By Staff Writer South Africa’s government is engulfed in a row about control of the military, following allegations that the top brass might have ignored orders to sideline Iran from controversial naval exercises. A board of inquiry is due to investigate this week whether Cyril Ramaphosa’s instructions were disregarded or miscommunicated during naval drills off Cape Town last week. The incident has sparked debate about whether the elected government has a constitutional grip on one of the most well regarded militaries in sub-Saharan Africa. Three Iranian warships arrived in False Bay earlier this month to join a week of BRICS…

By Andre Pienaar, Chief Executive and Founder, C5 Capital Davos, Switzerland The World Economic Forum (WEF) convenes this week under the theme “A Spirit of Dialogue” at a moment when two prevailing forces are rapidly rewiring the global economy: energy security and the infrastructure of money itself. Today at Davos, C5 and our partners announced OIL1, the world’s first energy-backed stablecoin, which will be collateralised with verified crude oil inventory, fusing energy and money into a new energy security instrument for the 21st century. OIL1 is not another cryptocurrency experiment. It is a settlement instrument designed to harden the financial…

By Sean Rayment MI5 has warned that it is unrealistic to “eliminate every potential risk” posed by the new Chinese mega-embassy in London. Sir Ken McCallum, the MI5 director-general, and Anne Keast-Butler, director of GCHQ, have told the home and foreign secretaries that it is not feasible to expect “to be able wholly to eliminate each and every potential risk” associated with the new site. Ministers approved the establishment of China’s new mega-embassy in central London on Tuesday, a move hoped to facilitate new trade deals with Beijing. But the decision is expected to attract significant political backlash due to…

By Staff Writer Pressure is mounting on European Union member states to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation. Several capitals, including Germany, are publicly pushing for a decision that would place the Guards on the EU’s terror list alongside groups such as Daesh and al-Qaeda. But legal and political constraints remain, and key states such as Italy, France, Spain and Luxembourg have not yet backed the move amid reports that at least 16,500 protesters have been killed and about 330,000 injured during Iran’s unrest, according to a report compiled by doctors inside the country. European concern…

By Staff Writer In the wake of the lethal repression of civilian protests across Iran, with fatalities now estimated to exceed 15,000, the board of MTN-Irancell dismissed Alireza Rafiei as the company’s chief executive yesterday for “disobeying orders from security bodies” to implement the internet shutdown immediately. Tasnim, the media group owned by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported on Monday 19 January that it took Rafiei and his management team at MTN-Irancell several hours to implement the order from the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) to shut down the internet nationwide. The SNSC issued the order on the…

By Sean Rayment The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced an investment of more than £200 million to ensure the Royal Air Force’s (RAF) Typhoon fighter jet fleet remains operational and ready to protect the UK and its NATO allies. The initiative is set to secure 250 highly skilled jobs across the country, according to the department. The contract, awarded to British firm QinetiQ, will provide essential technical and engineering support to the Typhoon fleet over the next five years. The MoD said the £205 million deal highlights the government’s commitment to investing in capabilities that bolster national security while…

By Sean Rayment The US president has suggested that his plan to seize control of Greenland was driven by resentment at being overlooked for the Nobel Peace Prize. Donald Trump told Norway’s prime minister in a letter that, in retaliation for not receiving the award, “I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace” and would instead consider “what is good and proper for the United States of America”. He also accused Denmark on Sunday of failing to protect the island from Russia and questioned the country’s claim to sovereignty over Greenland. Mr Trump has repeatedly insisted that…

By Staff Writer Iran’s exiled crown prince, Reza Pahlavi, has warned that “the slaughter has not stopped” inside the country, as the United States withdraws personnel from the region and foreign governments scale back their presence in Tehran. United States officials said Washington had begun withdrawing some personnel from military facilities across the Middle East, describing the move as a precaution. The decision follows repeated warnings from Tehran that any US strike would be met with retaliation against American bases in neighbouring countries. United States President Donald Trump told reporters he was monitoring developments closely and suggested that reports of…

