ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

Saja Hamid al-Dulaimi, a hairdresser, may be used as bargaining chip for release of Lebanese soldiers The Lebanese military has captured one of the wives of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader and self-proclaimed “caliph” of Isis. The woman, who was identified as Saja Hamid al-Dulaimi, was arrested nine days ago, along with a child. She was set again tonight to become a valuable bargaining chip, this time for the Lebanese government, which has been negotiating with Baghdadi’s group, also known as Islamic State, over the release of almost 30 kidnapped Lebanese soldiers and police officers. The group has also captured Iraqis, Syrians and foreigners across the swathe of territory it controls in Iraq and Syria. Initial reports said Dulaimi was accompanied by her son when captured, but a senior Lebanese security official claimed a daughter had been DNA tested and was a match with Baghdadi. It is unclear where the Lebanese authorities obtained Baghdadi’s DNA. The Isis leader was held by US forc...

Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani (Reuters/Mohammad Ismail) Afghanistan's president is urging world leaders not to abandon his country but instead make long-term commitments amid the withdrawal of most foreign troops and a surge in Taliban attacks. President Ashraf Ghani and British Prime Minister David Cameron are jointly hosting a conference in London on security, corruption and political reform in Afghanistan. US Secretary of State John Kerry, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and international diplomats are also attending the two-day event. Experts have warned security is deteriorating in Afghanistan and that humanitarian funds are drying up. In his opening address, UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said: “We should also remember all the Afghan and international civilians who have been killed as a result of the conflict, including Ronnie Jessiman and Tawab Sediqi, British Embassy staff killed in an attack on their car, only last week.” Ghani was finally elected in ...

By Alexander Mercouris The reaction to the cancellation of the Sound Stream project has been a wonder to behold and needs to be explained very carefully. In order to understand what has happened it is first necessary to go back to the way Russian-European relations were developing in the 1990s. Briefly, at that period, the assumption was that Russia would become the great supplier of energy and raw materials to Europe. This was the period of Europe's great “rush for gas” as the Europeans looked forward to unlimited and unending Russian supplies. It was the increase in the role of Russian gas in the European energy mix which made it possible for Europe to run down its coal industry and cut its carbon emissions and bully and lecture everyone else to do the same. However the Europeans did not envisage that Russia would just supply them with energy. Rather they always supposed this energy would be extracted for them in Russia by Western energy companies. This after all is the pattern i...

Image by Flickr user “Caveman Chuck” Coker Maps give us a graphic understanding of the world around us – whether it be global geography or the tricky intersection just around the corner. They help us to grasp concepts of size and distance… but what about IQ scores and vegetation? Or flags? This creative and varied collection of world maps will open your mind, no matter where you live or how much coffee you've had today. 1. NATIONAL IQ SCORES This first map shows average national IQ scores – a score derived from standardized tests to assess intelligence. The jury's still out as to why IQ scores vary so much around the world, with theories ranging from environmental factors to genetic influence. DID YOU KNOW? Singapore boasts the highest national IQ score, with an average of 108. Image: Target Map 2. FLAGS OF THE WORLD This creative map needs little explanation – just check it out and enjoy! DID YOU KNOW? Switzerland and the Vatican are the only two countries with square-shaped f...

LIZZIE DEARDEN     Australia has dropped out of the top 10 least corrupt countries in the world as it slips down the rankings for the second year in a row, according to a survey. Transparency International found that scandals over note printing and the country’s own corruption probes had worsened perceptions and pushed it down to number 11 out of 175 countries – four positions lower than 2012. But that is still three places above Britain, languishing at number 14 with a score of 78, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 very clean. A spokesperson for Transparency International said the organisation recognised the UK’s “gradual progress” in recent years, particularly the Bribery Act, by raising its score by two points. “But there is more to do, the UK should be in the top 10,” he added. “The result next year may depend on the government’s upcoming anti-corruption action plan and whether the new government, post-May, sticks to commitments made within it.” Denmark came top of t...

By Patrick Cockburn The Iraqi army includes 50,000 “ghost soldiers” who do not exist, but their officers receive their salaries fraudulently according to the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. “The Prime Minister revealed the existence of 50,000 fictitious names,” said a statement after a thorough headcount during the latest salary payments. The Iraqi army has long been notorious for being wholly corrupt with officers invariably paying for their jobs in order to make money either through drawing the salaries of non-existent soldiers or through various other scams. One Iraqi politician told The Independent a year ago that Iraqi officers “are not soldiers, they are investors”. In the years before the defeat of the army in Mosul in June by a much smaller force from Isis, Iraqi units never conducted training exercises. At the time of Isis’s Mosul offensive, government forces in Mosul were meant to total 60,000 soldiers and federal police but the real figure was probably closer to 20,0...

Russia's Kalashnikov Concern has identified 50 countries as potential priority buyers of its weapons by 2020. The company hopes that the present rebranding will boost its competitiveness in global arms industry. © Sputnik. Grigoriy Sisoev Kalashnikov Concern Nearly Closes Sales Gap Due to Sanctions: Rostec CEO MOSCOW, December 2 (Sputnik) — Russia's largest small arms manufacturer, Kalashnikov Concern, has rolled out its new development strategy for between now and 2020 that includes looking for potential buyers in 50 different countries, the company's CEO Alexei Krivoruchko said Tuesday. "Speaking about military products, we have identified 50 priority countries," Krivoruchko said at a historic conference that was hosted by the Russian state technologies corporation Rostec. The event, held in the Russian capital, announced the company's rebranding to increase "a feeling of unity" between its separate production lines. Kalashnikov representatives poi...

Occupy Central deliberately ignores overwhelming public demands to end protests, resorts to clashes with police, violence. (Tony Cartalucci - LD) - Fully qualifying claims that the so-called "Occupy Central" or "Occupy Hong Kong" movement is little more than US-backed political subversion dressed as "pro-democracy," mobs remained in the streets, creating chaos as police worked to reopen streets and return order to downtown Hong Kong. A recent poll carried out by one of the movement's own collaborators - the Public Opinion Programme (HKU POP) of the University of Hong Kong - revealed over 80% wanted the protests brought to an end with over 60% advocating police action to clear the streets if necessary. In direct defiance not of the government in Beijing, but the will of Hong Kong's people themselves the "Occupy" movement claims to represent, protesters have vowed to continue disrupting order and remain in the streets as long as possi...