Today’s Headlines and Commentary

A U.S. Navy nuclear engineer and his wife have been charged with passing secret information about nuclear submarines to a foreign country, says the Washington Post. Jonathan Toebbe and his wife, Diana, were arrested Saturday in West Virginia for revealing restricted data defined under the Atomic Energy Act. 

Pharmaceutical company Merck is seeking U.S. Food and Drug Administration emergency use authorization for what would be the first oral antiviral coronavirus treatment, molnupiravir, according to CNN. The U.S. government has already purchased 1.7 million treatment courses and will offer tiered pricing to low-and-middle-income countries.

On Friday, President Biden signed into law a bipartisan bill to financially support U.S. government officials who have suffered traumatic neurological injuries that may be caused by “Havana Syndrome,” reports the New York Times. There is a widespread belief that directed energy targeted at embassies and residents is the cause of the unexpected brain injuries. 

Voter turnout in Iraq’s parliamentary elections Monday was reported to be 41 percent, a record low in the post-Saddam Hussein era, says AP News. The election was held months earlier than planned as a concession to protests against the government’s corruption and mismanagement. Young Iraqis were especially reluctant to vote, as many believe that the election will only bring back the same corrupt politicians and parties.

AP News shared a new poll by the Pearson Institute and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that most Americans have serious concerns about cyberattacks and view China and Russia as major threats. The findings were released amid a difficult year of ransomware attacks and cyber espionage campaigns that affected both public and private sector groups. This broad agreement could bolster efforts by President Biden to strengthen both public and private cyber defenses.

ICYMI: This Weekend on Lawfare

Jen Patja Howell shared an episode of the Lawfare Podcast in which Benjamin Wittes sat down with Alan Rozenshtein, Quinta Jurercic and Bryce Klehm to discuss the Senate Judiciary Committee’s report on President Trump’s attempts to pressure the Department of Justice to overturn the 2020 election.

Kim Cragin, Michael Bartlett and Will Crass examined how Spain’s close counterterrorism cooperation with Morocco provides a model for effective international efforts to prevent terrorist attacks.

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