February 5, 2022 |
Threat Journal is a weekly supplement to the
AlertsUSA National Threat
and Incident Notification
Service for Mobile Devices |
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WEEKLY THREAT AND ALERT ROUNDUP
Published Each Saturday Afternoon |
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NATO Warns of Russian Military Buildup in Belarus
State Dept Orders Diplomat Families to Leave
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February 5, 2022 |
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Between Jan 31 and Feb 2, the following
related Flash SMS
messages were sent to AlertsUSA subscriber mobile devices: |
1/31 - US State Dept issues updated Level 4 - Do Not Travel advisory for Belarus. Family members of USGOV employees ordered to depart the country. More via email.
2/2 - POTUS approves deployment of thousands of add'l U.S. military forces to eastern Europe amid rising threat from Russia. Troop movement to begin within days.
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What You Need To Know |
On five occasions this week AlertsUSA subscribers were notified via SMS messages to their mobile devices regarding safety and security matters.
On Monday the 31st, subscribers were informed the U.S. State Department had issued an updated Level 4 - Do Not Travel advisory for Belarus warning of an unusual and concerning Russian military buildup along Belarus’ border with Ukraine, as well the arbitrary enforcement of laws and the risk of detention.
The advisory also announced that the State Department had ordered the departure of family members of U.S. government employees from Belarus.
During a press conference on Wednesday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg provided details on the Russian force buildup:
“Over the last days, we have seen a significant movement of Russian military forces into Belarus. This is the biggest Russian deployment there since the Cold War, with an expected 30,000 combat troops, Spetsnaz — special operations forces — fighter jets including SU45, Iskander dual-capable missiles and S-400 air defense systems.”
Stoltenberg warned that NATO has “increased readiness” of its response force and is considering deploying additional forces to the southeastern flank of the alliance.
Stoltenberg also welcomed this week's announcement of the deployment of 3,000 U.S. troops to Poland, Germany and Romania. Less than 24 hours after receiving orders the first planeloads of those troops took off aboard C-17s from Pope Army Airfield at Fort Bragg.
This 3000 troop deployment is not part of the 8,500 troops in the U.S. already on heightened alert in case a NATO Response Force is called up and U.S. personnel are needed quickly. In addition, the U.S. and NATO have tens of thousands of other troops already in Europe to draw upon for additional deployments to Eastern European allies.
Study the geography below. It may come in handy in the approaching weeks.
If you have upcoming travel to Europe, AlertsUSA strongly encourages you to monitor developments between NATO and Russia over Ukraine. This region of Europe is not that large. In fact, you can fit the combined land area of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia into Texas with room left over. If war breaks out, spillover into neighboring NATO nations is a possibility. As such, a comprehensive travel insurance policy from companies such as Global Rescue or Ripcord is well worth consideration if heading to the region.
At a minimum, AlertsUSA recommends international travelers take a few min to register their trip with the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program. This will enable you to receive important information from the Embassy about safety conditions in your destination country, as well as to help the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency, be it a natural disaster, civil unrest, outbreak of armed conflict, or a family situation where they need help finding you.
AlertsUSA continues to monitor the domestic and international threat environment around the clock and will immediately notify service subscribers, via SMS messages to their mobile devices, of new alerts, warnings and advisories or any developments which signal a change the overall threat picture for American citizens as events warrant.
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AlertsUSA.com
SMS ALERTS FROM THIS WEEK
NOT DETAILED IN THIS NEWSLETTER ISSUE
2/1 - Two officers shot on campus of Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, VA. Male shooter taken into custody following multi-agency search. Limited add'l details.
2/3 - 5 injured, 1 dead, in Oroville, CA mass shooting incident aboard a Greyhound bus. Suspect arrested in nearby Walmart. AlertsUSA monitoring..
2/3 - ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi killed in overnight counterterrorism raid by U.S. special operations forces in NW Syria. POTUS to comment on raid at 9:30am. |
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Coronavirus Quick Hits |
February 5, 2022 |
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UNITED STATES
According to data provided by the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, as of Friday evening there have been more than 901,000 total deaths in the U.S. attributed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
That said, three weeks ago CDC Director Rochelle Walensky admitted that 75% of COVID deaths in the U.S. occurred in people who had at least four comorbidities, drawing the distinction between dying from COVID-19 versus dying with COVID-19.
CANADA
COVID-19 infections are decreasing in Canada. There have been more than 34,000 COVID-attributed deaths reported in the country since the pandemic began.
