From uncovering illicit networks to tracing financial flows, strong investigations demand more than access — they demand tools that keep up. So we built our own.

Introducing Horizons: a platform by investigators, for investigators. 1/4 🧵

More 👇
c4ads.org/news/c4ads-lau… We built Horizons built to meet the operational realities of C4ADS analysts. It’s shaped by the challenges we face, the workflows we rely on, and the data we’ve collected over more than a decade of investigations into some of the world's most critical challenges. 2/4

NEW: If you’re reading this on an iPhone, there's a chance that the minerals used to build your device came from the #Xinjiang #Uyghur Autonomous Region of #China — and that they were produced with forced labor. 🧵 1/

Read 👇
c4ads.org/reports/fractu… But even if you’re an Android user, you’ve probably still interacted with at least one product or corporation that has ties to XUAR-based mining companies. Maybe you drive a Tesla, shop at Macy’s, or just recently went to see the Barbie movie with friends. 2/

If you’ve bought chocolate, cleaning supplies, or makeup, you’ve likely used palm oil. But this inescapable ingredient has a seedy record, & new C4ADS analysis reveals that major brands (ie Cargill & Nestlé) are sourcing palm oil from forced labor. 🧵

👉 c4ads.org/blogposts/2022… Recently, the int'l community has taken steps to develop transparency initiatives, responsible sourcing certifications, & even import restrictions on palm oil. Despite this, we've identified several major food conglomerates still importing palm oil produced with forced labor. 2/6

Last year C4ADS mapped out how cotton & tomato products produced by forced labor by Uyghurs in Xinjiang were permeating global markets. Now, we've identified 7 more major goods disproportionately produced in Xinjiang that implicate global trade. 🧵 1/9

👉 c4ads.org/everybodys-bus… Let’s look at peppers, used as everyday flavorings and food colorants, as an example. Chenguang Biotech is a global spice company that uses discriminatory & coercive practices in its pepper-producing Xinjiang subsidiaries. 2/9

Since 2013, experts have warned that China’s financial expansion in the Indo-Pacific region would destabilize its most vulnerable neighbors. Now, as Sri Lanka faces one of the gravest financial crises in the nation’s history, those effects are playing out in real time. 🧵 1/7 Sri Lankan officials are currently seeking economic assistance from China, which has invested heavily in Belt and Road Initiative projects in the country through a series of loans. C4ADS has investigated this relationship before – and uncovered some concerning patterns. 2/7

When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, C4ADS made a commitment to use our expertise to assist the Ukrainian people in any way we could. Over the past few weeks, we’ve been busy doing just that. 🧵 1/11 👇

c4ads.org/blogposts/2022… In just one week, C4ADS — working with the @nytimes, @rupeporg, and @ANTAC_ua — identified $314 million in Dubai luxury real estate belonging to 38 Russian politically exposed persons (aka PEPs) and oligarchs. 👇 2/11

nytimes.com/2022/03/09/us/…

For the last several months, we’ve been working with the @OcelliProject to bring their investigation into village destruction in #Myanmar’s #Rakhine State to life. We’re excited to share the results of that collaboration with you this Thursday, Dec 9.
1/4 The final product will be an interactive geospatial visualization of @OcelliProject’s data that catalogues thousands of destroyed buildings in Northern Rakhine State. The @planet images above show just 1 example of a village while it is burning, and after it has burned.
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BREAKING: Global brands, governments, and financial institutions are supporting #ForcedLabor and abuse in #Xinjiang through their purchases and investments c4ads.org/long-shadows In a new report, we reveal how the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) – a sanctioned Chinese government conglomerate that perpetrates mass detention and forced labor of #Uyghur people in #China – is still very much a part of global trade and finance.

1/4 Illicit gold mining in the Amazon has driven deforestation, contaminated river systems with mercury, and undermined public security across the region. In a new piece, @HenryPeyronnin analyzes 3 gold trading companies active in Madre de Dios, Peru 👇c4ads.org/blogposts/due-… 2/4 Nearly all of the gold exported by these companies since 2017 has been shipped to #India and the #UAE, where most of it appears to be refined and traded as bullion or jewelry.

THREAD: An apparent military drone recently fell out of the sky near a Chinese development in Koh Kong, Cambodia. We originally profiled this development in 2018; since then, it's been the focus of reporting on China’s secretive presence in Cambodia. 1/4 mobile.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-0… Our report Harbored Ambitions by @D_Thorne and @BenSpevack details the deep water port & airport being developed in Koh Kong. Cambodia has since agreed to allow Chinese soldiers on nearby Ream Naval Base and has hosted Chinese military delegations. 2/4 nytimes.com/2019/12/22/wor…

THREAD: How are weapons from Turkey finding their way into Libya's civil war? Flying armories on Moldovan planes. In the latest installment of our Assets in Flight series @Peterkirechu tracks these planes from Turkey to Libya.

c4ads.org/blogposts/2019… On December 26, 2019, Turkish President Recep Erdogan announced plans to deploy troops to Libya reportedly at request of the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) as it battles rival General Khalifa Haftar and the Libyan National Army (LNA).

aljazeera.com/news/2019/12/e…

NEW REPORT: In “Open Arms”, we analyze China’s Military-Civil Fusion (MCF) ecosystem and map the supply chains the People’s Liberation Army uses to procure sensitive tech using a sample of 1,665 entities linked to China's defense-industrial base. (1/x)

c4reports.org/open-arms The CCP is increasingly depending on its civilian economy to develop its military capabilities. After analyzing 65,727 international trade & 429 investment transactions by our sample, we pinpointed 14 risk indicators that a company may be contributing to PLA supply chains: