By Sean Rayment One of Britain’s most senior intelligence officials has warned the government that the sale of Thames Water to a Chinese-controlled company could pose a risk to national security. Sir Simon Gass, who served as chairman of the government’s Joint Intelligence Committee until two years ago, said proposals to hand Thames Water over to the Hong Kong-based infrastructure firm CKI required “close scrutiny from a national security perspective”. He cautioned that any takeover could give the Chinese authorities access to customer data across London, including that of individuals working in “key and sometimes sensitive positions across government”. The…

By André Pienaar Australia’s intelligence community has squarely identified Iranian state-sponsored antisemitic terrorist attacks in Australia, highlighting Tehran’s growing global terrorist threat—and underscoring the urgent need for collective defence by the democracies. This follows the United Kingdom’s designation of Iran as its highest national security threat earlier this year, combined with an unprecedented 14-nation joint intelligence warning about the threat of Iranian terrorism to democracies. When Australia revealed on 26 August 2025 that Iran had directed violent attacks on Jewish targets in Sydney and Melbourne, it confirmed what many had suspected: Tehran is waging a global terrorist war against democratic nations.…

By Ben Farmer Republican heavyweights are increasing calls for Donald Trump to recognise a breakaway statelet on the Horn of Africa as an ally against Chinese influence. The head of the Senate Foreign Relations Africa Subcommittee has become the latest MAGA figure to call for Washington to recognise Somaliland as a sovereign state and potentially gain a new base at the entrance to the Red Sea. Texas senator Ted Cruz has written to Mr Trump, praising Somaliland as a “critical security and diplomatic partner for the United States” and urging full recognition. Somaliland declared its independence from Somalia in 1991,…

By Sean Rayment Hundreds of US veterans wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan along with families of those killed in combat are taking legal action against a telecommunications company accused of paying protection money to insurgents. More than 500 American families and their lawyers claim MTN Group, South Africa’s largest telecom operator, paid off gunmen in both Iraq and Afghanistan so the company could operate unhindered by insurgent attacks. Lawyers representing US families and wounded veterans claim the protection money was used to buy weapons and ammunition which was subsequently used to attack members of the US armed…

By Sean Rayment Staff in Europe and North America have been told: “Stop reporting on Iran or you and your immediate relatives will die.” The campaign of systematic intimidation began shortly after Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear bases, with the Tehran authorities accusing journalists of being spies for Israel and providing information to its intelligence services. The TV news channel, whose headquarters are in London, has now filed an urgent appeal with UN experts asking for action against Iran. Iran International, which broadcasts in Farsi, said the situation had “deteriorated rapidly and there is now a real risk to the lives” of…

By Staff Writer The announcement that South Africa’s MTN Group, Africa’s largest telecoms operator, is under criminal investigation by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) grand jury should reverberate far beyond Johannesburg. It is more than another potential case of corporate misconduct. It is a test of whether multinationals that allegedly profited in conflict zones or colluded with terrorists for profit—while Americans and Israelis paid with their lives—can finally be held to account under US law. Grand jury scrutiny Grand jury investigations are not routine regulatory inquiries or civil litigation. They are among the most powerful tools of the American justice…

By Sean Rayment Rolls-Royce’s plan to power artificial intelligence (AI) with its nuclear reactors could make the corporation the UK’s most valuable company. The engineering firm has signed deals to provide small modular reactors (SMRs) to the UK and Czech governments. AI has boomed in popularity since 2022, but the technology consumes vast amounts of energy, raising both practical and environmental concerns. Rolls-Royce chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic has said the company has the “potential” to become the UK’s highest-valued business by overtaking the largest firms on the London Stock Exchange, thanks to its SMR agreements. “There is no private company…

The Reactor Pilot Program had been announced by the US DOE in June 2025. By Abhishek Bhardwaj The United States has picked 11 advanced reactor projects to begin President Trump’s Nuclear Reactor Pilot Program. The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced on Tuesday that it will work, alongside the industry, with these 11 projects to construct, operate, and achieve criticality of at least three test reactors using the DOE authorisation process by July 4, 2026. The selection is a major step towards streamlining nuclear reactor testing and opening a new pathway toward fast-tracking commercial licensing activities. “President Trump’s Reactor Pilot Program…

By Sean Rayment The US’s newly unveiled $175 billion Golden Dome missile defence programme is reshaping Pentagon spending priorities and expanding the role of the Space Force, according to a new report by the Aerospace Corporation’s Center for Space Policy and Strategy. The missile system is set to become a centerpiece of US defence spending and strategy. Golden Dome will be a multi-layer satellite defence system designed to protect the United States from a range of foreign threats, including ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missiles. The system will rely on a global network of military satellites capable of identifying and neutralising…

By André Pienaar, Co-founder of the Directorate of Special Operations (DSO) also known as the Scorpions, an elite law enforcement and counter terrorist unit established by President Mandela in partnership with the DEA and the FBI. On 20 January 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued Executive Order 14157, “Designating Cartels and Other Organisations as Foreign Terrorist Organisations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists” (EO 14157). This unprecedented move targeted major Latin American drug cartels – including Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), MS-13, Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, and others – by formally classifying them as Foreign Terrorist Organisations (FTOs) and…

Members of the US Congress supporting the passing of the US–South African Bilateral Relations Review Act of 2025 (HR 2633) voiced their fears to National Security News about the subversion of press freedom in South Africa by the South African State Security Agency (SASSA). Congressional leaders from both the Republicans and Democrats expressed grave concern about several cases in which whistle-blowers are being targeted by SASSA, working hand in glove with journalists from News24, a digital media platform owned by Naspers and Prosus, listed in Amsterdam. The extent of this collusion was revealed in a landmark ruling this week when the South…

By Ben Farmer An ambitious offensive by Somali Islamists has taken a string of towns and swathes of territory, overturning years of gains by the country’s internationally backed security forces. The al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab group has won repeated victories over Somali forces since February, and in late July captured the strategic town of Maxaas after heavy fighting. An escalation in American air strikes has failed to stop the advance, and al-Qaeda is now urging its affiliate to “repeat in Somalia what the Taliban had achieved in Afghanistan,” according to a recent United Nations intelligence report. Ashley Jackson, of the Centre on…