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EATONTOWN A planned park in Eatontown will honor the memory of a borough native who died in the Iraq War almost two decades ago.

During a recent meeting, members of the Borough Council passed a resolution naming and dedicating the parcel for a planned park on the former Fort Monmouth property as the Capt. James M. Gurbisz Memorial Park.

Gurbisz was serving in the U.S. Army when he was killed supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on Nov. 4, 2005, according to information posted on njrunforthefallen.org

The website states Gurbisz was a platoon leader of the 26th Forward Support Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division (who) was killed in Baghdad along with SPC Dustin Allan Yancey during a scouting mission in Baghdad. A 1998 graduate from Monmouth Regional High School, Tinton Falls, he was a star athlete and scholar. Graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from West Point in 2002, the first graduating class following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

Gurbisz is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

As noted in the councils resolution, Eatontown acquired a 4.6-acre parcel on the former Fort Monmouth from the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority in March. Municipal officials intend to develop the parcel into a park.

The property has previously been known as the Eatontown Parks Parcel and the Nicodemus Gate Parcel. The property will officially be named the Capt. James M. Gurbisz Memorial Park when it opens to the public.

According to the resolution, Gurbisz was the son of a Vietnam War veteran and frequently visited Fort Monmouth at an early age. Gurbisz was killed in Baghdad in 2005 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

The Borough of Eatontown wishes to honor the memory of Capt. James M. Gurbisz with a lasting legacy in the borough and ensure his name and sacrifice are never forgotten, municipal officials wrote in the resolution. The ultimate sacrifice paid by Capt. Gurbisz (is) a debt which can never be repaid.

In other business, council members approved the payment of additional funds to Frank Lurch Demolition Co. for demolition work and asbestos removal at the site that will become the Capt. James M. Gurbisz Memorial Park.

The company was previously awarded a contract to demolish several buildings at the site. After starting work, the contractor discovered an additional area of asbestos that required remediation. The funds for the removal of the additional asbestos are in an amount not to exceed $6,750.

Finally, council members authorized T&M Associates, the boroughs engineering firm, to explore the availability of state funding options that could be used to pay for flooding mitigation work associated with flooding at Wampum Brook, according to a resolution.

More here:
Eatontown park will be named in honor of soldier killed in Iraq - centraljersey.com

This year, World Refugee Day reminds us that every person has a right to seek safety whoever they are, wherever they come from and whenever they are forced to flee conflict or persecution.In Iraq and especially in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), we commend the people and authorities for the welcome extended to some 300,000 Syrian, Iranian, Turkish and other refugees and asylum-seekers of which over 90 percent live in the KRI.Today, as Iraq is recovering from years of armed violence and internal displacements due to the fight against ISIL (Daesh), UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, stands with refugees and communities who have been hosting them as the country heads towards stability and prosperity.UNHCR praises the authorities in Iraq, particularly in KRI, for providing healthcare and soon education to the refugees through their public systems, and for having allowed them to fend for themselves by getting jobs. Funding for humanitarian emergency responses around the world is being overstretched, as partners must address the needs of the 100 million people who have been forced to leave their homes, most recently in Ethiopia, Afghanistan, and Ukraine. Nonetheless,UNHCR remains committed to supporting the Iraqi and KRI authorities and people in their efforts to help refugees restore their lives with dignity. Today, on World Refugee Day, we celebrate the generosity that the authorities and people in Iraq, especially in the KRI, have demonstrated even during their own adversity: they have opened their doors and hearts to shelter and protect those displaced from neighboring countries and their own sisters and brothers who fled ISIL (Daesh) violence. Seeing today in Erbil how so many refugees have been able to resume dignified lives is a testament to their resilience, but also to the hospitality of their hosts. UNHCR remains committed to working together with the authorities and the international community to support host communities and refugees alike. On this day, it is also important to reiterate the importance of keeping borders open to allow safe passage to those who flee violence and persecution - whoever they are, wherever they come from, and whenever they are forced to flee, we must be prepared to welcome them, like Iraq and the KRI has done in particular in relation to Syrian refugees. said Jean-Nicolas Beuze, Representative of UNHCR in Iraq.Durable solutions for those who were forced to flee must be sought, especially in protracted situations and until the time refugees can go home in safety and dignity. In Iraq, UNHCR is investing in existing public services to strengthen their capacity to serve both host and displaced communities through readily accessible interventions of high quality. Ultimately, it is to the benefit of all that refugees become more self-reliant and engage in the local economy so that they no longer depend on humanitarian assistance and contribute to the communities that welcomed them.

