Euro 2016 Tournament Attack - Frenchman Arrested

June 6, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

A Frenchman detained last month with a large cache of arms was planning mass attacks during the Euro 2016 football tournament, which starts on Friday, Ukrainian officials say.

The man, identified by French media as Gregoire Moutaux, 25, was arrested on the Ukrainian border with Poland. Intelligence chief Vasyl Hrytsak said the man had planned 15 attacks and was driven by ultra-nationalist views. He had amassed guns, detonators and 125kg of TNT, Mr Hrytsak said.

Duty Of Care To Recruits At Deepcut Barracks 'Failed'

June 3, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Deepcut army barracks failed in its duty of care to young recruits, a coroner looking into the death of a soldier found shot has said.

Pte Cheryl James, 18 was found dead with a bullet wound to the head in 1995. She was one of four recruits to die at the base in seven years.

Coroner Brian Barker QC said it was regrettable there had not been a more thorough investigation at the time. "This has been a long and a difficult exercise," he said. "Many events since the autumn of 1995 have had to be examined."

Egypt To Receive First Of Two Warships In Coming Weeks

June 3, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Egypt has received the first of two advanced warships from France in a deal worth $1bn (£692m).

The Mistral helicopter carriers were originally made for Russia, but the contract was cancelled in 2014 over the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

The first of the ships, which has been named after the late president Gamal Abdel Nasser, was handed over at a ceremony in western France. The second ship, the Anwar Sadat, will arrive in Egypt in September.

Breaking News On Gun Smuggler

June 3, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Man behind Britain's biggest-known gun smuggling operation, involving £100,000-worth of weapons, jailed for 35 years

UN Urged To Begin Air Drops In Syria

June 2, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

The US, UK and France have urged the UN to begin air drops of humanitarian aid to besieged areas in Syria.

They said the Syrian government had failed to respect a 1 June deadline for widespread aid distribution agreed by world and regional powers.

About 4,000 people in the besieged Darayya suburb of the capital Damascus have been without food aid since 2012. A convoy reached the area on Wednesday but carried only a small amount of medicines and other non-food items. The UN Security Council will meet on Friday to discuss the air drops.

Armenians Killed In WW1 Declared Genocide By German Parliament

June 2, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

The German parliament has approved a resolution declaring that the mass killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War One was a "genocide".

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their people died in the atrocities of 1915. Turkey says the toll was much lower and rejects the term "genocide".

The timing is awkward, as the EU needs Turkey to help stem the migrant influx. Turkish president Recip Tayyip Erdogan said the resolution risked harming ties between the countries.

Commemorative Events Mark The Centenary Of The Battle Of Jutland

May 31, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

The centenary of the biggest naval engagement of World War One is being marked by commemorative events.

A service at St Magnus Cathedral in Orkney will pay tribute to the 8,648 sailors who died during the Battle of Jutland. A service of remembrance will also take place on board HMS Duncan at Jutland Bank, the site of the battle.

The battle was fought near the coast of Denmark on 31 May and 1 June 1916 and involved about 250 ships. It saw the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet, based at Scapa Flow in Orkney, clash with the German High Seas Fleet.

Troops In Falluja Under Fire From IS

May 31, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Militants from the so-called Islamic State have launched a dawn counter-attack as Iraqi government troops push into the city of Falluja.

A day after troops advanced through the southern suburb of Nuaimiya, scores of IS fighters attacked them, army officers told news agencies. The army defeated the attackers but suffered casualties, the sources said.

Aid workers are increasingly concerned for the safety of 50,000 civilians said to be trapped in Falluja. Reports speak of people starving to death and of being killed for refusing to fight for IS.

Airstrikes In Syria Kill At Least 23 People

May 31, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

At least 23 people have been killed by air strikes on the rebel-held city of Idlib, in north-western Syria, activists say.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Russian aircraft targeted various positions overnight. Turkey also blamed Russia and put the death toll at more than 60. Russia has denied any involvement.

Idlib city and the province of the same name are a stronghold of groups including al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front. The Nusra Front is excluded from a partial cessation of hostilities brokered by the US and Russia in February to make way for a resumption of peace talks.

US Special Forces Upset Turkey Over Kurdish Insignia

May 27, 2016 / By Armoured Cars / In security

Turkey has hit out at the US over images said to show US special forces in Syria wearing insignia of Kurdish militia, during joint operations against so-called Islamic State (IS).

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu called the US "two-faced" and said the practice was "unacceptable". The images appear to show a US special forces soldier wearing the patch of the YPJ - a Kurdish militia group.

A Pentagon spokesman said troops often blended in with partners for safety.