Latest news with #proxies
Free Malaysia Today
11-07-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Daim's assets overseas valued at over RM3bil, says MACC
MACC said the overseas assets are found in more than 10 countries, including the UK, Switzerland, Indonesia, and several African countries. PETALING JAYA : High-value overseas assets linked to the late Daim Zainuddin, his family, and their proxies are estimated to exceed RM3 billion, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said today. MACC said the assets are found in more than 10 countries, including the US, the UK, Switzerland, Singapore, Italy, Japan, Indonesia, and several African countries. They are also found in the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands, both British territories, as well as Jersey, a British crown dependency. MACC said it made the discovery with the help of the UK's National Crime Agency and the International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (IACCC). 'Requests for more information on assets located in countries such as the US, Switzerland, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Italy and Japan are under way. 'These efforts are being coordinated with Bank Negara Malaysia, the IACCC, and mutual legal assistance applications through the Attorney-General's Chambers to enable legal and comprehensive enforcement measures,' it said in a statement. MACC said it had filed applications for restraining orders against assets in Singapore and Jersey at the Kuala Lumpur High Court on June 19, with hearings having taken place on June 23-25. These applications involve four accounts valued at RM1.15 billion in Jersey, and 12 accounts in Singapore keeping a total of RM540 million. On June 3, MACC froze seven properties and a bank account in London believed to be worth 132 million pounds (RM758.2 million), reportedly linked to Daim's widow, Naimah Khalid, and her family. The assets in question comprise two commercial buildings at St Mary Axe and One Crown Court, and three luxury residences at Bryanston Square, Bryanston Mews, and Lancaster Gate. The other assets include two residences at Gloucester Place, and a CAF Bank Ltd (UK) account held by The Ilham Foundation. MACC had also filed an application in the High Court to forfeit Ilham Tower, a 60-storey tower in Kuala Lumpur linked to Daim. The anti-graft agency said today it had recorded statements from Naimah and her son, Amir Zainuddin, on June 14 concerning undisclosed extraordinary assets. 'A statement will also be recorded from her second son, Amin Zainuddin, who is currently in the UK. 'All three are major shareholders in Ilham Baru Sdn Bhd, the company that holds majority shares in Ilham Tower Sdn Bhd, and has been identified as the beneficial owner of Ilham Tower,' it said. MACC said it issued notices for asset declaration yesterday to 22 individuals identified as close relatives and associates of Daim and Naimah for purposes of tracing and verifying asset ownership.
Arab News
09-07-2025
- Arab News
European intelligence officials warn that a Russian sabotage campaign is escalating
LONDON: It was almost midnight when a truck driver resting in his cab heard the crackling of flames at a warehouse in east London storing equipment for Ukraine. He grabbed a fire extinguisher and leapt out — but realized the blaze was too big and retreated. When police arrived, they banged on the doors of a nearby apartment building, shouting at residents to evacuate. Parents grabbed children and ran into the street. About 30 minutes after the fire started, Dylan Earl, a British man who admitted to organizing the arson, received a message from a man UK authorities say was his Russian handler. 'Excellent,' it read in Russian. On Tuesday, a British court found three men guilty of arson in the March 2024 plot that prosecutors said was masterminded by Russia's intelligence services — part of a campaign of disruption across Europe that Western officials blame on Moscow and its proxies. Two other men, including Earl, previously pleaded guilty to organizing the arson. The fire is one of more than 70 incidents linked to Russia that The Associated Press has documented since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Four European intelligence officials told AP they're worried the risk of serious injury or even death is rising as untrained saboteurs set fires near homes and businesses, plant explosives or build bombs. AP's tracking shows 12 incidents of arson or serious sabotage last year compared with two in 2023 and none in 2022. 'When you start a campaign, it creates its own dynamic and gets more and more violent over time,' said one of the officials, who holds a senior position at a European intelligence agency. The official, like two others, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss security matters. The Kremlin did not reply to a request for comment on the British case. Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov previously said the Kremlin has never been shown 'any proofs' supporting accusations Russia is running a sabotage campaign and said 'certainly we definitely reject any allegations.' Recruiting young amateurs Most of the saboteurs accused of working on behalf of Russia are foreign, including Ukrainians. They include young people with no criminal records who are frequently hired for a few thousand dollars, the intelligence officials said. The senior official said Russia has been forced to rely increasingly on such amateurs since hundreds of Moscow's spies were expelled from Western countries following an operation to poison former Russian intelligence officer Sergey Skripal in the UK in 2018. That led to the death of a British woman — and a major response from the West. Russia 'had to change the modus operandi, from using cadre officers to using proxies, making a more flexible, deniable system,' the official said. Documents shared during the London warehouse trial offered a rare glimpse into how young men are recruited. Among those were transcripts of messages between a man prosecutors said was a Russian intelligence operative and his recruit, Earl, who was active on Telegram channels associated with the Wagner group — a mercenary organization whose operations were taken over by Russia's Defense Ministry in 2023. Russian military intelligence — acting through Wagner — was likely behind the plot, said Kevin Riehle, a lecturer in Intelligence and National Security at Brunel University in London. The recruiter — who used the handle Privet Bot — posted multiple times in a Telegram channel asking for people to join the battle against the West, Riehle told the court. Once connected, the recruiter and Earl communicated predominantly in Russian with Earl using Google to translate, according to screenshots on his phone. Their messages ranged from the deadly serious to the almost comic. The recruiter told Earl, 21, that he was 'wise and clever despite being young,' and suggested he watch the television show 'The Americans' — about Soviet KGB intelligence officers undercover in the US 'It will be your manual,' the recruiter wrote. In one message, Earl boasted of — unproven — ties to the Irish Republican Army, to 'murderers, kidnappers, soldiers, drug dealers, fraudsters, car thieves,' promising to be 'the best spy you have ever seen.' Potential for injuries Earl and another man eventually recruited others who went to the warehouse the night of the fire. Earl never met the men, according to messages shared in court, and it's unclear whether he ever visited the site himself. Once at the warehouse, one of the men poured out a jerrycan of gasoline before igniting a rag and throwing it on the fuel. Another recorded the arson on his phone. It was also captured on CCTV. The warehouse was the site of a mail order company that sent supplies to Ukraine, including StarLink devices that provide Internet by satellite and are used by the country's military. Around half the warehouse's contents were destroyed in the fire, which burned just meters (yards) from Yevhen Harasym, the truck driver, and a short distance from an outbuilding in the yard of a home and the apartment block. More than 60 firefighters responded. 'I started knocking on everyone's doors screaming and shouting at the top of my lungs, 'There's a fire, there's a fire, get out!'' Tessa Ribera Fernandez, who lives in the block with her 2-year-old son, told the court. A campaign grows more dangerous When Russia's disruption campaign started following the Ukraine invasion, vandalism – including defacing monuments or graffiti — was more common, said the senior European intelligence official. 'Over the last year, it has developed to arson and assassination,' the official said. Other incidents linked to Russia with the potential to cause serious injury or death include a plot to put explosive devices on cargo planes – the packages ignited on the ground – and plots to set fire to shopping centers in Poland, Latvia and Lithuania. Lithuanian prosecutors said a Ukrainian teenager was part of a plan to plant a bomb in an IKEA store just outside the capital of Vilnius last year. It sparked a massive fire in the early hours of the morning. No one was injured. More fires and a kidnapping plot Shortly after the fire in London, Earl and his co-conspirators discussed what they would do next, according to messages shared with the court. They talked about burning down London businesses owned by Evgeny Chichvarkin — a Russian tycoon who delivered supplies to Ukraine. Hedonism Wines and the restaurant Hide should be turned to 'ashes,' Earl said. In the messages, Earl vacillated between saying they didn't 'need' any casualties and that if they 'wanted to hurt someone,' they could put nails in a homemade explosive device. He noted there were homes above the wine shop. That reflects a phenomenon the senior intelligence official noted: Middlemen sometimes suggest ideas — each one a 'little better' and more dangerous. While Russia's intelligence services try to keep 'strict operational control' — giving targets, deciding on devices and demanding recruits record the sabotage — sometimes 'control does not hold,' said Lotta Hakala, a senior analyst at the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service. That appears to be what happened in London. After the fire, the Russian recruiter told Earl he 'rushed into burning these warehouses without my approval.' Because of that, he said, 'it will be impossible to pay for this arson.' Still, the recruiter told Earl he wanted to target more businesses with links to Ukraine. 'You are our dagger in Europe and we will be sharpening you carefully,' the recruiter wrote. 'Then we will start using you in serious battles.'
