German Police Carry Out Raids In Berlin

February 28, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

German police have carried out raids across Berlin on properties linked to a mosque used by the Christmas market truck attacker, Anis Amri.

Fifteen apartments and two commercial premises were searched in the city in an operation involving 460 police. Six prison cells were also searched.

The organisation which ran the mosque has been closed down.

Twelve people were killed and more than 50 injured by Amri, a Tunisian asylum seeker, in December. He was shot dead by police after fleeing to Italy.

Coroner Slams Police At Tunisia Attack Inquiry

February 28, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

The police response to a terror attack at a Tunisian beach resort in which 30 Britons died was "at best shambolic and at worst cowardly", a coroner has concluded.

Judge Nicholas Loraine-Smith ruled they were "unlawfully killed" when a gunman opened fire at a hotel in Sousse in June 2015, claiming 38 lives in total. He rejected a finding of neglect against the tour firms and the hotel.

IS Losing Ground In The Battle For Mosul

February 27, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

The Iraqi military says it has retaken a bridge across the River Tigris in Mosul, after driving back Islamic State militants in the city's south-west.

The Federal Police Rapid Response Force advanced into the Jawsaq district on Monday and reached the Fourth Bridge.

Mosul's five bridges have been badly damaged in fighting since October. But once it is repaired, the Fourth Bridge could help the military bring in reinforcements and supplies from the government-held east of the city.

Philippine Jihadists Post Video Showing Beheading Of German Hostage

February 27, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Islamic militants in the Philippines have posted a video showing the beheading of a German hostage.

Jurgen Kantner was abducted from his yacht off Malaysia's Sabah state in November. His companion Sabine Merz's body was later found on the boat.

A deadline for a 30m peso (£483,000; $600,000) ransom expired on Sunday.

Mr Kantner, 70, and Ms Merz had been abducted before. They were held for 52 days in 2008 by Somali pirates and were released after a ransom was paid.

Car Bomb In Syria Kills Dozens

February 24, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

A car bomb has killed at least 41 people in a rebel-held village near the Syrian town of al-Bab, sources in the region and monitors say.

The explosion destroyed a rebel security post in Sousian, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The village is 8km (5 miles) north-west of al-Bab, from which Turkish-backed rebels pushed so-called Islamic State fighters on Thursday.

Turkey says the rebels have "near complete control" of the city.

The attack killed 35 civilians and six rebel fighters, Reuters reported, citing sources in the region. It said the target was a rebel checkpoint.

VX Nerve Agent Killed Kim Jong-nam

February 24, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korea's leader, was killed by a highly toxic nerve agent, says Malaysia.

Mr Kim died last week after two women accosted him briefly in a check-in hall at a Kuala Lumpur airport.

Malaysian toxicology reports indicate he was attacked using VX nerve agent, which is classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations.

Asylum Seeker Charged With 20 Murders By Austrian Authorities

February 23, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

An asylum seeker charged by Austrian authorities with 20 murders in Syria has had his case adjourned until the end of March.

The 27-year-old man, who was arrested in western Austria in June, faces the charge of "murder in the context of terrorism". He is accused of shooting unarmed or wounded soldiers following a battle in Homs, Syria. His lawyers have said that he was severely traumatised at the time.

The man - who has not been named - denies the charges. According to Der Standard, he is a stateless Palestinian who grew up in a refugee camp in Homs.

Geert Wilders Security Official Leaking Information To Criminal Gang

February 23, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

A Dutch security official meant to protect anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders has been arrested on suspicion of leaking his location to a Moroccan criminal gang.

Police said the official was of Moroccan descent but not a bodyguard.

Mr Wilders, who has called some Moroccans "scum", told Prime Minister Mark Rutte the breach was "unacceptable".

Opinion polls suggest Mr Wilders' populist Freedom Party could win most seats in next month's election.

WWII Bomb Detonated Off The Isle Of Wight

February 22, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

A World War Two bomb containing 290lb (131kg) of "high explosives" has been found in Portsmouth harbour.

The ordnance was discovered by a dredger in the water in the early hours, the Royal Navy said.

Specialist divers at the scene said the bomb posed a "very serious threat". It was towed out to sea and detonated.

All ferries were stopped and trains between Portsmouth and Southsea station and Portsmouth Harbour were suspended, but have since started running again. There were also extensive road closures in the area, affecting access to Gunwharf Quays.

The £1 Million IS Bomber

February 22, 2017 / By Armoured Cars / In security

A British IS fighter who died in a suicide bomb attack on Iraqi forces in Mosul is a former Guantanamo Bay detainee.

The self-styled Islamic State group said two days ago that Abu-Zakariya al-Britani detonated a car bomb at an Iraqi army base in Tal Gaysum, south-west of Mosul. He is believed to have been originally known as Ronald Fiddler.

Fiddler, 50 and from Manchester, was sent to Guantanamo Bay in 2002.