Month: October 2013

Working on Ebola

by Siddha Hover, posted in News

Scientists at the University of Winnipeg in Canada have developed an Ebola treatment drug cocktail which has proven effective in 6 of seven monkeys (three cynomolgus and four rhesus) up to three days post infection. 

CTV – “The work builds on earlier research which showed a cocktail of three cloned antibodies saved four of four primates when given 24 hours after infection and two of four treated 48 hours after infection. This time the researchers added interferon-alpha, a chemical made by the immune system, to the treatment regime. Two of four primates survived when they were given the chemical one day after infection, and then the antibody cocktail four days later. In order for a treatment to be useful against the five types of Ebola viruses or their cousin, the Marburg virus, it must be something that can enhance survival when given days after infection, which is when cases would typically come to light.”

 Read more here. 

(Image: The easily recognizable ebola virus’ distinct, filamentous morphology, via CDC)

Image of the Week: Malaria!

by Siddha Hover, posted in Images

Pictured below is a red blood cell infected with malaria, false colored in blue – you can see the malaria virions as the brighter blue spots within the cells. To the left, uninfected red blood cells are shown in red, their surfaces smooth.

malaria

mala

 

Event: The Chemicals, The Conflict, & The Challenges in Syria

by Siddha Hover, posted in Events

Speakers: Dr. Paul Walker, Green Cross International, Michael Moodie, International CBW Commentator, Dr. Chen Kane, Center for Nonproliferation Studies
Event Location: American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2nd Floor, 1200 New York Avenue NW, Washington DC 20005
Event Details:  October 23, 2013  5:00 – 6:30pm
Light refreshments to follow
RSVP

The use of chemical weapons by any nation constitutes a significant threat to international peace and security. Nevertheless, in 2013 chemical weapons were used in Syria, sparking international outrage and condemnation. With pressure from the U.S. and Russia, Syria acceded to the Chemical Weapons Convention in September 2013 and agreed to participate in an accelerated process to destroy the chemical weapons. While this has been received as an unexpected yet positive development, the implementation of such a process raises significant science and security issues.

On October 23, the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Center for Science, Technology and Security Policy and the Federation of American Scientists are convening a panel to discuss the science and security involved in the implementation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2118 in Syria.

The speakers will explore the technical, political, and regional issues surrounding chemical weapons in Syria, including: the technical solutions and expertise required to ensure accelerated destruction of chemical weapons; the broader regional impact of Syria’s accession to the Chemical Weapons Convention; and the challenges involved in carrying out destruction in a civil war environment.

This Week in DC: Events

by Siddha Hover, posted in Events, Week In DC

Our October Biodefense Policy Seminar is this Wednesday! Dr. Paul Walker, chemical weapons destruction expert, 2013 Right Livelihood laureate, and Director at Green Cross International will discuss chemical weapons disarmament in Syria. For more information, please see below or visit our Biodefense Policy Seminar page here.

Tuesday, October 15

DARPA Director Dr. Arati Prabhakar
Elliot School of International Affairs
3:30PM

Arati Prabhakar, Director, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) A reception will follow. RSVP: spi@gwu.edu Sponsored by the Center for International Science and Technology Policy.

Wednesday, October 16

Featured Event: “Syria and Chemical Weapons: Building a World Free of Weapons of Mass Destruction” – GMU Biodefense Policy Seminar
Speaker: Dr. Paul Walker
Location: Meese Conference Hall, GMU Fairfax Campus
Time: 7:20PM

Paul Walker will join us to discuss Syrian proliferation concerns. Dr. Walker is the International Director of the Environmental Security and Sustainability (ESS) Program for Green Cross International (GCI) and manages the Washington DC office for GCI and its US national affiliate, Global Green USA. The ESS Program is an international effort to facilitate and advocate the safe and environmentally sound demilitarization, nonproliferation, and remediation of nuclear, chemical, biological, and conventional weapons stockpiles. Walker has worked, spoken, and published widely in the related areas of international security, threat reduction, non-proliferation, weapons demilitarization, and environmental security for over three decades and took part in the first on-site inspection by US officials of the Russian chemical weapons stockpile at Shchuch’ye in the Kurgan Oblast in 1994. Since that time he has worked closely with the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), US and Russian officials, the US Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) Program, the G-8 Global Partnership, and other multilateral regimes to help foster cooperative, timely, and safe elimination of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and related systems. He has helped to permanently eliminate over 50,000 tons of chemical weapons and millions of munitions in six countries to date. Dr. Walker was also recently awarded the 2013 Right Livelihood Award, widely known as the alternate Nobel Peace Prize. To read more about the award and Dr. Walker’s work, visit their website here.

