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US Senate confirms new SACEUR, Danish national arrested over Berlin Jewish sites recon for Iran & Czech intel reveals Chinese plot against Taiwan VP in Prague

US Senate confirms new SACEUR, Danish national arrested over Berlin Jewish sites recon for Iran & Czech intel reveals Chinese plot against Taiwan VP in Prague

Welcome to the new Alpine Security Monitor. This project is only in its pilot stage at present. However, you can sign up and subscribe for weekly updates on security and geopolitics as it concerns the Alpine region, namely Austria, Czechia, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland (ok, little Liechtenstein and Monaco too when merited).

Currently, three tiers of subscriptions are offered: the free version (sign up below), member and warrior, available already for those who might stumble onto this site as we test what works and what does not.

 

MONS, BELGIUM – Senate confirms Grynkewich head of US Army Europe, SACEUR

  • Defense Scoop reports the US Senate confirmed the Air Force's Alexus Grynkewich as the successor to Army Gen. Christopher Cavoli as head of the US Army Europe and Supreme Allied Commander of NATO.

 

BERLIN, GERMANY – Danish citizen arrested over plot to attack Jewish sites in Germany

  • Fox News reports a Danish national, identified only as Ali S. under German privacy law, was arrested in the northern Danish city of Aarhus over allegations that he conducted reconnaissance on Jewish sites and individuals in the German capital on behalf of the Iranian government, German and Danish authorities announced Tuesday.
  • Earlier this year, the man was allegedly instructed by the Iranian government to carry out reconnaissance on "Jewish localities and specific Jewish individuals" in Berlin, including the German-Israeli Society and a building where Josef Schuster, the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, was believed to sometimes stay, Der Spiegel reports. He took pictures last month "in preparation for further intelligence activities, including possible terrorist attacks on Jewish targets," according to prosecutors.
  • After visiting a synagogue in the Ukrainian city of Odessa, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said, "If this suspicion is confirmed, it would be an outrageous incident that would once again demonstrate that Iran is a threat to Jews all over the world." Iran's ambassador to Germany was summoned to the country's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday over the incident.

 

PRAGUE, CZECHIA – Czech intelligence reveals car crash plot to intimidate Taiwan's VP

  • The Central European Times reports the Czech Security Information Service disclosed a plot by Chinese agents to intimidate the Vice-President of Taiwan, Hsiao Bi-khim, by staging a car crash when she was in Prague last week.
  • According to the Czech Security Information Service, "individuals linked to the Chinese embassy" tailed her motorcade in the Czech capital and considered "demonstrative kinetic action" with the intent to unsettle her but without causing physical injury, however they did not follow through on this plan.
  • The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Chinese ambassador and notified allies about the plot.Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council has also demanded a public apology while China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denied wrongdoing and accused the Czechs of "fabricating the story for political reasons".

 

PRAGUE, CZECHIA – All households to receive emergency preparedness manual this fall

  • Expats.cz reports that all households in Czechia will receive an emergency preparedness manual created with the assistance of the Fire and Rescue Service that offers "practical advice" for surviving the first 72 hours of a crisis as this is how long it might take for help to arrive.
  • Potential disasters cited in the booklet include floods, war and chemical accidents. A nationwide campaign announcing the booklet and its contents will begin in late summer.
  • The pamphlet is inspired by similar efforts in Scandinavian countries amid efforts to boost civic resilience in the face of rising security concerns across Europe.

 

PARIS, FRANCE – Macron holds first call with Putin since 2022, urges ceasefire

France 24 reports French President Emmanuel Macron held his first phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin since 2022 Tuesday where he urged Putin to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine "as soon as possible," the Élysée palace said. Macron informed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky before hand.

  • The call lasted two hours as Macron urged Putin to come to the negotiating table to end the conflict. The French leader "emphasized France's unwavering support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity". Putin countered the conflict was "a direct consequence of the policy of Western states," according to a statement from the Kremlin.
  • The two leaders also discussed Iran and Macron urged that Iran comply with the UN's nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT), which Tehran has said it is walking away from.