LATIN AMERICA & THE CARIBBEAN
This week Brazil leads in new reported COVID-19 deaths, followed by Mexico and Argentina. Across the region, more than 1,600,000 deaths have been attributed to the virus.
EUROPE
New deaths continue decreasing across Europe. Russia still leads the region in COVID-related fatalities, followed by Italy and France. As of Feb 2, more than 2,002,000 COVID - attributed deaths have been reported across the region since the pandemic began.
COVID-19 NEWS HEADLINES
In New York City sewage, a mysterious coronavirus signal
Life insurer refuses to cover vaccine death...
Army to start discharging vaccine refusers…
Austria signs into law strict Covid-19 vaccine mandate
Alberta could lift vaccine passport in ‘days’, denies negotiating with truckers
The CDC is finally recognizing 'natural immunity'
So long, Omicron: White House eyes next phase of pandemic
WHO: Europe is entering a plausible endgame to the COVID-19 pandemic
INTERESTING NEW PAPERS / JOURNAL ARTICLES
Immunological Memory Provides Long-Term Protection against Coronavirus
Low Vitamin D Associated With Severe Or Critical COVID Disease
Tracking Cryptic SARS-CoV-2 Lineages Detected in NYC Wastewater
VACCINE ADVERSE EVENT REPORTING
According to the CDC's Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) between mid-December 2020 and December 3 of this year, more than 1,088,000 adverse events have been reported following COVID19 vaccinations. As it is estimated that only 1% of adverse events are recorded into the system, these numbers could be significantly higher.
NOTE: Reports of adverse events to VAERS following vaccination, including deaths, do not necessarily mean that a vaccine caused a health problem.
Current VAERS reports (U.S. only) related to COVID-19 vaccines incl:
Deaths: 10,527
Hospitalizations: 51,713
Urgent Care: 92,970
Anaphylaxis: 2,301
Bell's Palsy: 3,052
Miscarriages: 1,605
Heart Attacks: 5,137
Myo/Pericarditis: 4,857
SITUATION REPORTS / OFFICIAL CASE NUMBERS
HealthData.gov
World Health Organization
Centers for Disease Control (U.S.)
Johns Hopkins CSSE (Interactive map) |
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Commentary / Analysis / Research |
February 5, 2022 |
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Biden's Borders: The Threat to America and the Free World
Most Americans are not terribly concerned about the sovereign borders of Ukraine. However, most Americans are terribly concerned about an out-of-control Mexican border. Mexican cartels control the U.S. southern border and profit from every unlawful crossing. The Mexican cartels make $100 million a week from human trafficking alone – not including the profits from fentanyl or other drugs. The Mexican cartels exploit human beings and bombard the United States with enough drugs to kill "everyone in America." What does the Biden administration do? The Biden administration, through negligence and complicity, has been subsidizing the criminal enterprises and endangering the American public.
~ READ MORE HERE ~
The Geostrategic Importance of Taiwan: Part 1
During WWII, Taiwan served as the starting point for Japanese attacks on both the Philippines and the Dutch East Indies (presently Indonesia). Taiwan served as the organizational zone and key inventory base for Japan's military in Southeast Asia during the fight, as well as the control center for all transit over the Taiwan Strait. Except for Singapore, the US State Department stated at the time that no location in the Far East featured such a dominant role.
The question is whether Taiwan would be as significant a crucial resource for a potential adversary in Asia now as it was for Japan in the 1940s.
~ READ MORE HERE ~
Disease Outbreak and National Security:
Drawing Lessons from the COVID-19 Crisis to
Improve Emergency Response
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden have invoked statutory authorities to obtain medical equipment and stem the spread of the virus. Their actions provide an opportunity to reflect on how the current disaster response statutory framework treats healthcare crises and disaster response more generally. Indeed, under the existing federal statutory framework, disaster preparation is ingrained as a core priority for national security, whereas disaster response is not. Presidents Barack Obama, Trump, and Biden all invoked statutory authorities to address healthcare challenges and disease outbreaks that occurred under their watch. The different combination of authorities invoked by each reveals the extent to which the architects of the disaster response framework considered healthcare crises a threat to national security. [The author proposes] a new statute that would cement an understanding of disease outbreak as a national security threat and recognize that disaster response is as critical to national security as preparedness.