The Independent
09-07-2025
- The Independent
European intelligence officials warn that a Russian sabotage campaign is escalating
It was almost midnight when a truck driver resting in his cab heard the crackling of flames at a warehouse in east London storing equipment for Ukraine. He grabbed a fire extinguisher and leapt out — but realized the blaze was too big and retreated. When police arrived, they banged on the doors of a nearby apartment building, shouting at residents to evacuate. Parents grabbed children and ran into the street. About 30 minutes after the fire started, Dylan Earl, a British man who admitted to organizing the arson, received a message from a man U.K. authorities say was his Russian handler. 'Excellent,' it read in Russian. On Tuesday, a British court found three men guilty of arson in the March 2024 plot that prosecutors said was masterminded by Russia's intelligence services — part of a campaign of disruption across Europe that Western officials blame on Moscow and its proxies. Two other men, including Earl, previously pleaded guilty to organizing the arson. The fire is one of more than 70 incidents linked to Russia that The Associated Press has documented since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Four European intelligence officials told AP they're worried the risk of serious injury or even death is rising as untrained saboteurs set fires near homes and businesses, plant explosives or build bombs. AP's tracking shows 12 incidents of arson or serious sabotage last year compared with two in 2023 and none in 2022. 'When you start a campaign, it creates its own dynamic and gets more and more violent over time,' said one of the officials, who holds a senior position at a European intelligence agency. The official, like two others, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss security matters. The Kremlin did not reply to a request for comment on the British case. Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov previously said the Kremlin has never been shown 'any proofs' supporting accusations Russia is running a sabotage campaign and said 'certainly we definitely reject any allegations.' Recruiting young amateurs Most of the saboteurs accused of working on behalf of Russia are foreign, including Ukrainians. They include young people with no criminal records who are frequently hired for a few thousand dollars, the intelligence officials said. The senior official said Russia has been forced to rely increasingly on such amateurs since hundreds of Moscow's spies were expelled from Western countries following an operation to poison former Russian intelligence officer Sergey Skripal in the U.K. in 2018. That led to the death of a British woman — and a major response from the West. Russia 'had to change the modus operandi, from using cadre officers to using proxies, making a more flexible, deniable system,' the official said. Documents shared during the London warehouse trial offered a rare glimpse into how young men are recruited. Among those were transcripts of messages between a man prosecutors said was a Russian intelligence operative and his recruit, Earl, who was active on Telegram channels associated with the Wagner group — a mercenary organization whose operations were taken over by Russia's Defense Ministry in 2023. Russian military intelligence — acting through Wagner — was likely behind the plot, said Kevin Riehle, a lecturer in Intelligence and National Security at Brunel University in London. The recruiter — who used the handle Privet Bot — posted multiple times in a Telegram channel asking for people to join the battle against the West, Riehle told the court. Once connected, the recruiter and Earl communicated predominantly in Russian with Earl using Google to translate, according to screenshots on his phone. Their messages ranged from the deadly serious to the almost comic. The recruiter told Earl, 21, that he was 'wise and clever despite being young,' and suggested he watch the television show 'The Americans' — about Soviet KGB intelligence officers undercover in the U.S. 'It will be your manual,' the recruiter wrote. In one message, Earl boasted of — unproven — ties to the Irish Republican Army, to 'murderers, kidnappers, soldiers, drug dealers, fraudsters, car thieves,' promising to be 'the best spy you have ever seen.' Potential for injuries Earl and another man eventually recruited others who went to the warehouse the night of the fire. Earl never met the men, according to messages shared in court, and it's unclear whether he ever visited the site himself. Once at the warehouse, one of the men poured out a jerrycan of gasoline before igniting a rag and throwing it on the fuel. Another recorded the arson on his phone. It was also captured on CCTV. The warehouse was the site of a mail order company that sent supplies to Ukraine, including StarLink devices that provide internet by satellite and are used by the country's military. Around half the warehouse's contents were destroyed in the fire, which burned just meters (yards) from Yevhen Harasym, the truck driver, and a short distance from an outbuilding in the yard of a home and the apartment block. More than 60 firefighters responded. 'I started knocking on everyone's doors screaming and shouting at the top of my lungs, 'There's a fire, there's a fire, get out!'' Tessa Ribera Fernandez, who lives in the block with her 2-year-old son, told the court. A campaign grows more dangerous When Russia's disruption campaign started following the Ukraine invasion, vandalism – including defacing monuments or graffiti — was more common, said the senior European intelligence official. 