Intelligence & Security Briefings

✠ BLUF – Intelligence Division Alert: Damascus Church Bombing (22 June 2025) A coordinated ISIS terrorist attack struck the Prophet Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus during All Saints of Antioch liturgy, killing 20–22 worshippers and injuring dozens. The assailant opened fire inside the sanctuary before detonating a suicide belt. This marks the first major…

I. Executive Illumination Orthodoxy in Dialogue (OiD) presents itself as an independent Orthodox blog, yet our investigation finds it functions as a vector for progressive NGO-style rhetoric within the Church. Its donor architecture and narrative vocabulary betray alignment with external activist and academic networks rather than grassroots parish life. Key donors include academics and activists…

Stage 1: Pre-2003 – Should We Invade Iraq? Priors: Before 9/11, U.S. policymakers assessed the probability that Saddam Hussein posed an imminent threat to the U.S. homeland at only ~5%. Iraq had pursued weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in the 1980s (and even used chemical weapons in the Iran–Iraq War), but by the early 2000s…

Executive Summary By the mid-2030s, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) faces intensifying pressures at home even as it expands its footprint abroad. Slowing economic growth, an aging population, and mounting debts are squeezing Beijing’s resources and pushing it to lean harder on overseas assets – from ports and mines to energy projects – to…

Intelligence Estimate: Impact of Assad’s Abdication and HTS Ascendancy on the Antiochian Orthodox Patriarchate in Syria BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front): The abdication of Bashar al-Assad and the rise of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) present significant threats to Syria’s stability, minority populations, and U.S. interests in the region. The Orthodox Christian community faces immediate risks,…