USA - Technology companies and advertisers are putting pressure on carmakers to pass on data collected by connected cars, BMW has warned, highlighting the concerns the automotive industry faces as it treads a fine line between performance and privacy. Ian Robertson, the German manufacturer’s board member for sales and marketing, said that every car rolling off its production lines had a wireless network that could yield information about location, speed, acceleration and even the occupants of the car.
USA - A jailed Virginia lawmaker who resigned amid a sex scandal with his 17-year-old secretary has won his seat back in a special election. In unofficial returns, Morrissey defeated Democrat Kevin J. Sullivan and Republican Matt D. Walton by a comfortable margin. Morrissey won 42 percent of the vote, compared to 33 percent for Sullivan and 24 percent for Walton. Morrissey's victory was not unprecedented: Through four previous elections, most voters overlooked or even embraced the lawmaker's flamboyant history of fistfights, contempt-of-court citations and disbarment. The 57-year-old bachelor, who fathered three children out of wedlock with three different women, repeatedly won at least 70 percent of the vote as a Democrat. Morrissey said in a telephone interview that the results show people aren't interested in the drama that landed him in jail.
FRANCE - A record 3 million copies of the new edition of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo have appeared on French newsstands, with new caricatures triggering outrage among Muslims all over the world, and threats from radical Islamists. British radical preacher Anjem Choudary, who is allegedly connected with armed militant groups, decried the new edition as an "act of war" and a "blatant provocation."
UK - Mass immigration has led to the growth of Muslim ‘ghettos’ in Britain which are run under Sharia Law, Nigel Farage declared last night. In an interview with US news channel Fox News, Mr Farage said the authorities had turned a ‘blind eye’ to the growth of ghettos where ‘the police and all the normal agents of the law have withdrawn and that is where Sharia law has come in.’ Communities Secretary Eric Pickles accused Mr Farage of ‘pandering to peoples’ worst fears’ and branded his comments ‘irresponsible and wrong’.
UK - Baron Evans of Weardale says Charlie Hebdo attacks have bred "vulnerability and fear" which can only be countered with increased security. Britain will descend into “vigilantism” unless security measures are stepped up to counter the “vulnerability and fear” that people feel in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo attacks, the former head of MI5 has warned.
FRANCE - French courts have started handing out prison sentences to outspoken supporters of the recent terror attacks in Paris, with a girl as young as 15 apprehended by police for referring to the Kouachis as “my brothers”. The longest sentence so far was handed to a man in the northern French city of Valenciennes on Tuesday after he was found guilty of telling police “there should be more Kouachis. I hope you’re the next (victims)”.
USA - General Martin Dempsey tells House committee that he would consider abandoning Obama’s pledge and send troops to fight Isis in Iraq. The top-ranking officer in the American military said on Thursday that the US is actively considering the direct use of troops in the toughest upcoming fights against the Islamic State (Isis) in Iraq, less than a week after Barack Obama doubled troop levels there.
USA - Here’s a news item you may have missed over the holidays. The “doomsday planes” are being upgraded. Four E-4B flying command posts that would be used by US leaders to manage military operations in a nuclear war will receive communications upgrades to enhance their “connectivity” during a conflict that could spell the end of civilization as we know it.
UK - David Cameron could block WhatsApp and Snapchat if he wins the next election, as part of his plans for new surveillance powers announced in the wake of the shootings in Paris. The Prime Minister said today that he would stop the use of methods of communication that cannot be read by the security services even if they have a warrant. But that could include popular chat and social apps that encrypt their data, such as WhatsApp. Apple's iMessage and FaceTime also encrypt their data, and could fall under the ban along with other encrypted chat apps like Telegram. The comments came as part of David Cameron's pledge to revive the “snoopers’ charter” to help security services spy on internet communications today.
SAUDI ARABIA - Speaking to his favorite money-honey, billionaire Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal told Maria Bartiromo that the negative impact of a 50% decline in oil has been wide and deep. As USA Today reports, the prince of the Saudi royal family said that while he disagrees with the government on most aspects, he agreed with their decision on keeping production where it is, adding that "if supply stays where it is, and demand remains weak, you better believe it is gonna go down more. I'm sure we're never going to see $100 anymore… oil above $100 is artificial. It's not correct." On the theory that the US and the Saudis have agreed to keep prices low to pressure Russia, the prince exclaimed, that is "baloney and rubbish," adding that, "Saudi Arabia and Russia are in bed together here… both being hurt simultaneously."
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Pressure on oil prices has continued to build after key members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) indicated there would be no let up in the cartel’s strategy of allowing the cost of a barrel to plummet. Brent crude tested new six-year lows below $46 per barrel on Tuesday after the energy minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a senior delegate among the cartel’s 12 members, said there would be no change in strategy despite the continued slide in the price.
GERMANY - Accompanied by protest demonstrations, Kiev's Prime Minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, will have talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel on expanding German support to Ukraine. Yatsenyuk is pursuing an arms buildup by all possible means. Observers assume that Kiev is preparing a new offensive in Ukraine's civil war. It was reported that several NATO countries are involved in arming the country's military.
IRAN - The Iranian foreign ministry has dismissed President Shimon Peres's offer to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, AFP reported Tuesday. Iranian foreign ministry spokeswoman, Marzieh Afkham, said her country would never recognize the Jewish state or change its stance, and claimed Peres's offer was aimed at easing Israeli isolation in the world. "There has not been nor will there be any change on Iran's stance and views regarding the Zionist regime," Afkam said. "Iran does not recognize Israel. Our position regarding this oppressive and occupationist regime - which is completely illegitimate and has been created to occupy the lands of the Palestinians - is clear," she added. On Sunday, Peres said in an interview he would have no problem meeting with Rouhani.
EUROPE - The wave of terror that left 17 people dead in and around Paris has ushered in a new sense of insecurity across Europe — but also what could be a defining moment for the anti-immigrant, anti-Islam forces of the far right. Nationalist and populist movements are surging across the region, most notably in France, where the National Front — a party once linked to former Nazi collaborators — has become the nation’s third-largest political force.
UK - A British hate preacher backed the Paris massacres just hours after the bloody events unfolded and told his followers ‘Britain is the enemy of Islam’. Cleric Mizanur Rahman, of Palmers Green, north London, defended the brutal murder of 12 people at the Charlie Hebdo offices, saying ‘insulting Islam… they can’t expect a different result.’ Experts have warned the sermon, which backed the jihadists who killed 17 people over three days in the French capital, could incite further killings.