 

SAINT-ETIENNE, FRANCE – France makes first terror arrest of 'incel' individual

  • AFP reports authorities arrested an 18 year old French man who had been plotting a stabbing spree against women and charged him with terror offenses in the first known such case in the country linked to the mysoginist "incel" (or involuntarily celibate) movement.
  • The suspect was arrested Friday near a public high school in the southeastern city of Saint-Etienne by the DGSI domestic intelligence agency. He had two knives in his bag.

 

PARIS, FRANCE – France suffers under blistering heat wave; two dead, 300 hospitalized

  • Australia's ABC News report two are dead with 300 taken to the hospial in France due to heat exposure during the massive heat wave across Europe over the last week.
  • France 24 reports more than 1,300 schools were expected to close fully or partially in France and the top of the Eiffel Tower was closed earlier this week for several days due to the extreme heat.
  • Le Monde adds that wildfires broke out in the Corbières are of Aude in the country's southwest, forcing the evacuation of a campsite and an abbey. Experts warned the extreme temperatures were harming the country's wildlife and negatively effecting biodiversity.

 

SARDINIA, ITALY – Dangerous heat wave results in two deaths

  • Australia's ABC News report two men died on the beaches of Sardinia in separate incidents and red alerts for dangerous temperatures were issued in 18 cities due to the massive heat wave over the last week.
  • The New York Times reports large swaths of France and Italy (along with Greece, Portugal and Spain) experienced dangerously high temperatures and extreme heat over the past week. Authorities warned about the danger of wildfires and human health. Meterologists are attributing the high temperatures to a heat dome sitting over Western Europe which traps very hot, dry air and cause heat to intensify over time. The system is drifting eastward drawing in heat from North Africa, further intensifying the effect.
  • In Italy, temperatures reached 40 degrees Centigrade (104 degrres Fahrenheit) in the southeast Rome suburb of Tor Vergata whereas temperatures are normally a cooler 30 degrees Centigrade (86 degrees Fahrenheit) around Rome this time of year. France 24 reports a 70 year old Italian man in the northern Piemonte was killed Monday in a flash flood caused by heavy rains.

 

BEZNAU, SWITZERLAND – Nuclear plant halves output due to high temperatures

  • Swissinfo reports in Switzerland, the Beznau nuclear power plant had to reduce its output by half as the heat caused the temperature of the Aare River to reach 25 degrees Centigrade, the plant's operator Axpo announced.
  • The plant relies on water from the Aare to act as a cooling agent and then is returned to the river after. Unlike other nuclear plants in Switzerland, Beznau does not have a cooling tower.
  • Beznau was forced to reduce its output to protect the river's ecosystem to prevent further heating of the river and prevent "further stress" on aquatic life such as flora and fauna.

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – Swiss parliament announces investigation into F35 acquisition

  • Swissinfo reports the country's House of Representatives supervisory committee will conduct an investigation into the acquisition of 36 F35's from the US defense firm Lockheed Martin.
  • The investigation will focus on a disagreement that has arisen over the purchase between the cost to Switzerland when the purchase was announced in 2022 and the country's belief then that Switzerland had arranged for a fixed price when purchasing the fighter jets.
  • Now, the Control Committee will investigate the government's management while the contract was being negotiated as well as the communication over the terms with the parliament and the public.

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – Espionage threat remains high according to annual intel report

  • Swissinfo reports the annual "Security Switzerland 2025" dropped Wednesday and in it, the Federal Intelligence Service (FIS) said the country is a hub for foreign espionage activities due to its status as a technology hub and host of international organizations. Nothing about neutrality though, a rare occasion when the topic is conspicuously absent from the discourse.
  • The online radicalization of young people and the threat from terrorism remain top concerns as well.
  • Additional areas of concern include geopolitical competition between the US and China, the closer collaboration of Russia, China, North Korea and Iran and the ongoing war on Ukraine, which is expected to continue through 2025.