“Minimum Deterrence: Examining the Evidence”
Hudson Institute
12:00 – 1:00PM

Recently, President Obama called for large reductions in the U.S. nuclear arsenal from the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty levels. Such reductions could leave the U.S. with roughly 1,000 weapons. The President’s announcement has renewed the debate over the appropriate size of the U.S. nuclear weapons arsenal.

Turkey and the Syrian Crisis: Unending Challenges of an Unending War
Georgetown University
1:00PM

Even though no country in the region has been immune from the fallout effects of the Syrian war, Turkey has been particularly hit hard. In addition to the ever-growing refugee problem, the war has also exacerbated Turkey’s own sectarian balance. The growing Kurdish autonomy in Northern Syria is also posing its own set of challenges to the Turkish government which is faced with mounting domestic opposition and a fragile Kurdish peace process. Join this discussion on the U.S and Turkish policies on Syria, the role of the Kurds in the war, and security and humanitarian challenges faced by Turkey.

A Statesman’s Forum with United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson
Brookings Institution
2:15 – 3:15 PM

On October 16, Foreign Policy at Brookings will host United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson for a Statesman’s Forum focusing on the United Nations’ current agenda and upcoming work. Among the key issues to be addressed by Ambassador Eliasson are the conflict in Syria, Iran’s diplomatic openings, developments in Afghanistan and the UN and its post-2015 development strategy. Brookings Acting Vice President and Director of Foreign Policy Ted Piccone will moderate the discussion.

Thursday, October 17

Launching the World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2013
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
12:30 – 2:30PM

The Heinrich Böll Foundation, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) are delighted to invite you to a luncheon discussion with Mycle Schneider, the lead author of the World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2013. The plummeting natural gas prices, sovereign debt crisis, proliferation concerns and improved economic conditions for renewable energy sources have created a challenging global environment for nuclear power. Contrary to what the nuclear industry would have us believe that we are seeing a global renaissance in nuclear power, nuclear power the world over is on the decline. This is especially true in the US, where operating reactors are being closed as uneconomic for the first time in 15 years. The World Nuclear Industry Status Report provides a vital reality check to the current situation of the global nuclear industry as well as identifying important nuclear trends

Friday, October 18

Viruses: Evolution Friend or Foe?
Georgetown University Medicine
12:00PM

Presented By: Chuan (River) Xiao, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry University of Texas at El Paso.

The Pandora Report 10.11.13

by Siddha Hover, posted in Pandora Report

A briefer report this week due staff illness (one of the many drawbacks of studying biodefense is the crippling hypochondria that comes with it  – we’re pretty sure we’ve come down with MERS). Highlights include actual cases of MERS, Hajj starting and outbreak fears, dengue in Houston, and the government shutdown leaving us exposed. Happy Friday!

Event Note: The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the efforts in destroying chemical weapons. Our October Biodefense Policy Seminar, happening Wednesday Oct. 16th, features Dr. Paul Walker, who was recently rewarded the prestigious Swedish Rights Livelihood Award for his personal contributions to the destruction of chemical weapons. Join us and Dr. Walker as we discuss disarmament of Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile Wednesday evening. 

Virus hangs over Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca

Hajj is finally upon us, will millions of pilgrims flooding the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca for the annual muslim pilgrimige, culminating on October 15th. Doctors in hospitals across Southern California have been alerted by state health departments to watch for fever and respiratory symptoms in individuals returning from the Middle East. Here’s to hoping for the best.

LA Times – “The hajj, which typically draws more than 10,000 from the U.S. and culminates Oct. 15 this year, is just the sort of environment where a virus can spread efficiently. Conditions can be hot and crowded, said Jihad Turk, a religious advisor for the Islamic Center of Southern California in Los Angeles and president of Bayan Claremont, an Islamic graduate school in Claremont. Pilgrims retrace the steps of the biblical Abraham, his wife Hagar and their son Ishmael, considered the founders of the Islamic people. In one key ritual, they march seven times around the cube-shaped Kaaba in Mecca, said to have been built by Abraham and Ishmael.’You have a million people all at the same time walking around the Kaaba,’ said Turk, who has participated in the hajj twice. ‘It’s like being in a crowded subway in New York for hours and hours at a time.”

