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The Beat<\/strong><\/p>\n All that glitters\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u2026 is not gold, and not all that is gold is legally mined.<\/p>\n African Matters<\/em> profiles<\/a> the latest developments in Ghana\u2019s fight to curb galamsey<\/em>, the practice of illegal artisanal mining. In April this year, practitioners were given<\/a> three weeks to stop mining; consequently, 544 excavators were removed<\/a> from the sites. But it\u2019s a wicked problem, not least because upper estimates suggest the illegal mines support the livelihood of up to 3 million individuals. And, to complicate matters, there has recently been an influx of Chinese miners, numbering in the \u2018tens of thousands\u2019, as well adjacent Chinese investment (PDF<\/a>). The recent lynching<\/a> of a government soldier assigned to help police the mines will only muddy the waters.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Insight Crime<\/em> has suggested<\/a> that illegal gold mining in Costa Rica hints at a diversifying criminal landscape. There\u2019s also an update<\/a> on the case of an American gold importer who allegedly raked in billions of dollars from illegal mines in Peru\u2014the intricacies of the investigation highlight the adaptability of the crime networks plying the trade.<\/p>\n And finally, Executive News <\/em>gives us a detailed look<\/a> at Beirut\u2019s surprising gold trade, noting that African gold-smuggling may be facilitated by Lebanese exporters.<\/p>\n In a nutshell<\/em><\/p>\n Outside Online <\/em>brings us a fantastic longform account of the curious case of the disappearing nuts<\/a>. (As soon as you read the words \u2018Nut Theft Task Force\u2019 you know things are going to be good.)<\/p>\n CT Scan <\/strong><\/p>\n Effects of a Trump budget on CT efforts<\/em><\/p>\n President Trump\u2019s budget proposal<\/a> was released last week and Americans in the CT community are less than impressed<\/a>. The budget calls for a reduction in security spending on nation-wide initiatives such as the Urban Area Security Initiative\u00a0<\/a> (UASI) and the State Homeland Security Program<\/a>. Considering the horrible attacks in Manchester just last week, Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer says its makes \u2018absolutely no sense\u2019<\/a> to cut funding from the UASI, noting that the initiative has been the \u2018lifeblood of New York\u2019s anti-terror programs and the cornerstone of effective preparedness and prevention against terror threats\u2019.<\/p>\n Included in the budget are significant cuts<\/a> to peacekeeping operations, which Eric Rosand and Alistair Millar from Brookings argue is unlikely to lead to a reduction in terrorist violence<\/a> over the long term. They believe that a successful CT strategy\u00a0should include promoting traditional \u2018soft power tools\u2019 such as programs that promote the peaceful resolution of political disputes and grievances, development, good governance, human rights, economic growth and the rule of law.<\/p>\n Engaging youth in CVE programs <\/em><\/p>\n Australian terrorism experts have warned that a lack of community engagement\u00a0is discrediting CVE programs<\/a> which target Australian youths vulnerable to radicalisation. Experts argue that due to the perceived stigma attached to talking with government agencies, individuals are wary of reporting potentially radicalised people to authorities. They argue the focus needs to change from surveillance of children to \u2018understanding the broader social issues youths face\u2019. Interestingly, a similar argument was recently made<\/a> at the opening of the OSCE-wide CT conference<\/a>.<\/p>\n Checkpoint<\/strong><\/p>\n Malaysia heightens border security amid regional chaos<\/em><\/p>\n After the recent string of bombings in Indonesia<\/a> and Thailand<\/a>, and the rebel siege<\/a> of the Philippines\u2019 Marawi City, the Malaysian government has announced<\/a> heightened security measures near its borders with those neighbouring countries. In Sabah, nearest to Mindanao where President Duterte has declared martial law<\/a>, the Malaysian armed forces will deploy<\/a> two additional patrol ships and the National Special Operations Force<\/a> in addition to the troops already stationed on the islands off Borneo\u2019s coast. Further east, combat boats and additional infantry troops will guard the Lahad Datu coastline. Due to its proximity to Mindanao, Malaysia is also on high alert in anticipating a potential influx<\/a> of refugees and militants.<\/p>\n A Palestinian\u2019s checkpoint scrum<\/em><\/p>\n June marks 50 years<\/a> since the end of the 1967 Six-Day War that began Israel\u2019s occupation of Palestine. The Washington Post<\/em> has delved into the lives<\/a> of some of the 70,000 West Bank Palestinians who push through checkpoints to get to their construction jobs in Israel. To bypass the scrum and get to work faster, these workers resort to scaling the \u2018walls of cages\u2019 at Checkpoint 300 near Rachel\u2019s Tomb\u2014a sacred site to Jews, Christians and Muslims.<\/p>\n First Responder<\/strong><\/p>\n Nuclear (un)safety<\/em><\/p>\n An article in Science <\/em>magazine last week, \u2018Nuclear safety regulation in the post-Fukushima era\u2019, summarised here<\/a>, makes some alarming revelations about the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The authors (researchers from Princeton University and the Union of Concerned Scientists) argue the NRC\u2019s refusal to adopt a critical protection measure against a catastrophic nuclear waste fire was justified by \u2018faulty analysis\u2019. Among other factors, it\u2019s argued the NRC deliberately excluded the possibility of a terrorist attack from its modelling and as a result significantly underestimated the scale of destruction of such a disaster. The paper links the decision to nuclear industry and congressional pressure on the NRC, to \u2018low-ball the potential consequences of a fire\u2019 to avoid cost increases and potential plant shut-downs. One scenario modelled shows fallout from a fire could be bigger than that of the 2011 Fukushima accident.<\/p>\n Disaster in Sri Lanka<\/em><\/p>\n Monsoon rains have caused Sri Lanka\u2019s worst flooding in 14 years, with at least 194 people reported killed<\/a> and more than half a million affected. The death toll is expected to rise as the severe weather continues, and authorities warn of disease risks<\/a> and possible crocodile attacks. Australia has pledged $500,000<\/a> for rescue assistance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Beat All that glitters\u2026 \u2026 is not gold, and not all that is gold is legally mined. African Matters profiles the latest developments in Ghana\u2019s fight to curb galamsey, the practice of illegal artisanal …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":596,"featured_media":32191,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[809,1178,172,25],"class_list":["post-32190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-cve","tag-natural-disaster","tag-nuclear-security","tag-southeast-asia"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n