of Bani Walid. (AP)
Senegal: The government banned all forms of protest between 26-30JAN. (Xinhua)

AMERICAS

Mexico: Stratfor released a report indicating the Zetas cartel is the largest criminal organization in Mexico. (BBC)
Mexico: Lawmakers demanded an investigation into the wiretapping of their office phones. (AP)
United States: Pentagon officials said President Obama will cut the defense budget by 5% to $525 billion. (AFP)

ASIA

Afghanistan: Approximately 60 Taliban militants surrendered to the government in Baghlan province. (Xinhua)
China: Exiled Tibetan PM Sangay urged the international community to intervene in clashes between locals and security forces in a Tibetan-inhabited area.
Korea, South: The air force rolled out six F-15K fighter jets in training exercises with the US. (Xinhua)
Pakistan: An air force jet crashed during a training mission, no casualties were reported. (AFP)

EUROPE

Region: IMF Chief Lagarde said public creditors would have to pitch in to help Greece if private banks did not agree to a big enough cut in money owed to them. (AFP)
Region: Portuguese PM Coelho and Spanish President Rajoy stressed the importance of creating mechanisms to shield against fallout from Greece’s debt crisis. (Xinhua)
Poland: PM Tusk indicated Poland will not sign a fiscal pact if it divides the Eurozone. (Xinhua)

MIDDLE EAST

Egypt: Members of parliament called for the public execution of Hosni Mubarak. (UPI)
Iraq: The government vowed to pursue legal action against Staff Sergeant Wuterich after a US military court’s verdict did not stipulate a prison sentence. (AFP)
Iraq: Unidentified gunmen killed Mulla Nadhim al-Jubouri, a senior leader of the anti-al Qaeda group Awakening Council. (Xinhua)
Israel: Unknown hackers overloaded the security system of Sheba Hospital, the largest Israeli hospital. (DPA)

TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATIONS

Cybersecurity: Lookout Mobile Security created a new application The Mobile Threat Tracker, which consolidates security data into a sort of mobile heat map of security breaches. (All Things Digital)
Technology: An Ipsos/Reuters poll showed over 30% of workers in India, Mexico and Indonesia telecommute regularly while only 10% do so globally. (TechCrunch)

WORLD

TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK (26JAN)

Egypt: Anniversary of government shutting down the internet in an attempt to stop protests – 2011.
Palestinian Territories: Scheduled end of Palestinian cessation on its drive for international recognition if Israelis do not freeze settlements.

END