By Staff Writer The UK has committed £600 million in air-defence capabilities, including cutting-edge turrets that can shoot down Russian drones, to support Ukraine through the winter, as Putin’s air campaign plunges homes, hospitals and power stations into darkness. The support has already seen more than 1,000 missiles delivered to Ukraine since June, a direct result of the UK Government’s biggest single-year investment in air defence for Ukraine. The announcement comes as Defence Secretary John Healey MP and his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius, co-chaired the 32nd meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group last month. The Ministry of Defence has…

By Asal Abasian, Committee to Protect Journalists Iranian authorities have imposed a near-total internet shutdown as nationwide protests intensify, severely restricting journalists’ ability to report and cutting off communication with the outside world. The blackout began on January 8, more than a week after protests erupted in late December over mounting economic pressure, currency devaluation, and rising living costs. Journalists and rights advocates say the internet shutdown and restricted telephone access — a practice used by authorities in previous mass protests — appear aimed at suppressing coverage of the unrest and obscuring the scale of arrests and casualties. “Iran’s near-total shutdown of the internet is a blatant assault on press…

By Staff Writer On the day Iran’s security services moved to tighten their grip on the streets, millions of Iranian families received a stark and unsettling text message on their mobile phones. The message did not address protesters directly. Instead, it targeted parents, turning the private sphere of family life into an extension of the state’s coercive apparatus. “Dear parents, inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country.” The message was delivered via MTN-Irancell, Iran’s largest mobile network operator, reaching deep into households across the country. For many…

By Staff Writer The UK will develop new tactical ballistic missiles that boost Ukraine’s firepower to defend itself from Putin’s war machine. Under Project Nightfall, the UK has launched a competition to rapidly develop ground-launched ballistic missiles with a range of more than 500 kilometres, designed to operate in high-threat battlefields with heavy electromagnetic interference. The Ministry of Defence has said that Nightfall missiles will be capable of being launched from a range of vehicles, firing multiple missiles in quick succession and withdrawing within minutes. This will allow Ukrainian forces to hit key military targets before Russian forces can respond.…

By Staff Writer While the Tehran regime is reported to have killed thousands of innocent civilians in recent days, the South African government authorised a joint naval exercise between the South African Navy and the Iranian Navy called “Will for Peace 2026”. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps deployed at Simon’s Town Naval Base The South African government granted three Iranian naval vessels privileged access to the strategic Simon’s Town Naval Base, which secures the vital international maritime route linking the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean around the Cape. One of the Iranian vessels, IRIS Shahid Mahdavi (L110-3), is a…

By Staff Writer The UK has signed a £52 million contract with Germany for state-of-the-art military artillery. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the deal means the UK will receive a cutting-edge Early Capability Demonstrator (ECD) platform of the RCH 155, with two more going to Germany for joint testing. The joint procurement demonstrates deepening defence cooperation between the UK and Germany under the Trinity House agreement signed in October 2024 – a landmark defence agreement that committed both nations to military collaboration, the MoD added. RCH 155 is a long-term solution for the British Army’s Mobile Fires Platform requirement. Soldiers…

By Sean Rayment High-level talks over the future of Greenland will take place between the US and Denmark at the White House this week. The foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland will meet US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday, the Danish foreign minister said, amid President Donald Trump’s push to take control of the Arctic island. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt requested a meeting with Rubio after Mr Trump recently intensified threats to take over Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. “US Vice…

By Staff Writer When protests erupt in Iran, the regime’s response is predictable: batons, bullets, mass arrests, and bandwidth cuts. Since 08 January, the Supreme Leader has implemented a near-complete internet blackout across the country. According to real-time network monitoring data from Cloudflare, internet traffic in Iran has collapsed to levels indicating an almost total shutdown of connectivity. Cloudflare Radar shows Iranian internet traffic dropping precipitously starting on 08 January 2025, with connectivity falling to approximately 10 to 15 per cent of normal levels. This represents one of the most severe nationwide internet disruptions Iran has implemented since the November…