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – Investigation announced into intel service's work with Kaspersky

  • Swissinfo reports the Federal Council approved a request for the Attorney General's offce to open an espionage investigation into the Federal Intelligence Service's cyber team's "collaboration" with Russian software firm Kaspersky. Two "Western intelligence services" raised the alarm bell over the case involving "the illegal transmission of data" five years ago.
  • "Highly sensitive data" ended up in the hands of Russia's intelligence services as a result. Those involved face a potential custodial sentence of up to three years.
  • The Swiss Ministry of Justice submitted the request to the Federal Council which took more than six months to come to a decision about whether to permit a case to proceed.

 

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Ransomware attack hits health industry not-for-profit

  • Swissinfo reports a ransomware attack on the health industry not-for-profit Radix Foundation, which focuses on health promotion, resulted in stolen data being encrypted and published on the darkweb.
  • On Monday, Radix contacted Switzerland's National Cybersecurity Center (NCSC) following an initial analysis of the attack; various agencies within the country's federal administration are included among their clients.
  • The hackers were not able to penetrate the federal government's system, which Radix does not have access to.

 

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Swiss TV airs suspicions about diplomats' deaths in Tehran

  • Ynet News reports Swiss public television SRF aired a program Monday night casting suspicion on the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IGRC) in the case of two deaths involving Swiss diplomats in Tehran and a Swiss tourist "driven to suicide in prison" since May 2021. Switzerland serves as the protecting power of the US through an interests section at its recently evacuated embassy in Tehran.
  • Swiss deputy ambassador to Tehran Sylvie Brunner "fell to her death" from the 17th floor of her apartment in Tehran in May 2021, with Tehran blaming "mental issues" after a retracted claim that there was no reason to believe it was a suicide, though Iranin authorities claim they found an undated note in her apartment. Her brother said Iranian agents had visited her apartment before, leaving tell tale signs of their presence like shoe prints. A forensic investigation ruled that it was possible she could have been pushed to her death. Iran returned her body with several vital organs missing, including the brain and heart.
  • In 2023, a Swiss military attaché "collapsed from sudden illness," sustaining severe head and abdominal injuries after he passed out. He returned to Switzerland where he succumbed to his injuries. The SRF report revealed that he was working for Swiss intelligence at the time. Earlier this year, a Swiss tourist in his 60s was detained after allegedly photographing a military site and collecting soil samples nearby. He died in detention two months later.

 

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Swiss order dissolution of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation

  • Swissinfo and The Times of Israel report that Swiss government is dissolving the Geneva affiliate of the US and Israel-supported Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
  • Registered in the US state of Delaware, the GHF registered a branch of its offices in Geneva on February 12 of this year. The organization drew controversy "after hundreds of Palestinians were killed during aid distributions" and "UN criticism over a perceived lack of neutrality," leading to the departure of the Swiss director.
  • The Swiss Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations formally ordered the dissolution of the GHF citing the absence of a Swiss representative, address in Geneva, correct number of board members and a Swiss bank account.

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – Amnesty Palestine panel occurs after university cancels event

  • Keystone-SDA reports that controversial UN Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese "who does not speak on behalf of the UN but is mandated by the Human Rights Council," according to Swissinfo, appeared on a panel in Bern on Monday night after the University of Bern withdrew permission for the Amnesty International-hosted event on its campus, citing bias.
  • According to Der Bund, Amnesty International found a private event venue, Bern Eventfabrik, in the same district as the university to host the panel featuring Albanese, who "accuses Israel of war crimes and genocide". Keystone-SDA reports the event was attended by approximately 400 people.
  • She used the platform to call on Zug-based Swiss commodities trader and mining group Glencore "of profiting from an Israeli economy that has become an economy of genocide" and called on the firm "to stop doing business with Israel."

 

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – First Syrian to deported from an EU nation since the fall of Assad

  • Reuters, Politico and Euractiv report the first Syrian nation, a 32 year old man, was deported Thursday by Austria to Syria since the fall of dictator Bashar al Assad after his asylum status was revoked due to a criminal conviction.
  • He arrived in 2014 and applied for asylum but lost his refugee status as a result of a criminal record in 2019. Rights groups fear it could set a precedent and encourage other countries in the 27-nation bloc to try and take similar course.
  • He was to be deported last week but air space closures in the Middle East due to the Iran-Israel conflagration delayed the man's deportation.

 

Stay safe and cool and happy Fourth of July to our American readers!

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