The UN response in Iraq in relation to Iraqi families displaced by ISIL, many of whom have now returned home, is transitioning from a humanitarian response into one rooted in a development framework, working hand in hand with relevant public institutions. It is critical that refugees and asylum-seekers are not left behind while the country moves towards the achievement of sustainable development goals, leaving behind years of a daunting humanitarian crisis.By welcoming refugees, Iraq and the KRI have allowed those forced to flee to rebuild their lives free from discrimination and away from armed violence, providing them space to rebuild their lives in safety. UNHCR is committed to standing with the authorities and people in Iraq, including KRI, until long-term solutions are achieved.

[FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:]

Firas Al-Khateeb, Spokesman and Communication Officer

Baghdad, Iraq +964 780 918 9700 khateeb@unhcr.org

Shaza Shekfeh, Associate Communication Officer

Erbil, Iraq +964 770 494 6384 shekfehs@unhcr.org

Rasheed Rasheed, Senior Communications Associate

Dohuk, Iraq +964 750 713 0014 rasheedr@unhcr.org

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On World Refugee Day: Everyone has the right to seek safety - Iraq - ReliefWeb

Faezeh Rafsanjani, the daughter of late Iranian president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, revealed that her father sought an end to the Iran-Iraq war.

He proposed ending the war to then supreme leader Khomeini, but he refused, she revealed in an interview to Asharq television.

Moreover, she revealed that her father sought openness towards Saudi Arabia and backed restoring Irans relations with the United States.

He did not oppose ties with any country, except for Israel, she added.

Rafsanjani, who is a member of the reformist Executives of Construction Party, slammed the ruling conservatives in Iran, saying they are not seeking a nuclear deal with the West because they are actually benefitting from it.

She noted how many conservatives often slam the US and European countries, while their children purse an education in the West.

She doubted that a nuclear deal would be reached during the term of US President Joe Biden, noting that the Iranians and Americans were awaiting the outcome of the US Midterm elections.

Rafsanjanis father had pursued reform in Iran and sought openness with neighboring countries and the West.

His daughter called on her country to be open to the world because few Iranians really support being closed off from it.

Continued here:
Faezeh Rafsanjani: My Father Tried to Convince Khomeini to End War with Iraq - Asharq Al-awsat - English

News

Government cybersecurity organizations on Tuesday announced guidelines for using Microsoft's built-in PowerShell scripting language with Windows, without having it also be leveraged by attackers.

The newly released joint "Cybersecurity Information Sheet" on PowerShell (PDF) was put together by "cybersecurity authorities from the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom." Participants on the U.S. side included the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Security Agency (NSA).

The agencies noted that "malicious actors" use PowerShell for their attacks after first gaining network access. However, the authors stopped short of suggesting that organizations remove it. PowerShell has "defensive capabilities," too, they noted. Also, blocking PowerShell "prevents components of the Windows operating system from running properly."

Organizations, though, should uninstall PowerShell version 2 because it has security holes. More recent PowerShell versions, beginning with PowerShell version 5, have "prevention, detection and authentication capabilities" that are useful for defenders.

The security "hardening" technologies to use in conjunction with PowerShell include:

The authors concluded that "PowerShell is essential" to secure the Windows operating systems, and is OK to use after the problems in version 2 were addressed. PowerShell shouldn't be removed, but organizations should harden it, where possible.

Particularly on the logging and detection side, IT pros may need to take some actions to optimally secure PowerShell because they aren't enabled by default.

"Deep Script Block Logging, Module Logging, and Over-the-Shoulder transcription are disabled by default," the guide explained. "The authors recommend enabling the capabilities where feasible."

