Israel’s Ministry of Defense is accelerating the development of the country’s laser air defense system called Iron Beam through a $530 million contract that the ministry signed with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Elbit Systems, Breaking Defense reported on Monday. The contract, which Israel’s Ministry of Defense announced on X as a “landmark deal,” positions...
Category: Middle East
US, UAE Hold Iron Defender Maritime Exercise to Enhance Interoperability
Troops from the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard are participating in the ongoing Iron Defender 24 maritime exercise in the United Arab Emirates and its territorial and coastal waters. During the two-week bilateral exercise, which concludes on Thursday, the U.S. military and the UAE naval defense force jointly performed visit, board, search and...
US, Allies Warn Against Iranian Cyber Actors Targeting Critical Infrastructure Networks
Iranian cyber actors have been using brute force attacks such as password spraying since October 2023 to access critical infrastructure networks, according to a joint cybersecurity advisory from U.S., Canadian and Australian government agencies. The advisory authors, including the U.S. National Security Agency, Communications Security Establishment Canada and the Australian Federal Police, warned that the...
State Department Clears UAE’s $1.2B FMS Request for GMLRS, ATACMS Munitions
The United Arab Emirates has secured U.S. Department of State approval to procure munitions for the Lockheed Martin-built Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System and Army Tactical Missile System and related logistics and program support, valued at $1.2 billion. Under the potential foreign military sale, the UAE government can purchase 259 GMLRS M31A1 Unitary pods each...
Leonardo to Upgrade UAE’s Military Communications Network
Leonardo has secured a contract from the United Arab Emirates to upgrade the Ministry of Defence’s communications network. Under the contract, the Italian defense technology company will design and modernize the Emirati military’s network, focusing on advanced encryption techniques to ensure the system is secure, integrated and interoperable. Initially launched in 2017, the initiative aims...
Fact Sheet Highlights Iran-Backed Cyber Actors Targeting Individuals Associated With National Political Organizations
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the FBI said malicious cyber actors affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps are targeting personal and business online accounts of people associated with national political organizations and those involved in Iranian and Middle Eastern affairs. In a joint fact sheet, the agencies warned that the IRGC...
Report: Cerebras Anticipates CFIUS Decision Regarding Investment by Emirati Tech Group
The initial public offering of American artificial intelligence firm Cerebras Systems may be delayed due to national security considerations regarding a planned investment by G42. According to a Reuters report, Cerebras’s IPO roadshow was scheduled for early next week, but the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has yet to complete its review...
Australia Enhances Readiness to Secure Civilians Amid Rising Middle East Tension
Some Australian Defence Force personnel and aircraft are deployed to the Middle East as part of Operation Beech to assist Australian citizens and approved foreign nationals in case the security situation in the region deteriorates further due to the ongoing Hamas-Israel conflict. The Australian Army and Royal Australian Air Force personnel and C-130J aircraft were...
Xage Security Boosts Global Expansion Goal in Two New Executive Appointments
Zero trust cybersecurity company Xage Security has named Russell McGuire its global chief revenue officer and Ashraf Daqqa its vice president for the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa. The new appointments affirm the Palo Alto, California-based technology company’s goal of broadening its market abroad, Xage said in a statement Monday. Commenting on the new appointments,...
US Includes Data Centers in Preapproval Program to Boost AI Development, National Security
The U.S. Department of Commerce has expanded its Validated End User program to include foreign data centers, allowing for general authorization of imported designated items rather than requiring multiple individual permits for exporters. The Bureau of Industry and Security within the department said data centers seeking to be part of the VEU program must pass through an interagency review, a rigorouse process that aims to establish safeguards that prevent the diversion or misuse of U.S. technology in ways that could harm national security. “This update will contribute to the development of a trusted ecosystem for the responsible use of advanced computing and artificial intelligence,” said the BIS announcement.