Genome studies link MERS origin to bats

Speaking of MERS, another study has emerged linking the virus’ origins to bats. To date there have been 136 cases of the resipatory syndrome, with 58 fatalities.

Infectious Disease News – “Previous research suggested that MERS uses the DPP-4 receptor to enter the cell. Researchers from Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity at the University of Sydney in Australia analyzed seven bat genomes to determine the sequence of the DPP4 gene. They compared these findings with those from other mammalian species. They found three residues in bat DPP-4 receptors that directly interact with the viral surface glycoprotein. The mutations in the bat genes also occurred at a faster rate, which suggests that the virus existed in bats for a long period and has evolved before it began to infect humans.”

Study: Dengue fever found in Houston

Dengue, the mosquito-borne virus which ravages so much of the developing world, has re-emerged in Houstan. According to a new study from Baylor College, antibodies to the disease where present in 47 individuals sampled as part of a larger West Nile study, suggesting an outbreak in 2003.

Houston Chronicle – “‘Dengue virus can cause incredibly severe disease and death,’ [study researcher] Murray said. ‘This study shows that Houston may be at risk of an outbreak, that people need to be on the lookout.’ While no blood and cerebrospinal fluid samples from after 2005 are available for study, Murray said the virus likely is still in Houston. Dengue fever is widespread in other parts of the world. Whenever it appears in the U.S., local officials hope to contain it. It can cause severe body aches, high fever and rash. Its most severe forms can cause severe bleeding and death. In central Florida, 20 cases of dengue fever have been reported this year.”

Idle CDC Worries Experts as Flu Season Starts

We can attest first hand that flu season has definitely started. As we mentioned last week, it’s happening without the watchful eye of the CDC surveillance system. While there has been some private industry pull-through, the supplemental surveillance isn’t enough to provide a good national picture of flu trends.

MedPage – “But it’s not just data and it’s not just flu, according to Gregory Poland, MD, an infectious diseases specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.’There are an endless number of infectious disease threats that, as we often say, are an airplane ride away from us,’ Poland said. And the CDC is the ‘only entity’ that tracks infectious disease on a national scale, he added. ‘So now you’ve got a week, 2 weeks, who knows how long, where there’s no one really responsible for watching what’s happening nationally.’ He painted a grim picture of what might happen while the agency is all-but-shuttered.

“‘Worst-case scenario is a novel infectious disease is imported into the U.S.,’ he said, with cases scattered at first across a dozen states. ‘Nobody understands that it’s happening simultaneously in real time and we don’t have 12 cases, we have 1,200 cases before we realize what’s going on.'”

Scientists Withhold Details on New Botulinum Toxin

by Siddha Hover, posted in News

Scientists have discovered a new form of botulinum toxin, but have taken the unusual measure of withholding key details of the discovery, citing concerns over bioterrorism. What does everyone think? We’d love to hear your comments.

NPR – “That’s because botulinum toxin is one of the most poisonous substances known. It causes botulism, and the newly identified form of it can’t be neutralized by any available treatment. The researchers published two reports describing their work online in The Journal of Infectious Diseases. The information in those reports is deliberately incomplete, to prevent anyone from using it as the recipe for a potent new bioweapon. ‘This is not the usual process for publishing manuscripts. We thought in this case an exception was appropriate,’ says David Hooper, an infectious disease specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital who serves as one of the editors of the journal. Normally, the journal would require that the scientists disclose the genetic sequences needed to make the toxin. In this case, however, the researchers didn’t want to do that because of the security risk.”

Read more here and then come back and tell us what you think!

Walker, October Seminar Speaker, on Destroying Chemical Weapons

by Siddha Hover, posted in Events, News

As destruction efforts in Syria seem to be continuing apace, the question many of us have asked ourselves is how does one destroy a chemical weapon? Dr. Paul Walker concisely addresses this in his recent Bulletin of Atomic Scientists piece, “How to destroy chemical weapons?”. To hear more, be sure to join us next Wednesday evening for our October Biodefense Policy Seminar featuring Dr. Walker, who will discuss efforts to destroy Syrian CW at length. For more information, please visit our events page.

Bulletin of Atomic Scientists – “The recent news that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is willing to accede to the international Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) has raised the question: How might one actually go about eliminating Syria’s chemical munitions?

The CWC entered into force in 1997. Seven CWC member countries have declared existing chemical weapons stockpiles—Albania, India, Iraq, Libya, Russia, South Korea, and the United States. Three of these—Albania, India, and South Korea—completed stockpile destruction in the last few years. Three more—Libya, Russia, and the US—expect to complete their destruction programs over the next decade. And Iraq, which joined the convention in 2009, is planning the destruction of its chemical weapons equipment and agents left from the 1991 Gulf War.

