ESA-Obs

Disrupting al-Shabaab’s hold on Mogadishu’s economy

Commerce under siege

...The militant Islamist group al-Shabaab has long remained influential in Mogadishu through its sophisticated extortion system, which demands zakat payments —forced charitable tax— and levies on tra...

Posted on 24 Apr 2025

Global Initiative

Designating criminal groups as foreign terrorist organizations

...Bodies hanging from bridges; beheadings and other brutal executions; assassinations, including of police officers and innocent youths; kidnapping and fear-mongering – the violent acts carried out by...

Posted on 24 Apr 2025

Author(s): Walter Kemp

Drug Policy

The thalassopolitics of international drug trafficking

The thalassopolitics of international drug trafficking

...What if drug traffickers had already taken control of Europe’s major seaports? This alarming prospect is not just the stuff of crime fiction. The 116 tonnes of cocaine seized in 2023 at the Belgi...

Posted on 23 Apr 2025

Author(s): Florian Manet

Global Initiative

Joint US–India focus on cyber scams is a chance to curb a global fraud epidemic

...Since President Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office, leaders from across the world have visited the new president. In February, it was the turn of Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister. In th...

Posted on 21 Apr 2025

Author(s): Jack Meegan-Vickers, Kristina Amerhauser

UKR-Obs

Illicit trade between Ukraine’s Transcarpathia and the EU

Smuggling, Inc.

...Transcarpathia, Ukraine’s westernmost region, has long been a hub for cross-border smuggling, facilitated by deep-rooted corruption and its proximity to four EU countries. This report explores how t...

Posted on 15 Apr 2025

Geocriminality, Sanctions and organized crime, EUR-Obs, UKR-Obs

Lawless cyberspace: Why Eastern Europe leads global cybercrime

Lawless cyberspace

...Cybercrime is a growing global threat, causing trillions of dollars in economic damage annually. This report explores how Eastern Europe and Russia have become a significant hub for cybercriminal acti...

Posted on 07 Apr 2025

Author(s): Luke Rodeheffer

HT-Obs

Violence and Resilience in Haiti: Risk Bulletin #3

Observatory of Violence and Resilience in Haiti

...Risk Bulletin Download PDF Click here to view the Global Organized Crime Index fr Français Observatory of Violence and Resilience in Haiti Issue 3 April 2025 Summary highlights The Multinational Secu...

Posted on 02 Apr 2025

Crime & Conflict, UN - Security and Rights

Looking into the future: Transnational organized crime and UN Peace Operations

...At a moment when long-held global alliances for peace and security are being tested, the United Nations is undergoing a wholesale review of its peace operations. In 2025, it is undertaking both a peac...

Posted on 02 Apr 2025

Author(s): Summer Walker