Bellingcat Weekly Newsletter

Thank you for subscribing to the weekly Bellingcat newsletter! Each Sunday, we compile a selection of stories published by Bellingcat during the previous week, along with links to our favorite examples of open source research around the web. Along with our published content, we will update our readers on events that our staff and contributors are involved with, such as noteworthy interviews and training workshops.

This week, we are announcing our first five-day workshop in London, where journalists, researchers, or activists can learn digital research and verification techniques from Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins.

U.S. Bombing of the Al-Jinah Mosque and Omar Ibn al-Khatab Mosque Complex

Bellingcat Five-Day Open Source Investigation Workshop - London - June 19-23, 2017

On June 19th, Bellingcat will be running its first five-day open source investigation workshop in London, where participants will be taught the core skills of open source investigation by Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins. The course aims to take participants from mastering basic verification and investigation techniques to practicing the advanced investigation techniques used by Bellingcat in its award-winning investigative work.

The workshop price is £1000 per participant, plus VAT, and will take place near Euston station in London. Spaces are limited to 12 participants.

All participants must bring their own laptops, with WiFi provided at the venue.

The workshop will include:

Detailed case studies, from basic verification to in-depth investigations.
Hands-on practical work using a range of tools, platforms, and investigative techniques used by Bellingcat in its investigations.
Examining the application of open source investigation in subjects ranging from conflict to crime and corruption.

The workshop concludes with participant-led investigations supported by Eliot Higgins, allowing participants to apply their newly acquired investigative skills onto real world situations.

For further information or to reserve a place, send an email to contact@bellingcat.com

Eliot Higgins is the founder of Bellingcat and the Brown Moses Blog, visiting research associate at King's College London, research fellow at the Human Rights Center at UC Berkeley School of Law, and nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. He is an award winning investigative journalist and publishes the work of an international alliance of fellow investigators using freely available online information. He has helped inaugurate open-source and social media investigations by trawling through vast amounts of data uploaded to the web and social media sites. Bellingcat’s inquiries have revealed extraordinary findings, including linking the Buk used to down flight MH17 to Russia, uncovering details about the Aug 21st 2013 Sarin attacks in Damascus, and evidencing the involvement of the Russian military in the Ukrainian conflict.

Announcements, Events, and
Media Appearances

Earlier this year, we published multiple reports on Sergey Dubinsky, a former Russian intelligence officer who organized the transport and deployment of the Buk that shot down MH17. In a new investigation, Pavel Kanygin of Novaya Gazeta found a former comrade (pictured above) of Dubinsky who spoke about negotiating with him on opposite sides of Ukrainian conflict. Kanygin even managed to speak with Dubinsky, gathering a voice sample that was professionally analyzed and compared with the voice on the intercepted telephone calls released by Ukrainian intelligence services.

Notable open source investigations from last week

Professor Theodore A. Postol of MIT vs. The Concept of Time

Prof. Theodore Postol has been critical of reports published regarding the Syrian government's use of Sarin in the Syrian Civil War, including the 2013 attack in Ghouta and the recent attack in Khan Sheikhoun. With his most recent report, the professor made a very simple error -- figuring out the date of an attack detailed in a recent French intelligence report.

Shahid Nazeri Deploys Near the Strait

Chris Biggers analyzes recent satellite imagery to find the new deployment of Iran's high speed catamaran, the Sharid Nazeri, at the navy's First Region naval base.

Following “Russia’s Hemingway” to War

By far the most famous participant in the Ukrainian conflict is Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin, who recently formed his own battalion in Donetsk. A new DFRLab investigation tracks down the base of this battalion (a luxury hotel), and identifies many in the leadership structure.

This email was sent to eliothiggins@bellingcat.com
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