There are essentially three broad categories of destruction approaches, all used successfully in the above programs. These approaches can be mixed and matched, depending on the type, size, quantity, and condition of the agents, munitions, and containers…”

Read more here.

(image: Jen Spie/Flickr)

Two Killed in Polio Vaccination Drive in Pakistan

by Siddha Hover, posted in News

A bomb killed two and injured 20 others during a polio vaccination drive in Pakistan. Pakistanis one of just three remaining states where polio remains endemic. An anti-Taliban group member and police officer comprised the fatalities. This is just the latest in a long campaign against aid workers, doctors, nurses, and public health officials working to try and eradicate the crippling disease in the region. The vaccinators, often relatively poor women, often work to inoculate local populations at great personal risk, usually travelling door-to-door in an attempt to reach as many children as possible.

Poliomyelitis, or polio, is an often fatal disease spread by the poliovirus. Once contracted, the disease is incurable, and can result in complete paralysis of the legs. The disease is easily preventable through a vaccine administered as oral drops.

The Independent – “When the authorities are unable to provide sufficient security, these women bear the brunt of the Taliban attacks. Last year, gunmen killed four female polio workers in the city of Karachi on the same day, and two women were killed in Peshawar, very close to where Monday morning’s bomb was detonated, apparently by remote control. In Nigeria, Islamist gunmen killed nine health workers in February.”

Read more here.

Bioweapons Alarmism in Syria

by Siddha Hover, posted in Media Notes, News, Policy Review

by Dr. Sonia Ben Ouagrham-Gormley, originally published in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists

As Secretary of State John Kerry challenged Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to hand over Syria’s chemical weapons in early September, articles published in the Washington Post and National Interest argued that the current focus on Syria’s chemical weapons is distracting the international community from a much deadlier threat: Syria’s biological weapons. The sources for the Washington Post article (one of whom also happens to be a co-author of the National Interest piece) warn that Assad’s regime could use its biological weapons in retaliation against Western forces or its own population. Both articles assert that Syria has maintained a dormant program since the country last engaged in biological weapons developments in the 1970s and 1980s and could easily reactivate its program to produce, on short notice, the stockpile of agents required to retaliate against its enemies. This threat is real, the argument goes, because Syria could tap into its pharmaceutical and agricultural industries to support the effort. Finally, the articles warn that Syria might have retained a strain of smallpox from a 1972 outbreak, which could be used to develop a devastating biological weapon.

These two articles provide no tangible evidence to support their claims. More important, their speculations contradict extant empirical evidence on the difficulty of achieving the level of biological weapons capability that the articles claim Syria maintains or could reestablish. To avoid falling prey to the same biological weapons hysteria that led to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, it is important to look carefully at such claims. Close examination shows them to be exaggerated, at best.

To evaluate Syria’s ability to revive a dormant program, one would need to know what kind of research and production infrastructure the Syrian government currently possesses. There is, however, very little publicly available information on the scope of Syria’s bioweapons program, if any.

If Syria retains only a small research capability developed in its bioweapons program of the 1970s and ‘80s, the likelihood that it would be able to quickly produce sufficient amounts of bioweapons for retaliation is very slim. The country would first need to create the research, development, production, and weaponization infrastructure needed for a crash program, a process that may take several months to even years, particularly in a war zone. Assuming that the Syrians already have stocks of agents—and it is pure speculation to say they do— they will need to conduct exploratory research to determine which agent is the most promising as a bioweapon and develop a production process that will maintain the agent’s lethal characteristics during scale-up and storage. Creating this production capability is also neither easily or quickly achieved.

In the early 1980s, Iraq attempted to reactivate a biological weapons program that had been largely abandoned in the preceding decade; it took the Saddam Hussein regime three years—from 1983 to 1986—to conduct the needed exploratory research and identify the agents most desirable for bioweapons work. Even then, the Iraqis were able to develop only crude liquid agents that lost toxicity within six to eight months. They were also unable to develop a bioweapons-specific dissemination capability, relying instead on personnel from their chemical weapons program to adapt chemical bomb casings and warheads for bioweapons use. This strategy resulted in ineffective weapons that would have released agents upon impact, destroying most of the bio-agent in the process.

