ISIS Radioactive ‘Dirty Bomb’? Islamic State Group Sought Nuclear Material In Belgium, Authorities Say
Michael Kaplan | International Business Times
When Belgian authorities raided the home of a man with alleged ties to the Islamic State group in November, they discovered a film that immediately sparked alarm. The footage appeared to show that extremists were using video surveillance to spy on the Brussels home of a senior researcher at a Belgian nuclear facility. Authorities have speculated that supporters of the extremist group, also known as ISIS, were trying to get their hands on nuclear material, possibly by kidnapping the man or one of his family members, a report by the Center for Public Integrity said Monday.
First Iran Vote After Nuclear Deal Gives Reformists Momentum
Ali Akbar Dareini and Nasser Karimi | Associated Press
Iranian reformists appear have won all 30 seats representing the nation's capital in parliament, a definitive rebuke to the hard-liners opposing President Hassan Rouhani's efforts to open the economy and cooperate with the West. In the first elections held since last year's nuclear deal, none of Iran's three main political camps—reformists, conservatives and hard-liners—is expected to win an outright majority in the 290-seat parliament, but early results indicate the best reformist showing in more than a decade
New Trident Submarines Doomed By Drones of the Future, Says New Report
Julian Borger | Guardian
A new report was presented in parliament on Monday predicting that rapid technological progress in underwater drone technology and sensors could eventually make it impossible to hide big submarines like those intended to carry the UK’s Trident nuclear missiles. The question of whether new technologies could one day make the deep oceans ‘transparent’ is emerging as a hotly-contested technical debate ahead of the Commons vote on the Successor programme, the replacement for the current fleet of four 20-year old Vanguard submarines.
Defense Ministry Begins Installing David’s Sling Missile Defense
Stuart Winer | Times of Israel
The Defense Ministry said Tuesday it had started delivering the David’s Sling missile defense system to the Israel Air Force ahead of the full deployment of the weapon, which is designed to protect Israel from medium-range rockets. “After a series of concluding trials of the David’s Sling aerial defense system, Israel’s Missile Defense Organization at the Defense Ministry, together with the US Missile Defense Agency, began delivering major components of the system to the Israeli Air Force,” the ministry said in a statement.
3 Ex-TEPCO Execs Indicted Over Fukushima Nuclear Disaster
Japan Today
Three former executives of Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) were indicted Monday for allegedly failing to take measures to prevent the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex, which was struck by massive tsunami waves five years ago. The indictment, mandated by an independent panel of citizens after prosecutors decided against laying charges, seeks to answer in court the question of whether the key TEPCO figures should be held criminally responsible over the nuclear disaster.
China Plans 30 Overseas Nuclear Power Units By 2030
Xinhua News
China aims to build 30 nuclear power units in countries involved with the Belt and Road Initiative by 2030, Sun Qin, president of China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC), said Tuesday. The CNNC has reached bilateral agreements on nuclear energy cooperation with countries including Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Britain, France, and Jordan, Sun said.