The agencies recommendations were just intended to apply to organizations running Windows, and not to Linux and macOS environments, according to a footnote in the report.

About the Author

Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.

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CISA, NSA and Other Agencies Recommend Hardening PowerShell - Redmondmag.com

MANILA, Philippines Incoming National Security Adviser Clarita Carlos voiced her disapproval Friday of the practice of red-tagging, or conflating progressive critics and activists as armed insurgents, calling it "unproductive."

This comes after incumbent National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, a retired Philippine Army general, launched an offensive against progressive groups and alternative media outfitswith just two weeks left in his term. Advocates called this an attack on press freedom and civil liberties.

Speaking overThe Mangahas Interviews, Carlos questioned the practice of red-tagging popularized as of late under the Duterte administration's anti-insurgency campaign calling it lazy thinking.

"What I will bring into our national security landscape is really my training as a political scientist...when you run out of arguments, you label.It's not a productive thing and it's antithetical to the presumption of innocence, right? Why are we doing things that are not productive? Let's stop doing that," she said in mixed Filipino and English.

"If you have proof, well then you should file a case in court. Does labeling help you? No, so don't waste your time."

Outgoing Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, who has accepted his nomination as the next solicitor general, also said the statement earlier this week. The incoming solicitor general said that "labelling" is dangerous and complaints should be filed instead.

Carlos said that the national government should address the root causes of the communist insurgency by looking at problems on the ground.

"The roots are there...address the lack of justice, the lack of opportunities for our youth," she said in Filipino. "And you're killing their future; they can't aspire to be journalists, scientists, engineers, architects...If you kill them, they'll take up arms."

"So we should give them opportunities to study, to be healthy, health is a security issue, and give them opportunities to flourish as an individual, because they will contribute to building a better Philippines. Not by holding a gun, but by becoming a senator, a plumber, a carpenter. Because that's what this is about."

Categorically asked if there would be changes in the controversial National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, Carlos said: "That wasn't included when we were briefed...I'll need to study that first [because] there are so many offices involved...I don't want to comment first because I don't understand it yet."

As the government's security adviser, Carlos will be among those behind thecontroversialAnti-Terrorism Council, feared by many to be abuse its powers to limit dissent and undermine democracy under pretext of countering terrorism.

In President Rodrigo Duterte's Philippines, the communist insurgency is the boogeyman up there with the illegal drug trade as public enemy number one. The president's nightly addresses feature lengthy asides that see the chief executive railing against left-leaning activists and drug suspects alike.

This has culminated in the widespread practice of red-tagging,defined by Philippine jurisprudence as the act of labeling, branding, naming and accusing individuals and/or organizations of being left-leaning, subversives, communists or terrorists (used as) a strategy... by State agents, particularly law enforcement agencies and the military, against those perceived to be threats or enemies of the State.

But the Commission on Human Rights has warned that the practice of red-tagging, which has increased in 2020, "violates the constitutional guarantee of presumption of innocence and may have serious implications on the security and movement of individuals and groups involved."

READ:Militarization in Philippines has 'damaging effects' on civic space, democratic freedoms think tank

Many activists and members of progressive and left-leaning groups have pointed out that many who are red-tagged often end up shot and killed by unknown assailants. Rights groups, including the UN Human Rights Office, have said the dangerous practice has been institutionalized in the country.

The Constitution guarantees the presumption of innocence, while leaning towards the left of the political spectrum or even being a communist is not illegal in the Philippines.

Even the government's own National Security Plan 2017-2022 acknowledges what it calls "the root causes of internal conflicts, namely: poverty and social injustice, widespread economic inequity, poor governance, abuse and control of political power, and marginalization of cultural communities."

"Terrorism is hard to define. I teach that. There are over 100 definitions for it. Even the UN cannot ask for a consensus on its definition. Why? Because terrorism is a political-related term," Carlos said.

"Just use terms under the Penal Code because those are defined in the operational component." Franco Luna

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Incoming NSA chief on 'unproductive' practice of red-tagging: Let's stop doing that - Philstar.com