Even if Syria already has significant bioweapons infrastructure in place, reactivating it would not necessarily be a quick or simple process. When in the early 1980s Soviet-era authorities decided to activate the mobilization facility in Stepnogorsk, Kazakhstan in order to produce anthrax, it took about two years to launch production, even though the facility had been established for several years and had the equipment and minimum staff needed for its operation. The suggestion that Syria could swiftly launch a crash program from a long-dormant infrastructure and produce effectively weaponized agents in amounts sufficient for a retaliatory military attack seems a considerable stretch from likely reality.

Read the rest of the piece here.

(Image credit: Scott Montreal/Flickr)

This Week in DC: Events

by Siddha Hover, posted in Events, Week In DC

The government may be shutdown, but apparently DC isn’t. Here are a smattering of the week’s science, international security, and public health events. 

Monday, October 7, 2010

When Children are Refugees: Pediatric Health Care in Refugee Camps
George Mason University, Founders Hall, Arlington, VA
9:00am – 11:00AM

Co-sponsored by the World Medical & Health Policy journal, the Policy Studies Organization, the Center for International Medical Policy and Practice at the School of Public Policy and the Biodefense Program in the Department of Public and International Affairs at George Mason University. Dr. Khuri-Bulos, has written and spoken on “The Role of Immunization in Achieving the Millennium Development Goals,” and is responsible for the immunization program Jordan established for children living at Zaatari. Dr. Waldman, former Technical Director of the USAID-funded BASICS program, a global child survival effort, is President of the Board of Directors of Doctors of the World-USA.

Deciphering Russian Policy on Syria: What Happened…and What’s Next
Wilson Center
12:00 – 1:00PM

Since the Arab Spring arrived in Syria in 2011, Russia has strongly supported the Assad regime’s efforts to suppress its opponents, while the U.S. has remained relatively uninvolved. But when, in August 2013, over 1,400 people were killed in a chemical weapons attack (believed to have been perpetrated by the Syrian government), President Obama declared his intention to launch a military strike against Syria once he obtained Congressional approval for it. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov then proposed that Syrian chemical weapons be placed under international control. While the Obama Administration has embraced this proposal, it is still not clear whether it can be implemented or if (even if it is) Russia and the U.S. can work together to resolve the conflict in Syria.

A New Look at American Foreign Policy: The Third in a Series of Discussions
Heritage Foundation
12:00PM – 1:00PM

For decades, libertarians and conservatives have been at odds over American foreign policy. But perhaps a conversation is possible today between classical liberals and conservatives on the nature of American foreign policy. Some are trying to find a “middle way” that is less doctrinaire. At the same time the “neo” conservative phase of hyper military interventionism is a spent force in conservative circles. Therefore, the time may be ripe for an open and honest conversation among some libertarians and conservatives about the future of American foreign policy. It may be possible a new consensus could be found between Americans who consider themselves classical liberals and traditional conservatives on the purposes of American foreign policy. Join us as Heritage continues the discussion regarding this question, what the dangers and opportunities are and whether they afford an opportunity to take a “new look” at American foreign policy.

Domestic Barriers to Dismantling the Militant Infrastructure in Pakistan
US Institute of Peace
2:00 PM

Pakistan’s inability to tackle Islamist militancy within its borders and to prevent cross-border attacks from its soil remains a constant worry for the world. While the Pakistani state pledges lack of capacity to deal with the various facets of the militant challenge, the world is unconvinced of the ‘will’ of the Pakistani leadership to fight with determination. The Pakistani security establishment has been seen as selectively targeting certain Islamist outfits while ignoring, supporting, or abetting others

Revolutionary Mosquitoes: Malaria, Yellow Fever, and Independence in the Americas, 1776-1825
Wilson Center
4:00PM – 5:30 PM

John McNeill argues that yellow fever and malaria, both mosquito-borne diseases, helped make the Americas free. In the campaigns of 1780-81 in the Carolinas and Virginia, in the Haitian Revolution of 1791-1804, in the wars of independence in the Spanish Americas of 1808-25, locally born and raised soldiers and militia enjoyed a strong advantage over European troops in terms of their resistance to these two infections. Did disease tip the military balance?

