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[JURIST] A former National Security Agency (NSA) [official website] contractor was indicted [indictment, PDF] on Wednesday by a federal grand jury on charges that he willfully retained national defense information. US officials are stating [press release] that the theft by Harold Thomas Martin may have been the largest heist of classified government information in history. Martin allegedly spent over 20 years stealing highly sensitive government material [CNN report] related to national defense. It is unclear what, if anything, Martin did with all the stolen data. Martin now faces 20 criminal counts, each of which is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Martin worked for Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp, which also employed Edward Snowden. Martin was employed as a private contractor for at least seven different companies, beginning in 1993. His positions dealing with government computer systems, gave him various security clearances that routinely provided him access to top-secret information. The indictment alleges Martin stole documents from US Cyber Command, the CIA, the NSA and the National Reconnaissance Office [official websites]. Martin's initial appearance in the US District Court for the District of Maryland is scheduled for next Tuesday.

Governments around the world have re-examined their data privacy laws in the wake of a myriad of data leaks, including the Edward Snowden [JURIST backgrounder] leaks. National governments around the world have attempted [JURIST op-ed] to gain control over data transferred within their borders. On Tuesday the US House approved [JURIST report] a measure that would updat US privacy laws in regards to e-mails and cloud storage. In October 2015 the European Court of Justice ruled [JURIST report] that EU user data transferred to the US was not sufficiently protected. In June 2015 a court in The Hague struck down [JURIST report] a Dutch law that allowed the government to retain telephone and Internet data of Dutch citizens for up to 12 months in an effort to combat terrorism and organized crime.

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Former NSA contractor indicted in theft of classified government information - JURIST

The State

Myrtle Beach business man to face attempted murder trial; Stand Your Ground challenge denied The State David sought immunity from the charges in the incident under the shield of the state's Stand Your Ground law, which says deadly force is allowed to defend someone's home, place of business or vehicle. During closing arguments Friday morning, David's ... Judge denies 'stand your ground' argument in Myrtle Beach ...WBTW - Myrtle Beach and Florence SC Judge says local businessman will stand trial for attempted murder ...ABC NEWS 4 Judge rules that Myrtle Beach shooting doesn't meet requirements for self defenseMyhorrynews all 6 news articles »

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Myrtle Beach business man to face attempted murder trial; Stand Your Ground challenge denied - The State

Mark L. Hopkins More Content Now

This is the second in a series of columns that relate to the purpose of the Second Amendment and the gun rights issue that continues to fester in our society. The first column pointed out the strong desire on the part of the leadership of the country to have a strong federal government. The focus here is in the feeling of necessity in the leadership to have a means to enforce federal law and to protect the government from citizen rebellions. The Second Amendment became the law of the land in 1791. Prior to that Daniel Shays, a former captain in the Continental Army, became the leader of a citizens rebellion in Massachusetts in response to what Shays and other farmers believed were high taxes and a government that was unresponsive to their grievances. In January 1787, they raided the arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts and continued their anti-government rebellions through the winter of that year. This was two years before the writing of the U.S. Bill of Rights with its all-important Second Amendment. Retired General George Washington was so upset by Shays Rebellion that he wrote three letters commenting on it. Excerpts from these letters follow: But for Gods sake tell me what is the cause of all these commotions. Do they proceed from licentiousness, British influence disseminated by Tories, or real grievances which admit of redress? In a second letter he worried that, Commotion of this sort, like snowballs, gather strength as they roll, if there is no opposition in the way to divide and crumble them. I am mortified beyond expression that in the moment of our acknowledged independence we should by our conduct verify the predictions of our transatlantic foe, and render ourselves ridiculous and contemptible in the eyes of all Europe. Later he wrote, If three years ago any person had told me that at this day I should see such a formidable rebellion against the laws and constitutions or our own making as now appears, I should have thought him a bedlamite, a fit subject for a mad house. Shays Rebellion was eventually put down when a group of wealthy merchants in Boston pooled their resources and created their own militia to quell the uprising. In the early 1790s, a second major rebellion began in Western Pennsylvania. It was called the Whiskey Rebellion and, again, was a revolt against taxes. Thus, the Second Amendment was written and signed into law in the shadow of these two major citizens rebellions. The U.S. Congress reacted to this second major rebellion by passing The Militia Act which gave teeth to the Second Amendment by requiring all military-age free adults to stand for service to enforce the laws of the Union, thereby insuring domestic tranquility. President Washington himself gave orders to form a militia of 13,000 men to put down the Whiskey Rebellion. His words later were ..this is how a well-regulated Militia should be used to serve the government in maintaining a strong security in each state, as the Second Amendment of The Bill of Rights intended. From the letters written by George Washington and the actions of Congress it is obvious that the purpose of the Second Amendment was to strengthen the Federal Government against rebellion and insurrection. It was not, as some contend, to equip the citizens to make war on the government. In fact, it was just the opposite. My first of the three gun rights columns focused on the desire of the U.S. leadership to have a strong central government and the means to protect that government from rebellion. In this column the focus has been on the like-minded efforts of both President George Washington and Congress to put teeth in the Second Amendment so security and an orderly society could be fostered. My third and final column on this subject will come next week.