'Over the last year, it has developed to arson and assassination,' the official said. Other incidents linked to Russia with the potential to cause serious injury or death include a plot to put explosive devices on cargo planes – the packages ignited on the ground – and plots to set fire to shopping centers in Poland, Latvia and Lithuania. Lithuanian prosecutors said a Ukrainian teenager was part of a plan to plant a bomb in an IKEA store just outside the capital of Vilnius last year. It sparked a massive fire in the early hours of the morning. No one was injured. More fires and a kidnapping plot Shortly after the fire in London, Earl and his co-conspirators discussed what they would do next, according to messages shared with the court. They talked about burning down London businesses owned by Evgeny Chichvarkin — a Russian tycoon who delivered supplies to Ukraine. Hedonism Wines and the restaurant Hide should be turned to 'ashes,' Earl said. In the messages, Earl vacillated between saying they didn't 'need' any casualties and that if they 'wanted to hurt someone,' they could put nails in a homemade explosive device. He noted there were homes above the wine shop. That reflects a phenomenon the senior intelligence official noted: Middlemen sometimes suggest ideas — each one a 'little better' and more dangerous. While Russia's intelligence services try to keep 'strict operational control' — giving targets, deciding on devices and demanding recruits record the sabotage — sometimes 'control does not hold,' said Lotta Hakala, a senior analyst at the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service. That appears to be what happened in London. After the fire, the Russian recruiter told Earl he 'rushed into burning these warehouses without my approval.' Because of that, he said, 'it will be impossible to pay for this arson.' Still, the recruiter told Earl he wanted to target more businesses with links to Ukraine. 'You are our dagger in Europe and we will be sharpening you carefully,' the recruiter wrote. 'Then we will start using you in serious battles.'
Bloomberg
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Why Is Hezbollah Staying Out of the Iran-Israel War?
00:00 We've obviously spent a lot of time the last couple of days talking about Iran's ballistic missile systems, their defense systems, their nuclear sites, but not a lot about the proxies. And namely because the proxies have been remarkably quiet, specifically Hezbollah. Why have Hezbollah been so quiet this time around? As you say, remarkably quiet and remarkably degraded. Let's remember what happened back in September when Israel's war on Hezbollah began. They the military capability has almost been wiped out. Israel has said we've destroyed most of their missiles, stockpile their drone stockpiles. And I don't know if you remember those scenes from the idea of the videos that they were really destroying entire villages because they were detonating underground tunnels that Hezbollah built, and that's where they stored most of their arsenal. So arsenal wise, military capability wise, that's been degraded. And secondly, we have to look at Hezbollah's command and leadership status now. Those have been decapitated, especially with the killing of their most revered leader, Nasrallah, and most of their commanders, their high ranking military commanders. And third of all, we have to look at that support base, that support place base. That's always been a fuel for the group. The morale is not there for war. Reconstruction hasn't started. They are distributing very little amount of money to people to rebuild their homes, be it in Beirut, southern suburbs or in south Lebanon. And that is a massive if we're comparing it to 2006 after the Israel Hezbollah war, that was very much different. And Iran is financially squeezed. And you can see that on the ground with Hezbollah, that there is not much money going around. So these three things, plus the domestic pressure they're under, their influence in Lebanon has also been has also declined quite drastically. Right, with the new president who is very pro gulf and pro-U.S. and the new government, excuse me, the technocrats and this pressure to disarm Hezbollah, though the talks have not started locally for that. This is still massive pressure and it shows you how much the group, the group's influence in Lebanon has been degraded as well. So does that change? I mean, of course, a lot of what you listed seems to be structural now in nature, but will the calculus change? Should the US get involved militarily in the war? That's a very good question, and I think everyone's asking this same exact question. That's the concern. If the US joins this war, would Iran try to pressure the proxies to go in? Or because this would mean the survival of the regime now with the Houthis is a bit different. A lot of the experts who follow the Houthis really closely say they don't listen to Iran that much and they're not ideologically linked to the regime, as Hezbollah was before and even now. So the Houthis might not join and join. We saw just one coordinated strike between the Houthis and and Iran and that, of course, the Houthis are too far away. And sometimes those missiles don't even make it past the defense system. But yes, if the US joins, the big question would be would Iran play all of its cards, including, of course, not just US assets in the region, but would it try to revive those proxies? For me, it's it's hard to see that as it's financially being squeezed and its own military capability is also being squeezed. We're seeing it even rationing missiles maybe for that moment when the US joins.