Tuesday, October 8

Rethinking U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy
CATO Institute
12:00 PM

Featuring Benjamin Friedman, Research Fellow in Defense and Homeland Security Policy, Cato Institute; and Christopher Preble Vice President for Defense and Foreign Policy Studies, Cato Institute; moderated by Laura Odato, Cato Institute. The United States maintains nearly 1,600 deployed nuclear weapons and a triad of systems—bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs)—to deliver them. Current plans call for modernizing all three legs of the nuclear triad, which could cost taxpayers over $100 billion. A just-released Cato paper explains why a triad is no longer necessary. U.S. nuclear weapons policies have long rested on Cold War–era myths, and the rationales have aged badly in the two decades since the Soviet Union’s demise. Two of the paper’s authors, Benjamin Friedman and Christopher Preble, will discuss the origins of the nuclear triad and explain why a far smaller arsenal deployed entirely on submarines would be sufficient to deter attacks on the United States and its allies and would save roughly $20 billion annually.

Security and Governance in Somalia: Consolidating Gains, Confronting Challenges, and Charting the Path Forward
U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
3:00PM

For more information, visit the website here.

Wednesday, October 9

Towards an International Response Framework: Emergency Preparedness in the Asia-Pacific
Banyan Analytics
9:00AM – 4:00PM

How should the USG prepare to respond to future Asian disasters, especially CBRNE? What are the response and assistance expectations of our Asian friends and allies? How necessary and practical is an International Response Framework (IRF)? What should an IRF look like?

NSA Surveillance: What we know, What to do About it
CATO Institute
10:00 AM

Since June, news reports based on documents leaked by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden have revealed the depth and breadth of NSA surveillance activities. The NSA scandal’s many dimensions include: mass domestic surveillance of telephone call information; allegations that officials deceived Congress, the courts, and the public about the nature of the NSA’s programs; alleged access to the Internet’s backbone and the traffic of major Internet companies; and systematic efforts to undercut the use of the encryption that secures communications and financial information. Please join us on October 9 at a conference focusing on these issues and more, featuring keynote addresses by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI), and Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI). Conference speakers and panels will explore the reporting challenges, legal issues, technology and business dimensions, and potential for reforms related to NSA surveillance. Additional information on speakers and panel topics will be posted soon.

Thursday, October 10

Rise of Radical Islamism in the South Caucasus: The Threat and Response
Hudson Institute
9:00 AM – 2:30 PM

The conference topic is especially timely as the U.S. continues its withdrawal from Afghanistan, instability mounts in North Africa and the Middle East, and Tehran continues to reject international calls for a halt to its enrichment activities. This turmoil also underscores the importance of strong and stable American allies in a region, the South Caucasus, of increasing importance to U.S. interests. While Iran is using home-grown Shia Islamists to undermine the secular nature of Azerbaijan, the growing influence of Salafi groups in the North Caucasus is now spilling into neighboring countries. At the same time, poorly designed and inadequately executed responses by various governments have contributed to this increase in extremism. Given this situation, how can South Caucasian governments and the international community prevent the spread of radicalism and promote traditions of tolerant Islam that allow co-existence and cooperation among Christians, Jews, and Sunni and Shia Muslims? What is the U.S. security strategy and vision for the Caucasus region? What is Iran’s strategy in the South Caucasus and to what extent should the region shape U.S.-Iran relations?

NSA Surveillance Programs and the Najibullah Zazi Terrorist Threat
Brookings Institution
10:30AM – 12:00PM

The extensive National Security Agency surveillance programs revealed this summer by former U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden have been defended by the United States government, citing their role in preventing terrorist attacks at home and abroad. The most frequently cited example of such success is the thwarting of the September 2009 al Qaeda terrorist plot – led by Najibullah Zazi, an Afghan-American – to attack the New York City subway system. Pulitzer-prize winning journalists Matt Apuzzo and Adam Goldman have just finished an in depth investigation of the Zazi threat, and in their new book, Enemies Within: Inside NYPD’s Secret Spying Unit and Bin Ladin’s Final Plot Against America (Touchstone, 2013), they outline how the plot was foiled and what the plot reveals about the al Qaeda threat today.

Streamlining US Visa Policies for Scientists, Engineers, and Students
GMU Technology, Science, and Innovation Policy Research Seminars
12:00 – 1:30 PM

This monthly seminar series, sponsored by George Mason University’s Center for Science and Technology Policy (School of Public Policy), explores new ideas and work-in-progress with the Washington-area research community. It’s open and free to all interested researchers with a special invitation extended to graduate students. The seminars are held at the George Mason University’s School of Public Policy (Founders Hall) on the Arlington campus, a short walk from the Orange Line’s Virginia Square/GMU Metro stop (map). The seminar starts at about 12:00 and concludes no later than 1:30. CSTP will provide coffee and cookies — participants are welcome to bring a brown bag lunch. Driving Directions can be found here.