By Sean Rayment Iran has insisted that communication channels with Washington remain open even as President Trump considers his response to a deadly crackdown on protests that have become the gravest challenge to clerical rule since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Mr Trump said on Sunday that the United States might meet Iranian officials and that he was in contact with opposition figures, while simultaneously increasing pressure on Tehran, including warnings of possible military action over the killing of demonstrators. According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), at least 544 people have been killed since protests erupted on…

By Staff Writer South Africa risks further angering Donald Trump as it this week hosts naval exercises with Russia, China and Iran. Warships from fellow members of the BRICS bloc have arrived off Cape Town for a week of maritime drills called Will for Peace 2026. South Africa’s military has said the exercises will focus on cooperation and securing maritime trade routes, but has given little detail about what this will involve. The event, which features several of Washington’s main global rivals or adversaries, risks further straining ties after a year in which Mr Trump has repeatedly criticised Pretoria. It also…

By Staff Writer Nationwide protests and strikes spread across Iran this week, leaving at least 36 people dead and more than 2,000 arrested, as opposition groups and exiled figures urged demonstrators to sustain pressure on the Islamic Republic’s leadership. The latest unrest was triggered by a general strike called by Kurdish political parties, prompting shop closures across Kurdish-majority regions and demonstrations in dozens of cities, including Isfahan, Kerman, Lahijan and Hamadan. According to the Critical Threats Project (CTP) and the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), 89 protests have been recorded across 21 provinces since 6 January, including 19…

By Sean Rayment China’s accelerating military modernisation is eroding the long-held assumption that Western powers would dominate the skies in any Pacific conflict, according to a new assessment by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). The report argues that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has reached a point at which US and allied air superiority can no longer be taken for granted, particularly in a confrontation centred on Taiwan. Chinese advances in aircraft production, missile technology and integrated air defence systems mean that Western forces would face unprecedented risks in the opening stages of any conflict. Central to this shift…

By Sean Rayment Six European allies have rallied to support Denmark following renewed insistence by the United States that it must have control over Greenland. “Greenland belongs to its people, and only Denmark and Greenland can decide on matters concerning their relations,” the leaders of the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and Denmark said in a joint statement. On Sunday, President Donald Trump said the US “needed” Greenland, a semi-autonomous region of fellow Nato member Denmark, for security reasons. He has refused to rule out the use of force to take control of the territory, and Danish Prime Minister…

By Sean Rayment President Donald Trump renewed his threat of US intervention in Iran as protests over the country’s failing economy have continued. Videos published online showed demonstrations in Tehran, as well as in Fars, Ilam, North Khorasan and Semnan provinces. Human rights activists said protests had taken place in 26 of the country’s 31 provinces since last week, and that at least 19 protesters and one member of the security forces had been killed. Trump has again warned that Iranian authorities would be “hit very hard” if more protesters died. “We’re watching it very closely. If they start killing…

By Andre Pienaar Today marks a watershed moment in the long and painful saga of narco-trafficking and narco-terrorism that has spilled over from Venezuela into the very heart of the United States. The capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, by US law enforcement, and their transfer to New York to face federal charges, is not only justified; under the law and in the interests of American national security and the rule of law, it is necessary.For decades, Maduro’s regime has been accused of morphing from a deeply corrupt government into a criminal enterprise. According to…

To truly understand just how and why the British Army is in so much trouble with Ajax, it is necessary to examine the situation and poor decision-making of the past 23 years. In the following article, guest writer Colonel (Retd) Harry Fullerton OBE provides a unique account of his experience of that time: Black Bag and Main Building In the autumn of 2003, it was time for a new military posting, which was often referred to as a major’s ‘Black Bag’ appointment. The name Black Bag was a throwback to the days when officers working at the Ministry of Defence…