~ READ MORE HERE ~ |
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USNI Fleet and Marine Tracker |
February 5, 2022 |
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These are the approximate positions of the U.S. Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world as of Jan 31, 2022 based on U.S. Navy, public data provided by the U.S. Naval Institute, and open source reporting. In cases where a CSG or ARG is conducting disaggregated operations, the chart reflects the location of the capital ship.
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World News Roundup |
February 5, 2022 |
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AMERICAS
DoD urges defense companies to accelerate hypersonic weapons development
Trudeau: Using military to end Freedom Convoy 'not in the cards'
Private pentagon report shows hurdles to hypersonic weapons
Budget uncertainty ‘throttles’ development of hypersonic missile interceptor
Pelosi warns US athletes not to risk 'incurring the anger' of 'ruthless' Chinese
Biden warns no amendment is 'absolute' as he vows another run at guns
Kamala Harris blames Congress 'not acting' on Biden's border crisis
US strike framed to spare civilians after mounting criticism
Inside the raid that killed ISIS leader al-Qurayshi
EUROPE
US deploys more troops to eastern Europe amid Ukraine standoff
Lithuanian lawmakers call for permanent U.S. troop presence
Russia condemns destructive US troop increase in Europe
U.S. exposes what it says is Russian effort to fabricate pretext for invasion
US: Russia plans ‘very graphic’ fake video as pretext for Ukraine invasion
European oil port terminals hit by cyberattack
US gives military helicopters to Croatia, Russia arms Serbs
Poland is sending missiles, drones and thousands of artillery rounds to Ukraine
Russia, China strike 30-year gas deal via new pipeline, to settle in euros
Russia's escalation in Ukraine sounds cyber defense alarms
Ukraine pushes EU to make draft Russia sanctions public
Macron discusses Ukraine peace process with Putin, Zelensky
German government under fire over Russia and Ukraine
Belgium investigates cyberattack on energy companies
MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA
Islamic State: Why leader's death is not a fatal blow
Where does al-Qurayshi's death leave the terrorist group?
Syrian townfolk shocked that IS leader was a neighbour
Israel signs security memorandum with Bahrain, its 2nd with an Arab nation
A few hundred kms from Iran, Israel sends message with Bahrain visit
New Iran deal wouldn’t stop production of nuclear bomb: White House
Shadowy militant group claims latest UAE drone attack
Turkey’s inflation hits nearly 50%, highest in two decades
Turkey's intelligence agency abducts arms dealer in Ukraine
Embattled PLO to choose top negotiator after Erekat's death
Rights group slams Lebanon for "flawed" murder probes
ECOWAS holds emergency summit after coups in West Africa
Coup-hit Burkina skirts sanctions at W. African summit
Sudan protesters block road to Egypt for ninth day
EU: Training to resume C.Africa if soldiers 'stop working for Wagner'
Private military contractors bolster Russian influence in Africa
ASIA
Putin arrives in Beijing, to meet Xi as tensions rise with west over Ukraine
China, Russia 'coordinated positions' on Ukraine, says FM
U.S. warns Chinese firms against helping Russia against potential sanctions
Congress pushes to rename Taiwan's de facto embassy in Washington
Other Islamic State factions still pose threat to the U.S.
Over a million flee as Afghanistan’s economy collapses
Afghan universities reopen with strict rules for female students
Taliban closer to international recognition, says foreign minister
Myanmar junta slams 'dictating' UN rights chief
Pakistani forces battle gunmen after Balochistan checkpost raids
Iran accused of sowing Israel discontent with fake Jewish Facebook group
US hacker 'in his pyjamas' takes down North Korea's internet as revenge
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Travel Security Resources
The U.S. Dept. of State Travel Website is the authoritative federal source for information on the security situation at travel destinations worldwide. With tensions rapidly increasing in most regions, readers planning international travel, even to such common destinations as Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean Islands, are strongly encouraged to research on the security situation at your destination prior to departure.
The Department of State’s Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) provides a variety of resources to enhance the safety and security of the U.S. private sector businesses and organizations operating abroad.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website is the authoritative federal source for information on current health issues related to specific destinations worldwide. These issues may arise from disease outbreaks, special events or gatherings, natural disasters, or other conditions that may affect travelers’ health.
Foreign Sources of Travel Guidance
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Take Advantage of These Resources
Our social media channels provide a steady steam of important news and resources between issues of Threat Journal with little or no overlap of content. Combined with the AlertsUSA service for instant mobile notification of the really bad developments, you have an unmatched set of tools to keep yourself fully up to speed on the nation's threat environment. With times getting worse by the day, we urge you to utilize these resources.
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