Dr. Mark L. Hopkins writes for More Content Now and Scripps Newspapers. He is past president of colleges and universities in four states and currently serves as executive director of a higher-education consulting service. You will find Hopkins latest book, Journey to Gettysburg, on Amazon.com. Contact him at presnet@presnet.net.

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Mark L. Hopkins: The Second Amendment and Shays' Rebellion - Wicked Local Watertown

LONDON

From a flimsy rubber dinghy drifting 16 kilometers off Tripoli, the Libyan coast guard rescued more than 100 migrants this week, including a baby just a few weeks old. Close to 9,500 migrants have crossed the Mediterranean already this year putting 2017 on course to be a record year.

The European Union agreed this month to give the Tripoli government $213 million to bolster its security forces and coast guard; however, Italy wants a renewed push for a permanent political solution to the chaos in Libya and it's looking to Moscow for help.

The might be a wise move, according to Eurasia Group analyst Riccardo Fabiani.

"It's better to invite Russia to the table and have a strategic dialogue with them and establish some sort of connection and communication channel, rather than keep them out of the room so that you might end up one day waking up and suddenly discovering that Russia is now the main leader or power in the region," Fabiani said.

FILE - Smoke billows from a factory after an airstrike by forces loyal to former general Khalifa Haftar, in Benghazi, Libya, Oct. 22, 2014.

Libya is ruled by splintered factions, with the internationally recognized government in Tripoli, and a rival power base in the eastern city of Tobruk which backs strongman General Khalifa Haftar, also supported by Russia.

The U.N.'s special envoy to Libya, Martin Kobler, voiced optimism this week that the two sides can be reconciled.

"With bold decisions and actions, we will witness a political breakthrough that can place Libya on the path of peace, prosperity and stability," Kobler said.

Italy wants Russia to help drive the rival factions together. Britain's foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, this week offered his support for a power-sharing deal.

"We need to build on it and to create a genuine partnership between the east and the west of the country," Johnson said. "That's the crucial question, how to make sure that Haftar is in some way integrated into the government of Libya."

However, some EU states fear Moscow is seeking a military base in Libya. Malta which holds the rotating EU Council Presidency has warned that Russia's backing for Haftar could trigger a civil war.

"Nobody really knows what Russia wants from Libya," analyst Fabiani said. "They've so far had a very opportunistic approach to foreign policy, and specifically in the Middle East they've basically been trying to fill every vacuum that the U.S. has left in the region."

Fabiani says Europe and Russia are waiting to see if President Donald Trump will change U.S. policy on Libya.

"Right now, it's most likely that the U.S. will just disengage from Libya and will give a sort of implicit green light to Russia, as long as they can still intervene in Libya on an ad hoc basis to fight jihadism," he said.

Even as Italy seeks Russia's cooperation, the EU this month restated its determination to uphold sanctions on Moscow over its support for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

Italy's foreign minister, Angelino Alfano, is due to meet his Russian counterpart next week in Germany and Libya is set to top the agenda.

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Italy Seeks Russia's Help to Stabilize Libya, End Migrant Crisis - Voice of America

Mr Orbans chief of staff, Janos Lazar, said that the anti-migrant government will set up container camps on the southern border, where it wants to detain refugees while their asylum requests are being assessed.

There are around to 600 migrants in Hungary waiting for their asylum application to be processed, mostly in open camps, which pose a "security risk".

Mr Lazar said the aim was to restrict them in their movement, keeping them on the border.

GETTY

GETTY

There are around to 600 migrants in Hungary waiting for their asylum application to be processed

The move is the latest in a string of interventions by Hungary to crack down on the escalating migrant crisis, with a growing number of illegal immigrants attempting to land in the country.

There are currently 500 border hunters patrolling the Hungarian-Serbian border.

Ever since the migrant crisis erupted, with more than one million refugees pouring into Europe, Hungary has taken a robust stance on defending its borders.

The country was on a direct Balkans route used by migrants to make their way from Greece and into Serbia and Croatia.

REUTERS

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An African migrant is helped by emergency personnel after crossing the border fence between Morocco and Spain's north African enclave of Ceuta

GETTY

In response, Mr Orban insisted enough was enough and ordered his borders with Serbia and Croatia to be shut.

A razor-wire fence built along Hungary's southern border with Serbia and Croatia has helped to sharply reduce the number of migrants from the hundreds of thousands who last year moved up from the Balkans towards northern Europe, especially Germany

GETTY

But a steady flow of migrants are still arriving at Hungary's border with Serbia.

Hungary says it has registered 19,140 asylum applications in 2016 and more than 14,000 migrants have crossed its southern borders illegally.

Last month, Hungary announced its plans to recruit secondary students to protect the nations porous borders.

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Hungary set to build SECOND FENCE on border in battle against migrant 'security threat' - Express.co.uk